‘Watching Mr. Pearson’ Sets Spring Nationwide Theatrical Rollout as KT Pictures and Hedy Films Build on SXSW-Premiering Imposters
April 9th Launch Across CT, MA, VA and DE Precedes Broader U.S. Expansion Beginning in May, Led by Grassroots, Community-Driven Release Strategy
Fresh off serving as co-producers on the SXSW-premiering 2026 sci-fi thriller Imposters, Boston-based KT Pictures and Hedy Films are channeling that momentum into a nationwide theatrical rollout of their latest feature, Watching Mr. Pearson.
Launching first across Connecticut, Massachusetts, Virginia, and Delaware beginning in April, the film is already generating strong early demand, with filmmaker-attended screenings beginning to fill up in multiple markets ahead of opening. The rollout will expand into a broader national release across the United States starting in May, powered by a grassroots strategy rooted in community engagement and direct audience connection.
This is not a conventional release. It is a ground-up theatrical movement in motion.
Working city by city, the team has built partnerships with memory care organizations, senior living communities, educators, and caregiver networks, activating audiences before opening weekend. Screenings are being positioned as shared community experiences, with planned post-film Q&As, conversations, and local collaborations designed to spark dialogue and connection around the film’s themes.
At the center of this effort is a close-knit creative collective: producers Samantha Valletta (Hedy Films), Dillon Bentlage, and Brian Reilly (KT Pictures), alongside co-writer and producer Simon Kienitz Kincade, whose personal connection to dementia and caregiving informs the emotional core of the film.
Together, they represent a new wave of independent filmmakers building outside traditional systems. Their collaboration spans multiple feature films, award-winning short films, and the internationally recognized web series Play It By Ear, which screened at Nashville Film Festival, HollyShorts, Dances With Films, and Catalyst Content Festival. That same hands-on, filmmaker-first ethos now drives a theatrical model built on relationships, trust, and lived experience.
Watching Mr. Pearson tells the story of a once-renowned actor struggling to distinguish past from present, and the two caregivers who use imagination and performance to help him remain connected to the world around him.
The film is anchored by a powerful central performance from Hugo Armstrong, whose body of work includes collaborations alongside Denzel Washington and Harry Dean Stanton, and who was recently part of the Oscar-nominated Jane Austen’s Period Drama. His portrayal of Robert Pearson is expected to be a defining emotional experience for audiences.
He is joined by a rising ensemble:
- Sam Bullington, recently featured in Kevin Costner’s Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 2
- Zainab Jah, acclaimed for All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt and Only Murders in the Building
- Dominika Zawada and Luis Rizo, whose performances bring nuance and humanity to the caregiving dynamic
Behind the camera, the film reflects years of creative collaboration. Bentlage and Kincade have developed a sustained writing and directing partnership across features and short-form work, while Reilly and Valletta continue to grow KT Pictures and Hedy Films into prolific, filmmaker-driven production companies committed to performance-centered storytelling.
Their recent role as co-producers on Imposters, directed by Caleb Phillips and starring Jessica Rothe and Charlie Barnett, signals their expanding presence within the independent film landscape. The film’s SXSW premiere highlights their reach in the genre space, while Watching Mr. Pearson underscores their commitment to intimate, human storytelling.
Supporting the release is RBL Films & PR, led by industry veteran Ry Levey, working alongside the filmmakers on a targeted, community-first distribution strategy designed to build meaningful audience engagement from the ground up.
Together, Imposters and Watching Mr. Pearson reflect the range of KT Pictures and Hedy Films: a creative partnership capable of delivering both high-concept genre cinema and deeply personal, emotionally resonant work.
Right now, that momentum is building around Watching Mr. Pearson.
Across early markets, organizations are coordinating group attendance, community leaders are engaging around the film’s themes, and audiences are preparing to experience the film together. The rollout is being shaped not just by distribution, but by participation.
This is independent cinema activated in real time.
WATCHING MR. PEARSON — NATIONAL THEATRICAL ROLLOUT
• April 9–12 — Bethel, CT (Greenwood Features)
• April 10 — Seymour, CT (The Strand Theater, with Q&A)
• April 11 — Madison, CT (Madison Cinemas)
• April 12 — Mystic, CT (Mystic Luxury Cinemas)
• April 13 — New Canaan, CT (The Playhouse)
• April 14–15 — Hartford, CT (Cinestudio)
• April 17–23 — Rehoboth Beach, DE (Movies at Midway)
• April 17–23 — Irvington, VA (Compass Cinemas)
• April 19–21 — Somerville, MA (Somerville Theatre)
• April 26 — Dennis, MA (Cape Cinema)
• April 29 — Greenfield, MA (Greenfield Garden Cinemas)
• May 9–10 — Santa Fe, NM (Sky Cinemas)
• May 16–17 — New Orleans, LA (Zeitgeist Theatre & Lounge)
• May 24 — New Paltz, NY (Denizen Theatre Cinema)
• May 30 — Encino, CA (Laemmle Theatres – Town Center)
• May 31 — Los Angeles, CA (Laemmle Theatres – The Royal)
• June 4 — San Francisco, CA (Lee Neighborhood Theatres)
