The 11th annual Camden International Film Festival is underway this weekend and for passholders as well as people attending individual screenings, it’s always a little difficult to choose which films to see.

CIFF offers its highlighted films as well as films getting the most buzz with participants. Here’s a cheat sheet of what they are and where they are screening.

Friday, September 18

THE GROUND WE WON
A verité study of manhood as observed through the rites and rituals of a rural New Zealand rugby club. With great bawdiness and camaraderie, an eclectic rugby team of farmers strive to redeem themselves from a long run of bitter losses. (91 minutes) Camden Opera House, 2:30 p.m. (85 minutes). Camden Opera House, 6:30 p.m.

FRAME BY FRAME
After decades of war and an oppressive Taliban regime, four Afghan photojournalists face the realities of building a free press in a country left to stand on its own—reframing Afghanistan for the world and for themselves. (85 minutes) Camden Opera House, 6:30 p.m.

GOING CLEAR: SCIENTOLOGY AND THE PRISON OF BELIEF
Academy Award-winning director Alex Gibney profiles eight former members of the Church of Scientology, whose most prominent adherents include A-list Hollywood celebrities, shining a light on how the church cultivates true believers, detailing their experiences and what they are willing to do in the name of religion.(119 minutes) Strand Theatre 6:00 p.m.

Saturday, September 19

MACHINE GUN OR TERROR
A haunted man desperately searches for his lost love through an illegal pirate radio broadcast. (71 minutes) Farnsworth Art Museum, 6:30 p.m.

(T)ERROR
This is the first documentary to place filmmakers on the ground during an active FBI counterterrorism sting operation. Through the perspective of "Shariff,” a 63-year-old Black revolutionary turned informant, viewers get an unfettered glimpse of the government's counterterrorism tactics and the murky justifications behind them. (84 minutes) Camden Opera House Auditorium, 6:30 p.m.

HOW TO CHANGE THE WORLD
In 1971 a small group of activists set sail from Vancouver, Canada, in an old fishing boat. Their mission was to stop Nixon's atomic bomb tests in Amchitka, a tiny island off the west coast of Alaska. Chronicling this untold story at the birth of the modern environmental movement and with access to dramatic archive footage that has not been seen for over 40 years, the film centers on eco-hero Robert Hunter and his part in the creation of the global organization we now know as Greenpeace. (112 minutes) Camden Opera House, 8:45 p.m.

OLMO AND THE SEAGULL
This is the story of Olivia, a free-spirited stage actress preparing for a starring role as Arkadina in a theatrical production of Chekhov’s The Seagull. As the play starts to take shape, Olivia and her boyfriend, Serge, whom she first met on the stage of the Theatre du Soleil, discover she is pregnant.  Initially, she thinks she can have it all, until an unexpected setback threatens her pregnancy and brings her life to a standstill. (85 minutes) Strand Theatre, 9:00 p.m.

Sunday, September 20

THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING
This Changes Everything is an epic attempt to re-imagine the vast challenge of climate change, presenting seven powerful portraits of communities on the front lines, inspired by Naomi Klein’s international nonfiction bestseller This Changes Everything. (89 minutes) Camden Opera House, 7:30 p.m.

For more information about these films and trailers visit: camdenfilmfest

Kay Stephens can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com