It Felt Like Love, by first-time feature director Eliza Hittman, follows 14-year-old Lila (a perfectly cast Gina Piersanti) as she pursues an older teenage boy.
There are a few passing similarities between It Felt Like Love and Andrea Arnold’s similar themed Fish Tank. Hittman distinguishes herself with intimate closeups and following subjects with tracking shots through parties and wooded areas of outer Brooklyn.
This coming-of-age drama premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival and is a recipient of the Nancy Malone Marketing & Promotion Grant. It was fiscally sponsored by New York Women in Film & Television.
It Felt Like Love is playing at the IFC Center in NYC.
nywift
Related Posts
Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Ginelle Bamfo
Welcome to NYWIFT, Ginelle Bamfo! Ginelle is a talented young filmmaker and recent graduate from NYU Tisch’s Film and TV school. With a background in acting and theater, Ginelle has expanded her creative pursuits into many realms of the filmmaking industry. Having won NYU’s Best Undergraduate Film award for her project Talk Yo’ Shit, her talents and ambitions have quickly proven worthwhile. Ginelle is a staunch advocate of amplifying diverse voices. Her role as President of The Collective at NYU – a club which connects and highlights the work of Black students – is only one example of her commitment to this goal. Ginelle is a flexible and dynamic creative, drawing inspiration from ever-evolving sources. Always excited to learn and collaborate, she is an exciting addition to the entertainment industry. In our interview, Ginelle discusses what her journey to filmmaking has looked like and her current artistic ambitions.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Madeleine Rotzler
Welcome to NYWIFT, Madeleine Rotzler! Madeleine Rotzler is an Emmy® Award-winning director and producer of documentaries and narrative feature films. Fiction films include the upcoming O Horizon and O.G., currently on HBO. Non-fiction films include HBO’s Emmy-nominated It’s a Hard Truth Ain’t It, Emmy-winning Dangerous Acts Starring the Unstable Elements of Belarus, and Oscar-shortlisted The Lottery. Her most recent film, O Horizon, was described as “bound to be one of the season's sweetest charmers.” The film premiered at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival in 2025 where it won the Panavision Spirit Award for Independent Cinema. O.G., Madeleine’s narrative feature debut, and It’s a Hard Truth Ain’t It were both filmed inside a maximum-security prison in Indiana in collaboration with men incarcerated there. Most of the cast of O.G. were incarcerated. It’s a Hard Truth Ain’t It marked the first time incarcerated directors were nominated for an Emmy. In our interview, Madeleine discussed her award-winning films and her perspective on the impact of filmmaking.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Samantha Herrera
Welcome to NYWIFT, Samantha Herrera! Samantha Herrera is a queer Filipina artist born and raised in Queens, NY. Her roots began in theatre with training at LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts, The Neighborhood Playhouse, and LAMDA. Saint Vegas is the first narrative film she has directed, written, and produced. It will internationally premiere in the Philippines hosted by Cine Balikbayan. This November, she played one of the lead roles in Diwata, directed by Shea Formanes. Aside from filmmaking, Samantha works at her alma mater - The Neighborhood Playhouse - and runs a Filipino food pop-up business with her partner. In our interview, Samantha discussed the mentors who shaped her artistry, her inspirations, and her upcoming work.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Joyce Hills
Welcome to NYWIFT, Joyce Hills! Joyce Hills is a recent graduate of NYU Tisch, where she co-wrote and directed the culturally-rich epic Viking short film The Feather, featuring out-of-this-world SFX hair and makeup, practical stunts, and generative workflows on a virtual production volume. She was the First Assistant Director and VFX Supervisor on the Seed & Spark-awarded short film Night of Melancholia, interned in Virtual Production at Gum Studios in Brooklyn, and performed as Sugarsop, The Widow, and assorted household servants in Will Kempe’s Players’ The Taming of the Shrew. Joyce is developing her first feature film, a dark fantasy inspired by mystical quests, heroes’ journeys, and time and destiny in popular culture. She is also developing a science fiction feminist short, and is pursuing additional education in XR mediamaking and STEM. In our interview, she discussed her childhood inspirations, emerging technologies, and the future of storytelling.
READ MORE
