2026 Event Schedule
13 Locations, 11 Categories, 8 Days of Films
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9.21 - Fundraising Party
Matchwood Brewing
5:30pm-9:00pm
FREE
Join us for a night of film, music, prizes, and good times—all in support of our upcoming film festival!
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Live DJ set by AnT_EyE
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Raffle prizes
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Silent auction (2 Schweitzer Snowmobile Tickets)
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Film Festival trailer reveal
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Short documentary film screening
Come raise a glass with us, get a first look at what’s coming to the festival, and help make this year’s celebration of independent film possible. Bring your friends, grab a beer, enter the raffle, bid on something awesome, and be among the first to see what we’ve been working on.
Featured Film:
10.17 - Opening Night Film Crawl & Glizi at The Hive
Part 1 - Like a bar crawl - except with films! Each location will show a short film, it's your job to find and watch as many films as you can before the real party starts at The Hive at 8pm. To kickoff the start of the Film Fest, we'll begin at Matchwood Brewery and make our way, in whatever order you choose, to each participating venue (Utara, Pivo Peaks, The Bank: Barroom & Eatery, and Idaho Pour Authority).
The theme of the night is "hollywood" so dress up if you want, or don't ;) and join us as we take to the town to kickoff the first annual Sandpoint Idaho Film Fest. This portion of the event is FREE!
Part 2 - Opening Night Celebration at The Hive with DJ Lady Oda and Glizi! We'll show a short animated film before Glizi performs. This is where the real party begins! BUY TICKETS
Part 1: Film Crawl - FREE
Matchwood Brewing
Film Screening Time - 5:00pm
FREE
Martini - Nominated for The Next Wave Award
On the last day of filming for an amateur film, a group of filmmakers go through their own personal conflicts to obtain the Martini shot.
Utara Brewing
Film Screening Time - 5:45pm, 6:30, & 7:15
FREE
Hallucinalien - Nominated for Past Forward Award
When an employee misses three days of work, he has to have an explanation. Not saying it's aliens...but aliens. Will his story stand up to scrutiny, or be written off as a hallucination? (Drug Use)
Pivo Peaks
Film Screening Time - 5:45pm, 6:30, & 7:15
FREE
Kirsten Van Horne: Poacha's Pack
Kirsten Van Horne never imagined a life as a professional athlete. For years, self-doubt kept her from believing she belonged among the sport's top riders. From a shy, small-town kid to competing on the biggest stage in freeride mountain biking, her journey shows what can happen when you give yourself permission to try.
The Bank: Barroom & Eatery
Film Screening Time - 5:45pm, 6:30, & 7:15
FREE
Curtain Call - Nominated for The Next Wave Award
The fates of three Chicago socialites collide during a single doomed night at the Opera. (Mild Violence)
Idaho Pour Authority
Film Screening Time - 5:45pm, 6:30, & 7:15
FREE
Sound Again
Sound Again is about a boy with degenerative hearing loss who decides, at the age of 12, to get cochlear implants. The procedure renders him technically deaf without the appliance (hearing devices), but leads to a new kind of "hearing."
Almost as a joke, he takes a high school music engineering class and discovers an unexpected talent for music. Incredibly, he becomes a talented, charismatic musician.
Part 2: Opening Night Celebration: Glizi at The Hive + Short Film
BUY TICKETS
DJ Lady Oda - 7:15 - 8:30pm
Short Film 8:30pm
Glizi - 9-11pm
$10
Keep the party going with DJ Lady Oda and our favorite local female lead rock/cover band, Glizi!
Featured Film:
10.18 - Local Idaho Filmmaker Showcase
Little Panida Theater - BUY TICKETS
1pm - 4pm
$5
The Sandpoint Idaho Film Fest presents the Local Idaho Filmmaker Showcase at the Little Panida Theater. Join us for an afternoon celebrating an exciting variety of independent films produced right here in the Gem State. The showcase is divided into two screenings, each running just over one hour.
Town of Trains
Every day, around 50 trains make their way through the town of Sandpoint, Idaho. Experience selected stories behind the Northwest’s largest railroad funnel. This short documentary blends archival interviews shot by cinematographer Erik Daarstad with modern footage. Hop aboard, it’s choo-choo time!
Castle Kingside
A grandfather and granddaughter bond through the years over their shared love of chess. As times get harder, they use their love for the game and each other to get through it.
Metal Swan Queen
A ballerina bullied for not "fitting the mold" finds solace in her favorite genre of music and imagination.
Monarch Migration - Nominated for Green Horizons/Voices For Change Award
Revel in the majestic beauty of Monarch Migration’s kaleidoscope of butterflies. Movement created by Open Arms Dance Project’s diverse dancers helps teach, partly through American Sign Language, how to support habitat for dwindling monarch butterfly populations.
Ellinson For Peace
Larry Ellingson is an extremely talented multifaceted visual and sound artist in Spokane, Washington and a friend who has become very dear to my heart. One day I found myself writing a song at the piano thinking about aging, connections, goals; it eventually became ‘Ellingson for Peace’—a campaign for a grounded future.
WARRIORESS
A poetic music film exploring feminine resilience, collective strength, and the transformative power of visibility through art. Centered around a circle of women from Sandpoint, Idaho, the film follows a narrator moving through symbolic worlds shaped by movement, ritual, emotion, and creation.
The Sled Hill - Nominated for Made in Idaho Award
In a small town, a forgotten ski slope from the 1940's finds new life as a conservation project. “The Sled Hill” is a short film that uncovers the legacy of a cherished past and the hope for a sustainable future outside the city limits of Sandpoint, Idaho.
The Shape of Trees - Nominated for Past Forward Award
A momentary encounter with elusive filmmaker Terrence Malick forever alters Jack's life path, and his perception of reality... This dark comedy, the debut short film by Willie & Jamie Wittezehler, explores how the stories we tell can ground our sense of identity while simultaneously drawing us too deeply into Narcissus' pond.
SUCCESS: A Race to Alaska Story - Nominated for Past Forward Award
Four Idaho sailors battle the elements in the legendary Race to Alaska aboard a small sailing vessel, as they attempt the notorious Seymour Narrows, Cape Caution and Hecate Strait. Along the way, as they race to bring awareness for a worthy cause, they are forced to reconsider the meaning of failure and success.
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Sat, Oct 17
Opening Night - Glizi at The Hive
10.19 - Sandpoint Cinema Takeover
Sandpoint Cinema in Ponderay - BUY TICKETS BELOW
300 Bonner Mall Way, Ponderay, ID
5:00pm-8:00pm
$5
We're taking over one of the screens at the Sandpoint Cinema in Ponderay! We have two incredible feature length films that you won't want to miss.
Anne Packard: An Artist's Resolve - Nominated for Best Documentary Feature - 5:00pm
A single mother of five becomes one of the greatest artists of her generation. (Winner: Audience Award - Best Documentary Feature, Provincetown International Film Festival 2026)
Anne is 92 years old and today will be the last day she visits the gallery that helped make her famous.
At 41, Anne’s husband left her with five small children for a 19-year-old, and her parents’ response was, “You made your bed, Anne, now lie in it”...leaving her the sole provider for her young family. As a woman in the 1970s, galleries and artists would not take her seriously. They scoffed when she hung her small paintings on the fence in front of her house. Nevertheless, she priced them between $5 and $15 on the honor system, and they sold, and sold...and sold. Galleries called and collectors swarmed to her work. Soon, she and her three daughters owned their own gallery, and her paintings were selling for thousands of dollars. Today, Anne has to give up that gallery, but she has not given up her will to create.
NALOX - Nominated for Best Narrative Feature - 6:30pm
After her brother dies from an overdose, a grieving woman takes the man she believes is responsible captive, demanding answers. As his disappearance draws others into the search, what begins as a personal reckoning spirals into a tense collision of grief, denial, and competing truths. (Drug Use/Violence)
10.20 - R-Night
Idaho Pour Authority - RSVP BELOW
6:00pm-8:00pm
$5 Suggested Donation
Join us for a night of slightly R-Rated films at IPA. Are they actually R-Rated? No, but they're a little two dark to play at the Panida. There will be an intermission, and there will be beer.
My Friend Karl - Nominated for Best Narrative Short
A detached hitman and a washed-up drunk must work together to find a misplaced bag of money. (Violence)
The Application - Nominated for Best Narrative Short
After a sex worker disappears, her sister arrives to her work looking for answers, pulling herself and a bartender working for this criminal organisation into deadly game neither of them ever applied to play. (Drug Use/Violence)
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The Fourth - Nominated for Past Forward Award
Eager to celebrate the 4th of July, a group of young black and Latino friends experience a police encounter that shatters the meaning of the holiday. (Violence)
Last Call
While waiting anxiously for an appointment at an empty bar, an out-of-luck gambler discovers that a simple drink order could hold significance beyond what goes in the glass.
10.21 - Heartwood Screening
The Heartwood - BUY TICKETS BELOW
6:30pm-8:00pm (Doors @ 5:30pm)
$5
We're taking over The Heartwood for a special evening feature film screening. Join us as we delve into the world Sally Gearhart. (Contains some nudity)
Featured Film:
Sally! - Nominated for Best Documentary Feature & Love Out Loud Award - 6:30pm
Sally Gearhart was a lesbian-feminist firebrand, professor, and fantasy author who spearheaded the 1970s and 80s US lesbian feminist movement. SALLY! peels back proverbial (and patriarchal) layers to reveal the collectivist reality behind our heroine’s story while exploring the complex relationship between spokeswomen like Sally and movements for social change. (Some Nudity)
10.22 - Local Ski Film & Panel Discussion
Eichardt's Pub (Upstairs) - RSVP BELOW
6:30pm-8:00pm
FREE (40 person capacity)
Local skier's and filmmakers Cameron Hotchkiss and Essex Prescott produced an incredible short documentary Caution: Terrain last season, and we're getting a sneak peak into what it took to get the job done. Join us for a film screening and Q&A after the film with the masters behind the craft.
Featured Film:
Caution: Terrain - Nominated for Made in Idaho Award
From old classics, to new monsters... follow along with the Potato Boys through a season spent chasing all that the North Idaho Backcountry has to offer. CAUTION:TERRAIN dives deeper into a few select lines that play a big role in the past, present, and future of the Famous Potatoes Saga. From in the air, to boots on the ground, enjoy the journey of our 3rd full length film.
10.23 - Premier Night + Raffle
Panida Theater - BUY TICKETS
7:00pm-9:00pm
$20
Our final two nights at the Panida Theater! Premier Night is a showcase of some of our favorite films, ranging from dark comedy to action sports, there's something everyone will enjoy. We'll also have a silent auction for a 26/27 Schweitzer Season Pass and a Snowboard Raffle from 7B Boardshop.
Bagelocalypse - Nominated for Best Narrative Short
The trials and tribulations of sitting near the office snacks.
It Takes Two To Tandem - Nominated for Best Untamed Short
A feel-good short following longtime riding partners Sam and Jazz as they take a tandem bike across some of their favorite trails, marking ten years since their first tandem adventure together. Part celebration, part reflection, the film explores friendship, trust, and the rare joy of moving through the world in sync.
Company Trip
5 homies, 2 RVs, 2 weeks, north island, good snow, you do the math. Sometimes, no plans in Hokiaddo make for the best plan.
The Way it Was - Nominated for Feature Length Documentary
Throughout the 1970s, Chuck Wirschem shot all of his Alaskan adventures on 16mm film in hopes of making a movie. He never finished the project. 50 years later, his grandson Max Sauerbrey resurrects the idea.
The two travel to a remote location in Alaska called the Fox Farm to review the footage together. What begins as a restoration project becomes something more.
Captivated by the gritty footage of his grandfather's past, Max surprises Chuck with his old camera. Together, they recreate iconic scenes from the footage at the Fox Farm. But as they film, Max discovers something unexpected: Chuck doesn't dwell on what he could have done. He appreciates the high-quality experiences with family and closest friends.
The past footage reveals a man with a vision, doing everything in his power to fulfill that dream. The present footage captures a man who has lived that dream. Through their journey, Max learns that the real legacy isn't preserved on film. It's the shift from chasing more to cherishing what was.
Beautiful Motorcycling - Nominated for Best Untamed Short
Mini doc about an Australian Motor cross riders passion for the sport.
Swabber - Nominated for Best Documentary Short
At 82, Bobby "Swabber" Swan carves through Kootenay race courses alongside ski racers seven decades his junior. Every Tuesday, this two-time Olympian transforms Whitewater slopes with his homemade "swabber sticks," setting slalom courses that have become his personal training ground. Though time has tempered his speed, it hasn't touched his dedication.
Swabber approaches each run with the meticulous focus of someone who understands that mastery is found in the journey itself, not just the finish line.
Elements: Fire - Anna Merritt - Nominated for Green Horizons/Voices For Change Award
Klamath Tribal Member and cultural burn specialist Anna Merritt explores how fire shapes her life and the forests she loves.
This short film is one in a series called "Elements" that celebrate The Klamath Tribes’ leadership in environmental and cultural resilience through personal stories of Tribal Members and their connection to fire, water, and air.
Our goal was to collaborate closely with Anna and let her story unfold through her own voice and relationship to the Klamath Basin. We filmed across multiple seasons, allowing the forests, waterways, and plants to become characters in the story and reflect the deep connection to place that is fundamental to Anna’s work and identity.
We were honored to make this film with The Klamath Tribes and The Nature Conservancy. We wanted to understand how colonization, fire suppression, and climate change have profoundly altered the Klamath Basin’s ecosystems and cultural practices, while centering Anna’s leadership and active work to heal the land and care for her home. That work is hopeful and beautiful.
Trans-Taïge - (Subtitled) Nominated for Best Documentary Short
In a world saturated with noise and pressure, wildlife photographer Jean-Simon Bégin chooses emptiness, cold, and stillness. Trans-Taïga is an intimate and sensory journey, a film that lies between poetic essay and expedition journal, where solitude, obsession, and raw beauty converge in the vast wilderness of northern Quebec.
For years, Jean-Simon has returned to the Eeyou Istchee region, hoping to catch the elusive gaze in photo of the grey wolves. Each winter, he sets out again with the same hope, even if the true encounter always slips through his fingers. The film tells the story of this patient obsession, this quest marked by cold, silence, and distance.
10.24 - Closing Night & Awards
Panida Theater - BUY TICKETS
7:00pm-9:00pm
$20
Welcome to Closing Night of the Film Fest. A culmination of everything we've seen throughout the week, award celebrations, and a night you won't forget.
HEAL - Nominated for Best Narrative Short
A broken man must overcome physical and mental obstacles to try and make his life whole again.
Poacha's Journal - Nominated for Best Untamed Short
Tire tracks in the mud. A frame forged from raw carbon. A rider’s thoughts, captured in a journal that speaks the language of dirt, speed, and freedom.
Follow Poacha’s Journal in the discovery of true freeriding. A story told through trails, a reflection on freeride culture, and a tribute to building something with your hands before you ever drop in.
From muddy laps to raw loam. The journey of the GHOST POACHA: crafted to redefine freedom with every ride.
Foild Guys vs ANVIL- Nominated for Best Animation
When Foil Guy comes face to face with an unstoppable, unmovable, impenetrable force - who will prevail?
Esperando - Nominated for Best Narrative Short
Esperando is a poignant portrait of love, sacrifice, and the quiet devastation of separation in today’s America.
On her daughter’s last day of elementary school, Sonia, an undocumented mother, promises she will be there to cheer the loudest at graduation. As Lupita nervously navigates her last day of school, Sonia spends the day cleaning motel rooms, unaware that ICE agents are on their way. When she is suddenly detained, her promise collides with a cruel reality, leaving Lupita waiting for a mother who has been taken away.
Sm Hodgson - The Story of a Freerider
There was never a plan B.
Not out of stubbornness – but because Sam Hodgson never needed one. Growing up on a farm, somewhere between dirt, shovels and bikes, it was clear early on: if there’s nothing to ride, you build it yourself.
This short documentary is a glimpse inside the life and the mind of professional freerider Sam "Hodgy" Hodgson.
Amazonicus - Nominated for Best Experimental
Amazonicus Colossus is a lament for the age of excess. It’s a metaphor for the monstrous legacy of hyper-consumerism, a beast born from what we discard, with a life of its own, immortal in a way, and beyond our ability to fully tame.
- I made a 12' horse from 100 recycled Amazon boxes
- It was shown at Terrain-15 in Spokane 2024
- After the show friends helped me move her into a wooded field
- I set her on fire at sunset
- Two artist friends painted her while she burned
- We fed those paintings to the fire as well
- I made black oil paint from the ashes
- Another friend used that paint on a canvas
- Of course we had to burn that painting too
- I have more paint
- Artists who feel a "burning desire" should ask for some paint
- You must promise to burn your work with me
Heaven in a Wildflower- Nominated for Best Experimental
In 'Heaven in a Wild Flower' we immerse ourselves in a lyrical exploration of the perilous consequences of pesticides on bees and their intricate ecosystem. In a mesmerizing microscopic world, science meets artistry, fraught with danger and beauty.
Constellations of the Sea- Nominated for Youth Works Award
A 17-year-old filmmaker joins a Maldives research team to document the growing challenge of protecting endangered whale sharks at the center of a global tourism industry.
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Let My People Go Skiing - Nominated for Best Documentary Short, Untamed Short, & Green Horizons/Voices For Change Award
Confronted with the frustration of false narratives and intergenerational trauma that surround her, Tlingit skier and scientist Ellen Bradley returns to her traditional homelands in Southeast Alaska. Here, she uses skiing as a tool to reclaim her connection to the land she belongs to.
The abundance and biodiversity of Lingít aaní (Tlingit land) have shaped the people of the tides since time immemorial, molding all aspects of traditional and contemporary Tlingit life. Meanwhile, the outdoor industry depicts Alaska as a resource-rich landscape waiting to be conquered and exploited. Just like the ancestors of Ellen’s paternal clan, the Dog Salmon, have always done, people are meant to live in a reciprocal relationship with the land in gratitude of the abundant life they are gifted. Weaving ancestral knowledge, scientific understanding, and passion for her sport, we follow Ellen’s journey to help her community reclaim its place at the forefront of the stories told about their homelands. By dismantling barriers to access to snowsports for Alaska Native youth, she empowers a generation to reclaim their relationship to the land in hopes that the mountains can teach them what it will take to endure the fight to protect their culture, language, and home forever.
