Special Poster for the 2026 Los Angeles Film Festival, Scheduled for April 9-12

      One of America’s best-curated festivals is set to begin next month. The third installment of the Los Angeles Festival of Movies, co-presented by Kino Film Collection and Mezzanine, is scheduled for April 9–12 and will showcase celebrated films including Blue Heron, Maddie’s Secret, Chronovisor, With Hasan in Gaza, and others.

      Co-founded by Micah Gottlieb and Sarah Winshall, LAFM will be held on the east side of Los Angeles at locations like Vidiots, 2220 Arts + Archives, Now Instant Image, and the Philosophical Research Society. In anticipation of the festival, we are delighted to exclusively unveil the official poster featuring artwork by Arius Ziaee and design by Jim Chapa.

      “We’re thrilled to return with a fresh and exciting lineup that represents the peak of independent filmmaking,” Winshall states. “We’re especially excited this year to include John Early’s unique and surprisingly poignant satire, Maddie’s Secret, and to conclude with Sophy Romvari’s unexpected, elliptical personal narrative, Blue Heron—both highly original films that deserve to be experienced on the big screen, with an audience.”

      “Fostering a vibrant community of young, diverse cinephiles is what this festival embodies,” Gottlieb explains. “We’re also dedicated to introducing audiences to restored arthouse treasures, including Lino Brocka’s long-unavailable queer cult classic Macho Dancer, while also presenting more new features and shorts by local L.A. filmmakers that offer a nuanced and beautifully intimate view of life in the city,” Gottlieb adds.

      Check out the exclusive poster reveal below, along with the festival lineup, and purchase tickets here.

      **Official Selection**

      - After Dreaming, dir. Christine Haroutounian

      - Blue Heron, dir. Sophy Romvari

      - Chronovisor, dir. Jack Auen, Kevin Walker

      - Drinking and Driving, dir. Avalon Fast, Jillian Frank

      - In the Glow of Darkness, dir. Tucker Bennett

      - Isaiah’s Phone, dir. Frédéric Da

      - Maddie’s Secret, dir. John Early

      - Selegna Sol, dir. Anouk Moyaux

      - With Hasan in Gaza, dir. Kamal Aljafari

      **Restorations**

      - Dreams of Passion, dir. Aarin Burch

      - Macho Dancer, dir. Lino Brocka

      - Shades of Silk / Ombres de Soie, dir. Mary Stephen

      **Short Films**

      - Acetone Reality, dir. Sara Magenheimer, Michael Bell-Smith

      - Cairo Streets, dir. Abdellah Taïa

      - Dooni, dir. Kevin Jerome Everson, Claudrena N. Harold

      - The Early Sun, Red as a Hunter’s Moon, dir. Adam Piron

      - I Dreamed of a Gentle Landscape, dir. Kim Torres

      - An Impossible Address, dir. Suneil Sanzgiri

      - Morning Circle, dir. Basma Al-Sharif

      - Pilgrims Cartel / Unclassified, dir. Colectivo Los Ingrávidos

      - Time Life Volume 15. Monument to a Period of Time in Which I Lived, dir. Mungo Thomson