Event Schedule / Activities
Mon, Apr 21, 2025
PORCELAIN WAR
Under roaring fighting jets, Ukrainian artists Slava, Anya, and Andrey stay behind, defiantly finding beauty amid destruction. Armed with art, cameras and for the first time in their lives, guns, they show that while it’s easy to frighten people, i
1 time at 10:00 AM
Category: Documentary
SAFE SETS: DYING TO WORK IN THE FILM INDUSTRY
A doctor investigates hazardous working conditions in Hollywood, and discovers untold stories of enormous personal sacrifice and life-threatening risks for those working in an industry that brings us the movies and TV shows we cherish.
1 time at 11:30 AM
Category: Documentary
BREATHE
BREATHE follows the story of David, a Paralympic swimmer who was on the verge of giving up, until his coach Alberto believed in him and changed everything.
2 times from 12:00 PM to 06:10 PM
Category: Documentary
SHORT BLOCK 7
Featuring the films: ADIDAS OWNS THE REALITY, EXISTENTIAL ACTION THRILLER, LOCKER ROOM TALK, SAVING SUPERMAN, THE WILHELM SCREAM, WITH FIRE & BREATH: A DYING ART
1 time at 01:45 PM
Category: Comedy, Documentary, Family, Short, Student
THE INVISIBLE DOCTRINE: THE SECRET HISTORY OF NEOLIBERALISM
"Neoliberalism: do you know what it is?" George Monbiot deconstructs the roots, secretive propagation and deep impact of a doctrine that has played a profound role in transforming our economics, politics, environment, and even how weâ've come to
1 time at 02:15 PM
Category: Documentary, Environment
THE CIGARETTE SURFBOARD
An impassioned surfer, Taylor Lane, creates a functional surfboard with 10,000 littered cigarette butts collected from California beaches. The Cigarette Surfboard becomes a platform to learn from professional surfers who are working to protect and re
1 time at 05:00 PM
Category: Documentary, Environment
SHORT BLOCK 19 (MADE IN IOWA)
Featuring the films: HOME NO RETURN, REND, TALLULAH PARK, TINKER, TOOTHACHE
1 time at 07:00 PM
Category: Comedy, Documentary, Drama, Family, Feature, Horror/Thriller, Made in Iowa, Short, Student
SHORT BLOCK 21 (YOUNG FILMMAKERS)
Featuring the films: BROKEN REFLECTION, HOLIDAY SEASONING, THE AUDITION, THE HAWTHORNE HORROR, THE MISTLETOE DART
1 time at 07:15 PM
Category: Comedy, Drama, History, Horror/Thriller, Made in Iowa, Short, Young Filmmaker
Tue, Apr 22, 2025
BREATHE
BREATHE follows the story of David, a Paralympic swimmer who was on the verge of giving up, until his coach Alberto believed in him and changed everything.
1 time at 10:00 AM
Category: Documentary
SHORT BLOCK 17
Featuring the films: 147, AFTER ISIS, BEYOND THE HERD, DIETER, WHERE WE ONCE ROAMED
1 time at 10:15 AM
Category: Animation, Documentary, Short, Student
SHORT BLOCK 18
Featuring the films: DAVID, LOST ALONE, REFLECTIONS OF COURAGE
1 time at 12:00 PM
Category: Animation, Documentary, Short
SAFE SETS: DYING TO WORK IN THE FILM INDUSTRY
A doctor investigates hazardous working conditions in Hollywood, and discovers untold stories of enormous personal sacrifice and life-threatening risks for those working in an industry that brings us the movies and TV shows we cherish.
1 time at 01:00 PM
Category: Documentary
LezBeHonest: Balancing Business and Authenticity with Nicole Almanza
1 time at 02:00 PM
Category: Panels
SHORT BLOCK 4
Featuring the films: ANWAR, MARIE'S AMBITION, MARINA, NAP, PULPITUM, TERRA LUNA, THE LETHE
1 time at 02:30 PM
Category: Drama, Horror/Thriller, Sci-Fi, Short, Student
SHORT BLOCK 13
Featuring the films: AFTER THE NIGHT, GATOR GIRL, STILLS MOVING, THE LAST SONATA, TO WRITE THE ENDING, WRITTEN BY IB
1 time at 03:15 PM
Category: Animation, Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Horror/Thriller, Short, Student
CALL ME DANCER
Manish is a young and talented street dancer from the City of Dreams, Mumbai. He struggles against his parents’ insistence that he follow a traditional path because they depend on their only son's support. When he accidentally walks into an inner-c
1 time at 05:30 PM
Category: Documentary
SHORT BLOCK 14
Featuring the films: CARMEN AND THE WOODEN SPOON, CLEAN PLATE, HEARTS OF STONE, TANGO IN ROOM 1310, THE FIRST SEQUEL, UKRAINIAN DANCE MOVIE, WATCHING WALTER
1 time at 06:15 PM
Category: Animation, Comedy, Drama, Family, Short, Student
PORCELAIN WAR
Under roaring fighting jets, Ukrainian artists Slava, Anya, and Andrey stay behind, defiantly finding beauty amid destruction. Armed with art, cameras and for the first time in their lives, guns, they show that while it’s easy to frighten people, i
1 time at 08:00 PM
Category: Documentary
Wed, Apr 23, 2025
A ROAD AT NIGHT
A ROAD AT NIGHT is a documentary about the cascade of tragic events that can occur when seemingly good people make fatally unwise decisions. Set against the backdrop of college athletics, the documentary examines the powerful bonds of family and frie
1 time at 10:00 AM
Category: Documentary
THE INNER SEA
THE INNER SEA is an unconventional love story, a story about music, adoption, the journey of a lifetime, and a bright blue 40 foot school bus. Directed and produced by a first time female filmmaker who is also a birth mother, this film explores the c
1 time at 10:00 AM
Category: Documentary
THE PANTONE GUY
At 96 years old, Larry Herbert, known as "The Pantone Guy" is a visionary whose revolutionary idea to standardize color remains largely unrecognized. Growing up in Depression-era Brooklyn, Larry entered the print and manufacturing trade during a
1 time at 10:00 AM
Category: Documentary
DESERT ANGEL
A trailblazer of migrant search and rescue missions risks everything to find a mother's missing son before border wastelands claim the young man forever. A fascinating portrait of a hero in Latino communities' Mexican immigrant who has devoted 2
1 time at 10:30 AM
Category: Documentary
SHEEPDOG
A decorated combat Veteran is court ordered into treatment when an ex-convict shows up on his doorstep and reveals that he must put himself back together again. SHEEPDOG is the first film that truly explores the physical and psychological repercussio
1 time at 10:30 AM
Category: Drama, Feature
PAPER FLOWERS
Based on a true story, PAPER FLOWERS is a moving journey of love, loss, and hope. Shalin Shah (Kapil Talwalkar), a USC graduate, leaves behind his Indian American family and a Taiwanese American girlfriend (Olivia Liang) to serve as a Peace Corps vol
1 time at 10:45 AM
Category: Drama, Feature
SHORT BLOCK 12
Featuring the films: BEFORE THE THUNDER, CHASERS, GIVEN, MY ЊУЈОРК [NEW YORK], PERLA, RUIN FALLS, ZARI
1 time at 12:45 PM
Category: Comedy, Drama, LGBTQ+, Short
CANOE DIG IT?
A comical look into the world of “Freestyle Canoeing” as a group of canoeists compete for the title of “Top Paddler” on a lake in Maine.
1 time at 01:00 PM
Category: Comedy, Feature
CODE IS LAW
CODE IS LAW is a gripping documentary exploring an unprecedented crime spree in the world of cryptocurrency, where hackers routinely steal up to $600 million with the push of a button. Its story is told by cyber vigilantes in pursuit of criminals ope
1 time at 01:00 PM
Category: Documentary
LOOKING UP
LOOKING UP is the inspiring story of Eitan Armon, a young man facing encroaching blindness who takes on the challenge of climbing the world's most epic granite wall. At age 20, while serving in the military, Eitan is diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmen
1 time at 01:30 PM
Category: Documentary
SHORT BLOCK 1
Featuring the films: BELIEF, BEYOND THE FOG, OBIT, PHOENIX, THE WOMAN IN THE ROOM, UNSAID
1 time at 01:30 PM
Category: Drama, Sci-Fi, Short
SHORT BLOCK 2
Featuring the films: ARTIST UNCREDITED, HAPPY ENDINGS FUNERAL PARLOR, REWARD IF FOUND, SICK DAY, TACOCUNR, THE SETUP, THE UNDERSTUDY
1 time at 02:00 PM
Category: Animation, Comedy, Dark Comedy, Drama, Short
THE EVERYTHING POT
Fifty-something Rachel finds herself at a turning point; her only child is off to college, her marriage is listless, and she’s afraid the best years of her life are behind her. So, when she receives a wedding invitation from a former, much younger
1 time at 02:00 PM
Category: Comedy, Drama, Feature
MAGNETOSPHERE
It's 1997. The Hale-Bopp comet is passing Earth, and 13-year-old Maggie has a secret. She can see sounds and hear colors, and her senses do other unusual things too. Shy and cautious, Maggie has always kept this to herself. But when her family moves
1 time at 03:30 PM
Category: Drama, Feature
MOTHERLAND
In an alternate-present society where the state frees parents from the burden of raising children, a rule enforcer learns a shocking truth that sparks her rebellion.
1 time at 04:00 PM
Category: Drama, Feature, Sci-Fi
SHORT BLOCK 16
Featuring the films: BROOKLYN, OUTRO, PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, THE LAST RHINO, THIS COULD HAVE BEEN AN EMAIL, THIS IS LOVE?!, WHAT IT'S LIKE TO BE OKAY
1 time at 04:00 PM
Category: Comedy, Drama, Family, LGBTQ+, Short, Student, Thriller/Horror
ANXIETY CLUB
ANXIETY CLUB provides an intimate and humorous look at anxiety through the eyes and minds of some of the most brilliant comedians working today. Tiffany Jenkins, Joe List, Marc Maron, Aparna Nancherla, Mark Normand, Baron Vaughn and Eva Victor offer
1 time at 04:30 PM
Category: Documentary
LOVE HIDES IN THE OPEN
A young man begins to follow a woman he just had a first date with. His voyeurism backfires however when he witnesses the woman commit a petty crime, for which he becomes the main suspect.
1 time at 05:00 PM
Category: Comedy, Drama, Feature
SHORT BLOCK 8
Featuring the films: BURNED, GRAVE ERROR, HELP!, JUMP CUT, TEDDY, THE OPEN DOOR
1 time at 05:00 PM
Category: Animation, Comedy, Dark Comedy, Drama, Horror/Thriller, Sci-Fi, Short
THE LAST HOUNDS
Greyhound racetrack workers in Dubuque, Iowa cling to survival as the 100-year-old sport of dog racing faces extinction amidst mounting pressure from animal rights groups.
1 time at 05:00 PM
Category: Documentary
Welcome at Five Flags Center
This is the place to review the film descriptions, film schedule, meet filmmakers, reviewers, and producers of the film festival in a casual atmosphere. Make your plans for which films you don't want to miss! Food provided with a cash bar.
1 time at 05:00 PM
THE CIGARETTE SURFBOARD
An impassioned surfer, Taylor Lane, creates a functional surfboard with 10,000 littered cigarette butts collected from California beaches. The Cigarette Surfboard becomes a platform to learn from professional surfers who are working to protect and re
1 time at 06:30 PM
Category: Documentary, Environment
BRING THEM HOME
BRING THEM HOME (AISKÓTÃHKAPIYAAYA) chronicles a decades-long initiative by members of the Blackfoot Confederacy to bring wild buffalo (Blackfeet: iinnii) back to the Blackfeet Reservation. A thriving wild buffalo population would not only reconnec
1 time at 07:00 PM
Category: Documentary
Celebrate Canada SINGING BACK THE BUFFALO
In a time of environmental degradation and uncertainty, the buffalo can lead us to a better future. After a dark history, North America's buffalo herds await their return, aided by Indigenous activists, including Cree filmmaker Tasha Hubbard
1 time at 07:30 PM
Category: Documentary, Environment
RECOLLECTION
In a society where people rely on technology to remove painful memories, a glitch returns Kate's memories, uncovering a dark truth about her past and those responsible. Its 2033, and memory cleansing has taken society by storm. Thanks to Vitality
1 time at 07:45 PM
Category: Feature, Horror/Thriller, Sci-Fi
ROBOT T-0
In the near future, robots are in every household, at the service of humans, replacing them in their daily chores. 40 years old Max, unemployed, and her daughter Paula struggle to earn their living by selling stolen robots on the black market. Unfort
1 time at 08:00 PM
Category: Comedy, Drama, Feature, Sci-Fi
CELEBRATE CANADA NIGHT AFTER PARTY
Continue to Celebrate Canada at EJ's Wine Shop, located in the Caradco Building 955 Washington St. Come enjoy a casual night out with live music from Joie Wails.
1 time at 09:30 PM
Thu, Apr 24, 2025
CODE IS LAW
CODE IS LAW is a gripping documentary exploring an unprecedented crime spree in the world of cryptocurrency, where hackers routinely steal up to $600 million with the push of a button. Its story is told by cyber vigilantes in pursuit of criminals ope
1 time at 10:00 AM
Category: Documentary
SHORT BLOCK 10
Featuring the films: A GUEST IN MY COUNTRY, JEAN & I, JUST KIM, KIKI, NEITHER DONKEY NOR HORSE, STORAGE FEES, THE INVITE
1 time at 10:00 AM
Category: Drama, History, Horror/Thriller, Short, Student
LOVE, DANIELLE
When Danielle, a happily married thirty-something, tests positive for a BRCA1 gene mutation, she learns that this puts her at a very high risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer. Thanks a lot, DNA! She now struggles with daily life, working at h
1 time at 10:30 AM
Category: Comedy, Drama, Feature
THE THERAPY
Eccentric psychologist Elisaveta Petrova has a hidden love of painting, but her childhood trauma inhibits her from pursuing a career in the arts. Resentful to turning her back on her dream she tries to cure her own fears by devising experimental ther
1 time at 10:30 AM
Category: Drama, Feature, Horror/Thriller
SEEDS OF SOVEREIGNTY
SEEDS OF SOVERIGNTY is a thought-provoking documentary that explores Mexico's struggle to protect its biodiversity and food sovereignty amid U.S. pressure to adopt GMO corn and industrial farming. As these threats endanger traditional agriculture a
1 time at 11:00 AM
Category: Documentary
SHORT BLOCK 9
Featuring the films: A LIFE WITH NO FUTURE, ADVENT, EBB & FLOW, LITTLE RED BRACELETS, NOT HERE, RIGHT TO PRIVACY
1 time at 11:00 AM
Category: Animation, Drama, Short, Student
SONNY BOY
After a failed writing career, Sonny Caso struggles to find his way after returning home to reconcile with his dying father. He tries to make peace with a broken dream before finding a second calling as a teacher. Still, his teaching talent falls sho
1 time at 11:00 AM
Category: Drama, Feature
THE FARAWAY NEARBY
THE FARAWAY NEARBY follows the tragic life of pioneer physicist Joseph Weber, whose pursuit of gravitational waves takes him on a dizzying journey from the height of acclaim to the depths of despair and disdain when he breaks the cardinal rule of sci
1 time at 12:00 PM
Category: Documentary
LONE WOLVES
When a single, pragmatic forty-something recruits the eclectic guy she didn't go to prom with back in high school to be her D-I-Y sperm donor, but learns that he's Autistic and navigating some significant mental health issues, her carefully plann
1 time at 01:00 PM
Category: Comedy, Feature
SHORT BLOCK 6
Featuring the films: 29th OF FEBRUARY, AN OLD FRIEND, AREN'T WE HAVIN' A GOOD TIME, BUT I'M A SHOE, DÉRIVE, GOODNIGHT DARLING
1 time at 01:00 PM
Category: Animation, Drama, Family, Short
MISSISSIPPI SCHOLAR
MISSISSIPPI SCHOLAR reveals the impediments one underprivileged intellectual must overcome to realize his dreams of the future.
1 time at 01:30 PM
Category: Drama, Feature
THE RAMBA EFFECT
Guided by compassionate experts and a devoted team of volunteers, Ramba, an Asian elephant who endured 50 years of isolation in a Chilean circus, embarks on an extraordinary 2,550-mile journey to her new home at Elephant Sanctuary Brazil.
1 time at 01:30 PM
Category: Documentary
PIGGY DUSTER
Vivian (Julia Ma) and her stepfather Keith (Brian Landis Folkins) set up camp in a Rocky Mountain valley, on a trip that he hopes will recapture the magic of the ones they took when she was little, much to her chagrin. In the heat of an argument, she
1 time at 02:00 PM
Category: Drama, Family, Feature
THE SHORT GAME
Jeremy Avery is vying for a college golf scholarship awarded to the winner of the State Championship, but his preparation and game are affected by family pressures and having to take care of his younger autistic brother Ethan. These challenges, along
1 time at 02:00 PM
Category: Family, Feature
BRING THEM HOME
BRING THEM HOME (AISKÓTÃHKAPIYAAYA) chronicles a decades-long initiative by members of the Blackfoot Confederacy to bring wild buffalo (Blackfeet: iinnii) back to the Blackfeet Reservation. A thriving wild buffalo population would not only reconnec
1 time at 02:15 PM
Category: Documentary
SHORT BLOCK 11
Featuring the films: CROSSROADS, DEAR DAUGHTER, FERARRI, FLOCKY, LION SPIRIT, MY OVER THERE, SILVERSIZZLE
1 time at 02:15 PM
Category: Animation, Drama, Short, Student
Film is Dead, Long Live Film: The Importance of Film Preservation with director Peter Flynn and film archivist Greg Hamilton
1 time at 03:00 PM
Category: Panels
SHORT BLOCK 8
Featuring the films: BURNED, GRAVE ERROR, HELP!, JUMP CUT, TEDDY, THE OPEN DOOR
1 time at 03:45 PM
Category: Animation, Comedy, Dark Comedy, Drama, Horror/Thriller, Sci-Fi, Short
REBEL WITH A CLAUSE
One fall day in 2018, Ellen Jovin set up a folding table on a Manhattan sidewalk with a homemade sign that said Grammar Table. Right away, passersby began excitedly asking questions, telling stories, and filing complaints. What happened next is
1 time at 04:00 PM
Category: Documentary
THE SNARE
Dani is a straight-A student from the wrong side of town who's worked hard for an academic scholarship. Busted with a small amount of drugs, the police pressure her to become an informant - forcing her to choose between the people she loves and the
1 time at 04:15 PM
Category: Drama, Feature, Horror/Thriller
SHORT BLOCK 7
Featuring the films: ADIDAS OWNS THE REALITY, EXISTENTIAL ACTION THRILLER, LOCKER ROOM TALK, SAVING SUPERMAN, THE WILHELM SCREAM, WITH FIRE & BREATH: A DYING ART
1 time at 04:30 PM
Category: Comedy, Documentary, Family, Short, Student
A ROAD AT NIGHT
A ROAD AT NIGHT is a documentary about the cascade of tragic events that can occur when seemingly good people make fatally unwise decisions. Set against the backdrop of college athletics, the documentary examines the powerful bonds of family and frie
1 time at 05:00 PM
Category: Documentary
THE INVISIBLE DOCTRINE: THE SECRET HISTORY OF NEOLIBERALISM
"Neoliberalism: do you know what it is?" George Monbiot deconstructs the roots, secretive propagation and deep impact of a doctrine that has played a profound role in transforming our economics, politics, environment, and even how weâ've come to
1 time at 05:00 PM
Category: Documentary, Environment
SHORT BLOCK 3
Featuring the films: HAZE OVER, HONEYWELL, KIND MOTHER, NEBUCHADNEZZAR, OLIVE, PREDATOR, TEARFUL TIGERS
1 time at 05:30 PM
Category: Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Horror/Thriller, Sci-Fi, Short, Student
FOUR RIVERS SIX RANGES
After the invasion of Tibet in 1949, the nation suffered immensely under the brutal Chinese regime under a ruthless General Tan which led The Dalai Lama to escape his homeland into India and seek refuge in 1959. A group of ordinary Tibetan men led by
1 time at 06:30 PM
Category: Drama, Feature, History
ANXIETY CLUB
ANXIETY CLUB provides an intimate and humorous look at anxiety through the eyes and minds of some of the most brilliant comedians working today. Tiffany Jenkins, Joe List, Marc Maron, Aparna Nancherla, Mark Normand, Baron Vaughn and Eva Victor offer
1 time at 07:00 PM
Category: Documentary
SATURN
When a mysterious planet appears in the sky, a young father must choose between the life he loves and an ancient call to save the world.
1 time at 07:00 PM
Category: Drama, Feature, Sci-Fi
THE SPEAKEASY SHOW on 16mm
Hosted by film curator/creator GARRETT SCHRODER - Q&A afterwards w/special guests. Projecting material nearly 100 years old, we'll whisk you back to a smokey cocktail lounge, where the waiters, entertainers and even your food wear roller skates. You'
1 time at 07:00 PM
Category: 16mm
FILM IS DEAD. LONG LIVE FILM!
FILM IS DEAD. LONG LIVE FILM! explores the vanishing world of private film collecting an obsessive, secretive, often illicit world of basement film vaults, piled-high with forgotten reels, inhabited by passionate cinephiles devoted to the rescue an
1 time at 07:45 PM
Category: Documentary
LOOKING UP
LOOKING UP is the inspiring story of Eitan Armon, a young man facing encroaching blindness who takes on the challenge of climbing the world's most epic granite wall. At age 20, while serving in the military, Eitan is diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmen
1 time at 07:45 PM
Category: Documentary
INTERNATIONAL NIGHT AFTER PARTY
Keep the night going on the dance floor with Dubuque's own Boogie Monster Funk. From soulful blues to funky, rhythmic disco, rock & pop, they will make you want to groove & move your feet!
1 time at 09:30 PM
Fri, Apr 25, 2025
FILM IS DEAD. LONG LIVE FILM!
FILM IS DEAD. LONG LIVE FILM! explores the vanishing world of private film collecting an obsessive, secretive, often illicit world of basement film vaults, piled-high with forgotten reels, inhabited by passionate cinephiles devoted to the rescue an
1 time at 10:00 AM
Category: Documentary
MAGNETOSPHERE
It's 1997. The Hale-Bopp comet is passing Earth, and 13-year-old Maggie has a secret. She can see sounds and hear colors, and her senses do other unusual things too. Shy and cautious, Maggie has always kept this to herself. But when her family moves
1 time at 10:00 AM
Category: Drama, Feature
SAFFRON KINGDOM
Inspired by actual events, Saffron Kingdom delves into the Kashmir conflict through the lens of a family's journey from Srinagar in the 1990s to Atlanta in 2019. The narrative starts with young Masrat, who witnesses the violence of insurgency during
1 time at 10:00 AM
Category: Drama, Feature, International
SHORT BLOCK 11
Featuring the films: CROSSROADS, DEAR DAUGHTER, FERARRI, FLOCKY, LION SPIRIT, MY OVER THERE, SILVERSIZZLE
1 time at 10:00 AM
Category: Animation, Drama, Short, Student
THE FARAWAY NEARBY
THE FARAWAY NEARBY follows the tragic life of pioneer physicist Joseph Weber, whose pursuit of gravitational waves takes him on a dizzying journey from the height of acclaim to the depths of despair and disdain when he breaks the cardinal rule of sci
1 time at 10:00 AM
Category: Documentary
SEEDS OF SOVEREIGNTY
SEEDS OF SOVERIGNTY is a thought-provoking documentary that explores Mexico's struggle to protect its biodiversity and food sovereignty amid U.S. pressure to adopt GMO corn and industrial farming. As these threats endanger traditional agriculture a
1 time at 10:15 AM
Category: Documentary
SHORT BLOCK 1
Featuring the films: BELIEF, BEYOND THE FOG, OBIT, PHOENIX, THE WOMAN IN THE ROOM, UNSAID
1 time at 10:15 AM
Category: Drama, Sci-Fi, Short
SHORT BLOCK 5
Featuring the films: A WOMAN IS MANY THINGS (JUST FINE ISN'T ONE OF THEM), DARCINE'S DAY, DEVELOPMENT, HIS MOTHER, MAGGIE'S NOT OKAY, MOTHER (MATKA)
1 time at 10:30 AM
Category: Comedy, Drama, Short, Student
DESERT ANGEL
A trailblazer of migrant search and rescue missions risks everything to find a mother's missing son before border wastelands claim the young man forever. A fascinating portrait of a hero in Latino communities' Mexican immigrant who has devoted 2
1 time at 12:45 PM
Category: Documentary
LOVE HIDES IN THE OPEN
A young man begins to follow a woman he just had a first date with. His voyeurism backfires however when he witnesses the woman commit a petty crime, for which he becomes the main suspect.
1 time at 12:45 PM
Category: Comedy, Drama, Feature
SÉANCE
In 1892 California, a Victorian woman (Scottie Thompson) contemplating adultery is forced to take refuge from a storm at the home of her first husband (Jilon VanOver) and his unstable wife (Vivian Kerr), who claims to be haunted by their dead child.
1 time at 01:00 PM
Category: Drama, Feature, Horror/Thriller
STANDOUT: THE BEN KJAR STORY
Born with a severe facial difference, a young man confronts overwhelming obstacles preventing him from living an ordinary life. Refusing to be limited by his appearance, he defies medical advice and societal prejudices as he attempts to become a worl
1 time at 01:00 PM
Category: Documentary, Drama
MARTYR OF GOWANUS
Brooklyn, 2001. Gavin Macklin, a 30 year old housepainter, gets into a feud with a teenage boy (Angel) from the neighborhood over a stolen fishing rod and suffers a beating from Angel's cousin. After meeting Angel's sister (Mercedes), Gavin decides t
1 time at 01:15 PM
Category: Feature
SHORT BLOCK 15
Featuring the films: BRETT WAS A F*CK, FORTUNE, PRINCETON'S IN THE MIX, STEPS, THE MISSING PEACE
1 time at 01:30 PM
Category: Comedy, Drama, Horror, Horror/Thriller, Satire, Short
SHORT BLOCK 17
Featuring the films: 147, AFTER ISIS, BEYOND THE HERD, DIETER, WHERE WE ONCE ROAMED
1 time at 01:30 PM
Category: Animation, Documentary, Short, Student
SHORT BLOCK 13
Featuring the films: AFTER THE NIGHT, GATOR GIRL, STILLS MOVING, THE LAST SONATA, TO WRITE THE ENDING, WRITTEN BY IB
1 time at 01:45 PM
Category: Animation, Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Horror/Thriller, Short, Student
TV vs Film Pitch and Distribution with Shannon Hamm & Producer Randy Tat
1 time at 03:00 PM
Category: Panels
THE INNER SEA
THE INNER SEA is an unconventional love story, a story about music, adoption, the journey of a lifetime, and a bright blue 40 foot school bus. Directed and produced by a first time female filmmaker who is also a birth mother, this film explores the c
1 time at 03:15 PM
Category: Documentary
SHORT BLOCK 18
Featuring the films: DAVID, LOST ALONE, REFLECTIONS OF COURAGE
1 time at 03:45 PM
Category: Animation, Documentary, Short
NOTHING WRONG
Based on true events: After a shocking revelation turns Andrea’s life upside down and tests the bond with her younger sister Claire, they embark together on a strange scavenger hunt—searching for hidden truths, and a way back to each other.
1 time at 04:00 PM
Category: Drama, Feature
SONNY BOY
After a failed writing career, Sonny Caso struggles to find his way after returning home to reconcile with his dying father. He tries to make peace with a broken dream before finding a second calling as a teacher. Still, his teaching talent falls sho
1 time at 04:15 PM
Category: Drama, Feature
CANOE DIG IT?
A comical look into the world of “Freestyle Canoeing” as a group of canoeists compete for the title of “Top Paddler” on a lake in Maine.
1 time at 04:30 PM
Category: Comedy, Feature
THE SHORT GAME
Jeremy Avery is vying for a college golf scholarship awarded to the winner of the State Championship, but his preparation and game are affected by family pressures and having to take care of his younger autistic brother Ethan. These challenges, along
1 time at 04:30 PM
Category: Family, Feature
SHORT BLOCK 2
Featuring the films: ARTIST UNCREDITED, HAPPY ENDINGS FUNERAL PARLOR, REWARD IF FOUND, SICK DAY, TACOCUNR, THE SETUP, THE UNDERSTUDY
1 time at 05:00 PM
Category: Animation, Comedy, Dark Comedy, Drama, Short
THE LAST HOUNDS
Greyhound racetrack workers in Dubuque, Iowa cling to survival as the 100-year-old sport of dog racing faces extinction amidst mounting pressure from animal rights groups.
1 time at 05:00 PM
Category: Documentary
THE STRANGE DARK
Edgar believes he can see the future, but his wife thinks he's mad, his daughter thinks he's strange, and the agents from double star accounting will stop at nothing to get their data back.
1 time at 05:30 PM
Category: Feature, Horror/Thriller, Sci-Fi
PSYCHOTRONIC AFTER SCHOOL SPECIAL on 16mm
Hosted by film curator/creator GREG HAMILTON - Q&A afterwards w/special guests. Ready for a dose of weird nostalgia? Dive into this vintage media mash-up featuring strange educational films, oddball advertisements, subversion and diversion - all tie
1 time at 07:00 PM
Category: 16mm
MISOPHONIA
When Martin is fired and subsequently forced to move in with his sister following a misophonia outburst at work, he sets out on a comically disgruntled mission to identify the various ways he might manage his misophonia and get his life back on track
1 time at 07:30 PM
Category: Comedy, Drama, Feature
PAPER FLOWERS
Based on a true story, PAPER FLOWERS is a moving journey of love, loss, and hope. Shalin Shah (Kapil Talwalkar), a USC graduate, leaves behind his Indian American family and a Taiwanese American girlfriend (Olivia Liang) to serve as a Peace Corps vol
1 time at 07:30 PM
Category: Drama, Feature
SHORT BLOCK 19 (MADE IN IOWA)
Featuring the films: HOME NO RETURN, REND, TALLULAH PARK, TINKER, TOOTHACHE
1 time at 07:30 PM
Category: Comedy, Documentary, Drama, Family, Feature, Horror/Thriller, Made in Iowa, Short, Student
90s GLO PARTY
Get ready to light up the night with some of the hottest DJs and music at JDIFF! DJ Papi and Dani Ross spinning the 90s and 2000s classics and the newest club hits. High energy, massive music sets, and the best vibes in town!
1 time at 09:30 PM
THE SPEAKEASY SHOW on 16mm
Hosted by film curator/creator GARRETT SCHRODER - Q&A afterwards w/special guests. Projecting material nearly 100 years old, we'll whisk you back to a smokey cocktail lounge, where the waiters, entertainers and even your food wear roller skates. You'
1 time at 09:30 PM
Category: 16mm
Sat, Apr 26, 2025
CALL ME DANCER
Manish is a young and talented street dancer from the City of Dreams, Mumbai. He struggles against his parents’ insistence that he follow a traditional path because they depend on their only son's support. When he accidentally walks into an inner-c
1 time at 10:00 AM
Category: Documentary
FOR THE LIVING
When 250 cyclists mount their bikes outside the universal symbol of absolute evil (Auschwitz-Birkenau) and pedal a WWII liberation path across the Polish countryside, every mile reveals that our entire species too has spent centuries on its own liber
1 time at 10:00 AM
Category: Documentary
SHORT BLOCK 20
Featuring the films: LIVE A LITTLE, PLENTY OF TIME, SCAVENGERS, SHATTER, WHAT HAPPENED TO BRUNCH
1 time at 10:00 AM
Category: Animation, Comedy, Drama, Horror/Thriller, Short, Student
SHORT BLOCK 10
Featuring the films: A GUEST IN MY COUNTRY, JEAN & I, JUST KIM, KIKI, NEITHER DONKEY NOR HORSE, STORAGE FEES, THE INVITE
1 time at 10:15 AM
Category: Drama, History, Horror/Thriller, Short, Student
SATURN
When a mysterious planet appears in the sky, a young father must choose between the life he loves and an ancient call to save the world.
1 time at 10:30 AM
Category: Drama, Feature, Sci-Fi
SHORT BLOCK 3
Featuring the films: HAZE OVER, HONEYWELL, KIND MOTHER, NEBUCHADNEZZAR, OLIVE, PREDATOR, TEARFUL TIGERS
1 time at 10:30 AM
Category: Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Horror/Thriller, Sci-Fi, Short, Student
Film is Dead, Long Live Film: The Importance of Film Preservation with director Peter Flynn and film archivist Greg Hamilton
1 time at 11:30 AM
Category: Panels
SHORT BLOCK 16
Featuring the films: BROOKLYN, OUTRO, PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, THE LAST RHINO, THIS COULD HAVE BEEN AN EMAIL, THIS IS LOVE?!, WHAT IT'S LIKE TO BE OKAY
1 time at 12:30 PM
Category: Comedy, Drama, Family, LGBTQ+, Short, Student, Thriller/Horror
STANDOUT: THE BEN KJAR STORY
Born with a severe facial difference, a young man confronts overwhelming obstacles preventing him from living an ordinary life. Refusing to be limited by his appearance, he defies medical advice and societal prejudices as he attempts to become a worl
1 time at 12:45 PM
Category: Documentary, Drama
THE RAMBA EFFECT
Guided by compassionate experts and a devoted team of volunteers, Ramba, an Asian elephant who endured 50 years of isolation in a Chilean circus, embarks on an extraordinary 2,550-mile journey to her new home at Elephant Sanctuary Brazil.
1 time at 01:30 PM
Category: Documentary
THE STRANGE DARK
Edgar believes he can see the future, but his wife thinks he's mad, his daughter thinks he's strange, and the agents from double star accounting will stop at nothing to get their data back.
1 time at 01:30 PM
Category: Feature, Horror/Thriller, Sci-Fi
MOTHERLAND
In an alternate-present society where the state frees parents from the burden of raising children, a rule enforcer learns a shocking truth that sparks her rebellion.
1 time at 01:45 PM
Category: Drama, Feature, Sci-Fi
PSYCHOTRONIC AFTER SCHOOL SPECIAL on 16mm
Hosted by film curator/creator GREG HAMILTON - Q&A afterwards w/special guests. Ready for a dose of weird nostalgia? Dive into this vintage media mash-up featuring strange educational films, oddball advertisements, subversion and diversion - all tie
1 time at 02:30 PM
Category: 16mm
SHORT BLOCK 4
Featuring the films: ANWAR, MARIE'S AMBITION, MARINA, NAP, PULPITUM, TERRA LUNA, THE LETHE
1 time at 03:30 PM
Category: Drama, Horror/Thriller, Sci-Fi, Short, Student
SHORT BLOCK 15
Featuring the films: BRETT WAS A F*CK, FORTUNE, PRINCETON'S IN THE MIX, STEPS, THE MISSING PEACE
1 time at 03:45 PM
Category: Comedy, Drama, Horror, Horror/Thriller, Satire, Short
THE THERAPY
Eccentric psychologist Elisaveta Petrova has a hidden love of painting, but her childhood trauma inhibits her from pursuing a career in the arts. Resentful to turning her back on her dream she tries to cure her own fears by devising experimental ther
1 time at 04:30 PM
Category: Drama, Feature, Horror/Thriller
SHORT BLOCK 12
Featuring the films: BEFORE THE THUNDER, CHASERS, GIVEN, MY ЊУЈОРК [NEW YORK], PERLA, RUIN FALLS, ZARI
1 time at 04:45 PM
Category: Comedy, Drama, LGBTQ+, Short
SHEEPDOG
A decorated combat Veteran is court ordered into treatment when an ex-convict shows up on his doorstep and reveals that he must put himself back together again. SHEEPDOG is the first film that truly explores the physical and psychological repercussio
1 time at 05:00 PM
Category: Drama, Feature
5683
After an impromptu intervention about Vanessa's “single” status, she and three friends are faced with a billboard that promises the name of her true love. Her friends take on the challenge and now she has to decide to join the search or just play alo
1 time at 06:45 PM
Category: Comedy, Feature, Made in Iowa
SHORT BLOCK 21 (YOUNG FILMMAKERS)
Featuring the films: BROKEN REFLECTION, HOLIDAY SEASONING, THE AUDITION, THE HAWTHORNE HORROR, THE MISTLETOE DART
1 time at 06:45 PM
Category: Comedy, Drama, History, Horror/Thriller, Made in Iowa, Short, Young Filmmaker
UNDER THE VOLCANO
A blended Ukrainian family spends the last day of their vacation in Tenerife, Spain. When Russias invasion of Ukraine strands them on the island, they must contend with isolation, duty, fear - and each other.
1 time at 08:00 PM
Category: Feature
JDIFF AWARDS CELEBRATION
JDIFF Red Carpet and Awards Night is sponsored by The Joey B McNamer Foundation and is the biggest party of the week! Get dressed up for photos on the Red Carpet and enjoy the presentation of awards. The night has a special host and includes a number
1 time at 08:30 PM
AWARDS AFTER PARTY
When the Awards are done, come on over to the party! Based out of South Texas, Arzalez has uniquely produced an intimate sound with respect to many cultural influences. With a big range of musical styles and a combination of classic and modern sounds
1 time at 09:30 PM
Sun, Apr 27, 2025
REBEL WITH A CLAUSE
One fall day in 2018, Ellen Jovin set up a folding table on a Manhattan sidewalk with a homemade sign that said Grammar Table. Right away, passersby began excitedly asking questions, telling stories, and filing complaints. What happened next is
1 time at 10:00 AM
Category: Documentary
NOTHING WRONG
Based on true events: After a shocking revelation turns Andrea’s life upside down and tests the bond with her younger sister Claire, they embark together on a strange scavenger hunt—searching for hidden truths, and a way back to each other.
1 time at 10:30 AM
Category: Drama, Feature
SHORT BLOCK 9
Featuring the films: A LIFE WITH NO FUTURE, ADVENT, EBB & FLOW, LITTLE RED BRACELETS, NOT HERE, RIGHT TO PRIVACY
1 time at 10:30 AM
Category: Animation, Drama, Short, Student
THE EVERYTHING POT
Fifty-something Rachel finds herself at a turning point; her only child is off to college, her marriage is listless, and she’s afraid the best years of her life are behind her. So, when she receives a wedding invitation from a former, much younger
1 time at 10:30 AM
Category: Comedy, Drama, Feature
THE SNARE
Dani is a straight-A student from the wrong side of town who's worked hard for an academic scholarship. Busted with a small amount of drugs, the police pressure her to become an informant - forcing her to choose between the people she loves and the
1 time at 10:45 AM
Category: Drama, Feature, Horror/Thriller
LONE WOLVES
When a single, pragmatic forty-something recruits the eclectic guy she didn't go to prom with back in high school to be her D-I-Y sperm donor, but learns that he's Autistic and navigating some significant mental health issues, her carefully plann
1 time at 11:00 AM
Category: Comedy, Feature
What Makes it a Great Film with FIPRESCI Jury
More info to come.
1 time at 11:30 AM
Category: Panels
SHORT BLOCK 20
Featuring the films: LIVE A LITTLE, PLENTY OF TIME, SCAVENGERS, SHATTER, WHAT HAPPENED TO BRUNCH
1 time at 12:45 PM
Category: Animation, Comedy, Drama, Horror/Thriller, Short, Student
SHORT BLOCK 14
Featuring the films: CARMEN AND THE WOODEN SPOON, CLEAN PLATE, HEARTS OF STONE, TANGO IN ROOM 1310, THE FIRST SEQUEL, UKRAINIAN DANCE MOVIE, WATCHING WALTER
1 time at 01:15 PM
Category: Animation, Comedy, Drama, Family, Short, Student
PIGGY DUSTER
Vivian (Julia Ma) and her stepfather Keith (Brian Landis Folkins) set up camp in a Rocky Mountain valley, on a trip that he hopes will recapture the magic of the ones they took when she was little, much to her chagrin. In the heat of an argument, she
1 time at 01:45 PM
Category: Drama, Family, Feature
MARTYR OF GOWANUS
Brooklyn, 2001. Gavin Macklin, a 30 year old housepainter, gets into a feud with a teenage boy (Angel) from the neighborhood over a stolen fishing rod and suffers a beating from Angel's cousin. After meeting Angel's sister (Mercedes), Gavin decides t
1 time at 02:00 PM
Category: Feature
RECOLLECTION
In a society where people rely on technology to remove painful memories, a glitch returns Kate's memories, uncovering a dark truth about her past and those responsible. Its 2033, and memory cleansing has taken society by storm. Thanks to Vitality
1 time at 02:00 PM
Category: Feature, Horror/Thriller, Sci-Fi
SÉANCE
In 1892 California, a Victorian woman (Scottie Thompson) contemplating adultery is forced to take refuge from a storm at the home of her first husband (Jilon VanOver) and his unstable wife (Vivian Kerr), who claims to be haunted by their dead child.
1 time at 02:00 PM
Category: Drama, Feature, Horror/Thriller
SHORT BLOCK 5
Featuring the films: A WOMAN IS MANY THINGS (JUST FINE ISN'T ONE OF THEM), DARCINE'S DAY, DEVELOPMENT, HIS MOTHER, MAGGIE'S NOT OKAY, MOTHER (MATKA)
1 time at 03:00 PM
Category: Comedy, Drama, Short, Student
FOR THE LIVING
When 250 cyclists mount their bikes outside the universal symbol of absolute evil (Auschwitz-Birkenau) and pedal a WWII liberation path across the Polish countryside, every mile reveals that our entire species too has spent centuries on its own liber
1 time at 04:15 PM
Category: Documentary
LezBeHonest: Balancing Business and Authenticity with Nicole Almanza
1 time at 04:30 PM
Category: Panels
SAFFRON KINGDOM
Inspired by actual events, Saffron Kingdom delves into the Kashmir conflict through the lens of a family's journey from Srinagar in the 1990s to Atlanta in 2019. The narrative starts with young Masrat, who witnesses the violence of insurgency during
1 time at 04:45 PM
Category: Drama, Feature, International
MISSISSIPPI SCHOLAR
MISSISSIPPI SCHOLAR reveals the impediments one underprivileged intellectual must overcome to realize his dreams of the future.
1 time at 05:00 PM
Category: Drama, Feature
SHORT BLOCK 6
Featuring the films: 29th OF FEBRUARY, AN OLD FRIEND, AREN'T WE HAVIN' A GOOD TIME, BUT I'M A SHOE, DÉRIVE, GOODNIGHT DARLING
1 time at 05:00 PM
Category: Animation, Drama, Family, Short
LOVE, DANIELLE
When Danielle, a happily married thirty-something, tests positive for a BRCA1 gene mutation, she learns that this puts her at a very high risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer. Thanks a lot, DNA! She now struggles with daily life, working at h
1 time at 05:30 PM
Category: Comedy, Drama, Feature
MISOPHONIA
When Martin is fired and subsequently forced to move in with his sister following a misophonia outburst at work, he sets out on a comically disgruntled mission to identify the various ways he might manage his misophonia and get his life back on track
1 time at 06:00 PM
Category: Comedy, Drama, Feature
FOUR RIVERS SIX RANGES
After the invasion of Tibet in 1949, the nation suffered immensely under the brutal Chinese regime under a ruthless General Tan which led The Dalai Lama to escape his homeland into India and seek refuge in 1959. A group of ordinary Tibetan men led by
1 time at 07:30 PM
Category: Drama, Feature, History
THE PANTONE GUY
At 96 years old, Larry Herbert, known as "The Pantone Guy" is a visionary whose revolutionary idea to standardize color remains largely unrecognized. Growing up in Depression-era Brooklyn, Larry entered the print and manufacturing trade during a
1 time at 08:00 PM
Category: Documentary
ROBOT T-0
In the near future, robots are in every household, at the service of humans, replacing them in their daily chores. 40 years old Max, unemployed, and her daughter Paula struggle to earn their living by selling stolen robots on the black market. Unfort
1 time at 08:15 PM
Category: Comedy, Drama, Feature, Sci-Fi
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General Terms
All items are non-refundable, all sales are final.
Refund Policy
All items are non-refundable under any circumstances.
When & Where
Apr 21, 2025 to Apr 27, 2025
200 Main St
200 Main Street
Dubuque, IA 52001
200 Main Street
Dubuque, IA 52001
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