Official Trailer for Lovely ‘Familiar Touch’ Starring Kathleen Chalfant

Official Trailer for Lovely ‘Familiar Touch’ Starring Kathleen Chalfant

by Alex Billington
May 13, 2025
Source: YouTube

“We’re just going to take this step by step…” Music Box Films has revealed an official trailer for Familiar Touch, a lovely indie drama marking the feature directorial debut of filmmaker Sarah Friedland. It’s worth a watch. This won the Best Actress & Best Director & Best Debut Film awards in the Orizzonti section at the 2024 Venice Film Festival, then went on to play at the Vancouver, London, Tromso, Singapore, AFI Fest, New Films/New Directors Film Festivals as well. Familiar Touch is a coming-of-old-age film about an older woman dealing with memory loss. It’s lead by a remarkable performance by Tony nominee Kathleen Chalfant as Ruth. Made in close collaboration with residents of a retirement community, it challenges the perceptions around aging and sensitively depicts the complexities around intimacy and desire in later life. The film follows the winding path of octogenarian Ruth’s shifting memories and desires while remaining rooted in her sage perspective. Also starring Carolyn Michelle, Andy McQueen, and H. Jon Benjamin as her son. This is a beautifully tender trailer that perfectly captures all the heartwarming vibes of the film.

Here’s the first official trailer for Sarah Friedland’s film Familiar Touch, direct from YouTube:

Ruth (Kathleen Chalfant), a retired cook, prepares breakfast in her bright and cozy kitchen — a dish she seems to have made many times before, although compact, puzzling errors now punctuate her comfortable routine. When her son (H. Jon Benjamin) arrives for dinner, she mistakes him for a suitor. Their “date” takes them to an assisted living facility, which Ruth does not remember that she had previously selected. Among her fellow memory care residents, Ruth feels lost & adrift, certain she has found herself somewhere she does not belong. As she slowly begins to accept the warmth & support of the care workers Vanessa (Carolyn Michelle) & Brian (Andy McQueen), she finds recent ways to ground herself in her body, even as her mind embarks on a journey all its own. Familiar Touch is written and directed by American filmmaker Sarah Friedland, making her feature directorial debut after many other brief films previously. Produced by Alexandra Byer, Sarah Friedland, and Matthew Thurm. This initially premiered at the 2024 Venice Film Festival last year, where it won Best Director & Best Actress prizes. Music Box Films opens Familiar Touch in select US theaters (first at NYC’s Film Forum) starting on June 20th, 2025. Visit the film’s official site.

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