Omaha

A single father’s cross-state trip with his two children carries a slowly unfolding secret in this superbly shot road movie.

Evicted from his home and reeling from the loss of his partner, a single dad bundles his two children, nine-year-old Ella and six-year-old Charlie, into his car for a journey from Utah to Nebraska. Between the games, rest stops and push-starts that punctuate the drive, the perceptive Ella begins to sense that their trip may contain a hidden purpose.

Led by affecting performances from John Magaro (Past Lives, MIFF 2023) – who masters the internal battle of a father at the brink – and young newcomers Molly Belle Wright and Wyatt Solis, Omaha is a compassionate look at grief, vulnerability and the unimaginable places we’ll go for love. First-time feature director Cole Webley approached Robert Machoian to screenwrite after seeing his Utah-set breakup drama The Killing of Two Lovers (MIFF 2020) at Sundance, and the parallels to that film in tone and emotionally precise storytelling are clear; while cinematographer Paul Meyers captures moments of tenderness inside the car, as well as the expansive landscapes of salt flats and never-ending highway along their journey to the Midwest, with haunting beauty.

“Tenderly devastating … a humble marvel.” – Variety