LILY

Diagnosed with breast cancer and nearing the end of her treatment, Lily turns her focus to the rest of her life with newfound clarity. Wandering through atmospheric New York City streets, she reevaluates what she has built for herself, including her life with an older boyfriend and his children and her feelings about her long-absent father. Lingering in intimate, charged moments with Lily during this vulnerable period, first-time director Matt Creed and actress Amy Grantham create a mature, stylish character piece reminiscent of classic French New Wave.

Loosely based on the real-life experiences of co-writer and lead actress Grantham, Lily is an immersion into a rarely explored side of the cancer narrative: the moment when the disease is gone and the survivor is thrown back into everyday life. How does one cope with that experience? What are the emotions that come with losing something that has been an integral part of your life, even if that something was a life-threatening disease? Grappling with these ambivalent issues with courage and sensitivity, collaborators Creed and Grantham have made a delicate, heartfelt film that deals with cancer but is not a cancer film.

—Cara Cusumano