International film festival returns to San Luis Obispo this April
More than 100 films from 25 countries screen April 23–28
– The San Luis Obispo International Film Festival (SLOIFF) has announced its film lineup for its 32nd edition, running April 23 through April 28. The slate features more than 100 films from 25 countries, including narrative features, short films, feature documentaries, and documentary shorts.
The documentary “Give Me the Ball!” will open the festival on April 23, and “Power Ballad,” starring Paul Rudd and Nick Jonas, will close it on April 28. This year also introduces two new categories: episodics, and a special award for best genre and horror film.
Opening Night
The April 23 opening night brings the West Coast premiere of “Give Me the Ball!,” a documentary about Billie Jean King. Directors Liz Garbus and Elizabeth Wolff weave archival footage with King’s own words in the film, which focuses on the sacrifices she made to transform her sport and advocate for women’s rights.
A reception preceding the screening will offer guests an opportunity to meet special guests, filmmakers, and contributors at the historic Fremont Theater.
Closing Night
On April 28, the festival will announce jury and audience award winners before screening “Power Ballad.” The U.S. and Ireland production follows Rick (Paul Rudd), a wedding singer, who meets fading boy-band star Danny (Nick Jonas) during a gig. The two bond over music, but when Danny turns one of Rick’s songs into a hit that reignites his career, Rick sets out to reclaim the recognition he believes he deserves. The film was written and directed by John Carney, known for “Sing Street” and “Once.”
Festival director’s statement
“This year our tagline is ‘Where Our Stories Live,’ highlighting that both our festival and San Luis Obispo are home to storytellers and storytelling,” said festival director Skye McLennan. “We believe film festivals are a powerful opportunity to showcase a diversity of perspectives and stories, and when we share them, we can truly be in community with one another.”
Signature events
The festival’s signature events include Surf Nite, the Central Coast Filmmaker Showcase, Cal Poly Short Cuts, Music Video Showcase, and Community of Skate.
Surf Nite will feature “The Blind Sea,” a documentary following Australian surfer Matt Formston, a three-time world champion with 3% vision, as he attempts to ride the waves of Nazaré, Portugal, in pursuit of a world record for the largest wave ever surfed by a vision-impaired athlete. The evening will open with a set by local band Riff Tide before the screening at the Fremont Theater.
Community of Skate will be held at the historic Bay Theatre in Morro Bay. The event begins with an exhibition of skateboard designs and live screen-printing by the San Luis Obispo High School Advanced Graphic Design class, followed by screenings of the documentary feature “N-Men the Untold Story,” featuring Tony Hawk and Tony Alva, and the documentary short “Pat Ngoho: A Meditation on Creativity.”
The Music Video Showcase will be held at the San Luis Obispo Masonic Hall and will feature an acoustic set alongside music videos from Brazil, Austria, China, and the United States. Many of the filmmakers will be in attendance.
Additional programming
R.A.C.E. Matters will present a short film program entitled “Stay True,” comprising five short films. The program is open to festival ticket holders and the general public.
Now in its 20th year, Filmmakers of Tomorrow will present 15 short films, ranging from three to seven minutes, created by elementary, middle, and high school students from Spain, Canada, New Zealand, China, Singapore, and the United States.
The Central Coast Filmmakers Showcase will highlight the work of 10 filmmakers from Monterey, San Luis Obispo, and Santa Barbara counties, presenting one feature and nine shorts across documentary, comedy, drama, and suspense.
Cal Poly Short Cuts will feature six short films created by Cal Poly students under the mentorship of Professor Randi Barros and James Werner, associate professor of art and design.
A film series titled “Between Doubt and Devotion: Three Films in Search of the Sacred” will present “The Master” (2012), “Samsara” (2011), and “The Seventh Seal” (1957).
Feature film highlights
Other narrative feature highlights include the world premiere of “How to Date Again,” with Haley Joel Osment and Kevin Nealon; the West Coast premiere of “The Musical,” a dark comedy starring Rob Lowe and marking the feature directorial debut of Giselle Bonilla; the sci-fi thriller “April X,” starring Connie Storrie; “The Fisherman from Ghana,” winner of awards at the Venice Film Festival and the Image Awards; “The Blue Trail,” a Brazilian production and winner of the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize at the Berlin Film Festival; “Adult Children,” a festival-circuit award winner; and “Valentina,” directed by Tatti Ribeiro and winner of the “someone to watch” award at the 2026 Independent Spirit Awards.
A special screening of “Left Handed Girl,” the directorial debut of Shih-Ching Tsou, co-written and edited by Sean Baker, will take place on April 26 and be followed by a Q&A with the director.
Other special presentations include “Sender,” a psychological thriller starring Rhea Seehorn, Britt Lower, and Jamie Lee Curtis, and a newly restored screening of Billy Wilder’s “Sunset Boulevard” (1950).
Documentary highlights
Documentary features include “American Pachuco: The Legend of Luis Valdez,” winner of the audience award for U.S. documentary at Sundance; “Birds of War,” winner of the World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award at Sundance; and “Steal This Story, Please!,” which follows journalist Amy Goodman of Democracy Now!
Oscar-qualifying documentary shorts
The festival is an Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences qualifying festival. Films that win in the best documentary short category may be eligible to enter the 99th Academy Awards in 2027.
This year’s nine documentary short films include “Love Birds,” which documents the discovery of homosexuality in seagulls; “The Right Fit,” about a jean store and its connection to its community; and “Swim Sistas,” a documentary about Black women and their relationship to water.
Narrative shorts
The narrative short category features films from Iran, Brazil, Lebanon, Colombia, Estonia, and the United States, spanning drama, fantasy, horror, science fiction, romance, and comedy. Selected films include the French and South African production “Vultures”; “What If They Bomb Here Tonight” from Lebanon; the romance “Never Never Never” from the United Kingdom; the fantasy “I Have Wings But I Cannot Fly” from the United States; the drama “Summer Triangle” from Iran; and the horror film “Breadsong” from Estonia.
Episodics
New to the festival this year, the episodic category will showcase five pilots: the world premiere of “Too Romantic,” starring Rivkah Reyes; the comedies “Dick Bunny” and “Pour Decisions”; the drama “One for the Team”; and the world premiere of “Savage,” directed by Josh Bowman.
Competition
A total of 58 films across the categories of narrative feature, narrative short, documentary feature, documentary short, and music video will compete in the George Sidney Independent Film Competition. Central Coast Filmmaker Showcase films will compete separately in the same categories. George Sidney, Central Coast, and student films will also be eligible for audience awards in five categories.
The competition is named after director George Sidney, the festival’s first recipient of the King Vidor Award and a Central Coast resident. More than 100 screeners evaluated over 2,000 submissions to determine the official selections. A panel of film and media professionals will jury the finalists, and cash prizes will be awarded during the closing night ceremony on April 28.
Jurors for narrative features include Mark Dicristofaro, 2025 festival winner for best documentary for “Middletown”; Ben Bryan, documentary filmmaker; and Maya Seidler, producer of “Couples Therapy” and head of production at Edgeline Films. Jurors for documentary features include Max Geschwind of CAA Media Finance; Kathy Susca, director of content and operations at Film Collaborative; and Travis Weedon, director of festivals and non-theatrical at Visit Films. Jurors for the episodic competition include Angie Han, television critic at The Hollywood Reporter, and Nicole Barker, programming manager at SeriesFest. Full jury bios are available at slofilmfest.org.
Industry panels
The festival will also feature industry panels, including “Social Impact Storytelling,” “Financing, Packaging and Distribution,” “Beyond the Farm,” and “The New Model for Low Budget Filmmaking.” Panels will take place in the festival lounge and are free for festival ticket holders, with tickets available for the general public.
Full narrative feature lineup
The following narrative features are in competition, listed in alphabetical order.
“Adult Children” (USA, 100 min.) follows Morgan, a 17-year-old writing a college entrance essay, who spends time with her older half-siblings during a family crisis, only to find they are also uncertain about adulthood.
“April X” (USA, 96 min.), starring Connie Storrie, is set in a near-future city where twins Bax and April live on society’s margins. After April disappears following an encounter with a biotech underworld, Bax searches for her through a world of fractured memory and illusion.
“The Blue Trail” (Brazil, 86 min.) is set in a near-future Amazon where the government relocates the elderly to remote colonies. When 77-year-old Tereza receives a relocation order, she escapes into the rainforest to fulfill one last wish.
“The Fisherman” (Ghana, 108 min.) follows a retired Ghanaian fisherman who teams up with a talking fish and a group of young dreamers on an adventure to Accra in pursuit of owning a boat. The film was Ghana’s first official selection at the 81st Venice Film Festival.
“How to Date Again” (USA, 96 min., world premiere), starring Haley Joel Osment and Kevin Nealon, follows an animator in Los Angeles who returns to dating after a breakup. He meets a record executive and the two take a road trip along the California coast, including stops in San Luis Obispo County and the Madonna Inn.
“If I Go Will They Miss Me” (USA, 92 min.), fresh from Sundance 2026, is a magical realism film about 12-year-old Lil Ant, who transforms his neighborhood beneath the LAX flight path into a living Greek mythos while searching for connection with his incarcerated father.
“Mārama” (New Zealand, 83 min.) is set in 1859 North Yorkshire, where a Māori woman living among her ancestors’ stolen artifacts uncovers crimes committed by the estate’s owner. The film blends gothic horror with themes of cultural reclamation.
“The Musical” (USA, 84 min., West Coast premiere) follows a middle school theater teacher and frustrated playwright who stages an outrageous school musical in an attempt to sabotage his ex-girlfriend’s new partner, the school’s principal, played by Rob Lowe.
“On the End” (USA, 115 min.) is set in Montauk, where Tom (Tim Blake Nelson), a reclusive mechanic, and Freckles, an outsider, navigate a relationship as gentrification, aging, and rising tides threaten their town.
“This Tempting Madness” (USA, 98 min.), starring Simone Ashley and inspired by a true story, follows Mia, who awakens from a coma with fractured memories and a missing partner. As she reconstructs her past, she questions her own perception of events.
“Valentina” (USA, 82 min.) is set near the U.S.-Mexico border in El Paso and follows a young woman over 48 hours as she navigates debts, family, part-time jobs, and daily errands. The film uses a hybrid narrative and documentary format.
Full documentary feature lineup
“Aanikoobijigan [Ancestor/Great-Grandparent/Great-Grandchild]” (USA/Denmark, 80 min.) follows tribal repatriation specialists working to return Indigenous human remains and sacred objects from institutional archives. The film blends essay and vérité styles.
“American Pachuco: The Legend of Luis Valdez” (USA, 92 min.) chronicles the life of Luis Valdez, from migrant farmworker to artist, who staged plays on flatbed trucks, created the first Chicano play on Broadway, and directed “La Bamba.” The film won the festival favorite award and audience award for U.S. documentary at Sundance 2026.
“Backside” (USA, 85 min., West Coast premiere) is set at Churchill Downs and follows immigrant workers who care for racehorses during the racing season.
“The Big Cheese” (USA, 88 min.) follows American cheesemongers competing at an international cheese competition in Europe.
“Birds of War” (UK/Syria/Lebanon, 84 min., West Coast premiere) traces a 13-year relationship between a London-based Lebanese journalist and a Syrian activist-turned-cameraman who meet during the Syrian civil war. The film draws from personal archives including texts, voice notes, and footage from Aleppo.
“Fork in the Road” (USA, 89 min.), narrated by Nick Offerman, explores the relationships between people, land, and the food system through stories of independent farmers, chefs, and experts.
“The History of Concrete” (USA, 101 min.) follows filmmaker John Wilson as he tries to use the formula from a Hallmark movie workshop to sell a documentary about concrete.
“A Life Illuminated” (USA, 90 min.) follows marine biologist Dr. Edie Widder on a deep-sea dive to capture a bioluminescent phenomenon. The film draws from decades of expedition footage.
“Steal This Story, Please!” (USA, 101 min.) profiles journalist Amy Goodman and her three decades of reporting on Democracy Now!, examining the role of independent media.
“Street Smart: Lessons from a TV Icon” (USA, 84 min.) follows Sonia Manzano, known for her 44-year role as Maria on “Sesame Street” and her work as creator of “Alma’s Way,” tracing her journey from the South Bronx to becoming the first Latina with a regular role on American television.
“Theydream” (USA, 91 min.) follows a filmmaker and his mother as they process grief after the death of his grandmother by recreating family members through 2D and 3D animation and archival footage.
“Turtle Walker” (India/UK/USA, 75 min.) follows Satish Bhaskar, who began exploring India’s coastline in the 1970s to document sea turtle nesting beaches. The film traces his work through the 2004 tsunami, which erased many of the coastlines he had studied.
“Voices: The Danny Gans Story” (USA, 102 min.) tells the story of Danny Gans, a Cal Poly alumnus and Las Vegas entertainer, through the perspective of his son, Andrew, who investigates his father’s career, sudden death, and legacy.
“We Are Pat” (USA, 88 min.) revisits the Saturday Night Live sketch “It’s Pat” and examines how gender, comedy, and cultural values have changed since the 1990s, featuring trans and nonbinary comedians who reimagine the character.
“When a Witness Recants” (USA, 117 min.) revisits a 1983 murder at a Baltimore middle school, examining the false convictions of three teenagers who served 36 years in prison.
“Y Vân: The Lost Sounds of Saigon” (USA/Vietnam, 94 min.) follows a Vietnamese American artist who sets out to recover lost recordings of her late grandfather, composer Y Vân, whose music was popular in Saigon before the Vietnam War.
Festival passes and tickets are available at slofilmfest.org.
