The festival runs Nov. 5-8 and opens with the Hank Williams film, “I Saw the Light,” which chronicles the country music star’s rise to fame and his death at age 29. The film was produced by U.Va. alumnus and film festival advisory board member Marc Abraham, who will present it along with some of the cast members, including award-winning actress Cherry Jones and Maddie Hasson, star of the television show “The Finder.”

There will be a sneak preview of the upcoming PBS Civil War drama series “Mercy Street,” which was filmed in and around the Richmond area.

A sneak peek also is planned for the film produced through HBO’s documentary series, “Project Greenlight,” which follows novice filmmakers from start to finish as they make a movie. The show is produced by Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. Director Jason Mann, the show’s most recent novice filmmaker, will discuss his film.

And then there are the big names, including actress Meg Ryan, director Oliver Stone, longtime gay rights activist and playwright Larry Kramer, and film critic and historian Leonard Maltin.

Ryan makes her directorial debut with “Ithaca,” a coming-of-age story about a 1940s teen who works as a bicycle messenger, delivering news of all kinds to the people of Ithaca. The movie was filmed in Virginia.

Stone returns to the festival for a second time in four years, this time to talk about his Academy Award-winning 1989 film, “Born on the Fourth of July,” which recounts the story of real-life Vietnam War veteran turned anti-war supporter Ron Kovic.

Kramer comes to the festival for two events, the first to talk about his HBO documentary, “Larry Kramer In Love & Anger.” Another, “An Evening with Larry Kramer,” will provide insight into his life and career, particularly his efforts to fight for gay rights, public health policy and social activism, and AIDS awareness.

Lastly, Maltin will be a guest presenter for two films, “Cheatin’ ” and “Songcatcher,” and will participate in discussions with the films’ producers, Bill Plympton and Maggie Greenwald, respectively. As a voting member of the National Film Registry, he’ll also present two handpicked, restored 35 mm movies, “The Maltese Falcon” from 1941, and “Employees’ Entrance” from 1933. The films are housed at the Library of Congress’ National Audiovisual Conservation Center in Culpeper.

For audience members, it’s not just the presence of people such as Stone or Ryan that makes the Virginia Film Festival stand out among other film events around the country, said festival director Jody Kielbasa. Rather, it’s the genuine dialogue that occurs between them and the audience, in conjunction with the films, that gets to the heart of filmmaking.

Often, he said, discussions touch on social and political issues.

“We have the unique opportunity to drill down deeply behind the films’ meanings,” Kielbasa said. Of the more than 100 film screenings planned, he estimates that 75 percent will be accompanied by actors, producers and others closely associated with them, and “the value of that lies in the discussion.”

“We cover a lot of territory,” he added, because the audience demands it. It’s led festival organizers to produce a stronger slate of both high-profile studio releases as well as lesser-known independent films, and within them all, “there’s the opportunity to find that hidden gem,” Kielbasa said.