For four days in October, Middleburg offered a rare opportunity to see some of the year's best films -- over two dozen Oscar contenders, critically acclaimed foreign language films, and compelling documentaries, one especially close to the heart of this little town.

Festival founder Sheila Johnson and Executive Director Susan Koch for the fifth year welcomed a packed room to view the first film in Salamander's ballroom, "Darkest Hour." It was quite an auspicious start and received a rousing applause from the audience. Question and answer sessions with filmmakers and actors followed nine of the films to make viewing experience that much more meaningful. Here are brief recaps for your consideration:

Breathe - a true story about an ex-British Army officer and his aristocratic wife's efforts to live a full life despite his paralysis from polio.

Call Me By Your Name - two young men discovering first love in a summer in Italy.

Darkest Hour - set in the early days before World War II as Hitler's troops march north from Paris to invade England, newly appointed Prime Minister Winston Churchill wages his own battle to resist Parliament and fight on or negotiate with a madman.

The Devine Order - one woman's fight for equality and right to vote in 1970 Switzerland (Switzerland's submission to the Oscar for Best Foreign Film).

A Fantastic Woman - a transgender woman's lover dies and the contempt and rejection she endures in Chile (Chile's Foreign Language Oscar Submission).

Film Stars Don't Die In Liverpool - the true story of a younger man and Hollywood star Gloria Grahame who returns to the man's home in her last days.

Happy End - a dark comedy of family dysfunction set in upperclass Calais, France (Austria's Best Foreign Film submission).

Hostiles - surviving and healing through the journey of returning a dying Cheyenne war chief by his enemy, an army captain, to his tribal homelands in 1892.

I, Tonya - the true story of Olympic figure skater Tonya Harding's involvement in the career-ending attack on fellow skater Nancy Kerrigan.

In The Fade - a Kurdish mother seeks justice in Hamburg after the murderer of her husband and children go free (Germany's submission for Foreign Language Oscar).

Lady Bird - a coming-of-age teenager's last year in an all-girls Catholic high school.

Last Flag Flying - a Vietnam vet is joined by two fellow vets on his quest to bury his son in his hometown rather than Arlington Cemetery.

The Leisure Seeker - a longmarried couple in their golden years revisit their misadventures traveling in their beloved Winnebago affectionately named "The Leisure Seeker".

Loveless - a divorcing Russian couple face skewed values and misplaced priorities as they look for their missing child.

Mudbound - a pair of returning soldiers face different challenges in the Jim Crow South after World War II.

Novitiate - a young nun's struggle with issues of faith in the Catholic Church.

The Other Side of Hope - a Syrian refugee's journey to find work and home in Helsinki.

The Square - a contemporary art museum curator's attempts to live up to the ideals projected in one of the museum's installations: "The Square".

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri - a mother of murdered child seeks justice (Toronto Film Festival People's Choice Award).

Under The Tree - neighbors feud because of an overgrown, untrimmed tree shading their backyard (Iceland's Foreign Language Oscar submission).

Wonderstruck - an intertwining tale of two deaf children seeking answers.

The documentaries:

Faces Places (Visages Villages) - a friendship between a legendary filmmaker and a photographer in the French countryside (winner of Best Documentary 2017 Cannes Film Festival).

Jane - newly discovered original footage of Jane Goodall's life in Tanzania filmed by her husband.

Joan Didion: The Center Will Not Hold - nephew and actor Griffin Dune's intimate recollection of the literary icon through archival footage.

Meltdown - a renowned photographer and a climate expert revisit Greenland's changes and its implications in global warming.

Music Got Me Here - longtime Middleburg resident, Forrest Allen, and his recovery from a life-threatening brain injury through the music therapy of Tom Sweitzer.

The 2017 Audience Award Winner, chosen by audience ballot, went to Mudbound, directed by Dee Rees. Ms. Rees attended the festival and was recognized with the festival's 2017 Visionary Award. "We want to congratulate Dee Rees on her remarkable film," said Middleburg Film Festival Executive Director Susan Koch. "With Mudbound, Dee Rees has firmly established herself as one of the most talented and important directors working in film and television today – and we look forward to presenting many more of her films in the future."

This coming March 4th, the 90th Academy Awards ceremony will be held in Los Angeles. Tune in to see if your favorite wins an Oscar.