Denver Film Announces Colorado Spotlight Film Program for 49th Denver Film Festival

True Grit Award Returns With Juried Award Presented to the Best Colorado-produced Feature Film

Denver Film and Amazon Bring Free Festival Screenings to Denver-area Students

DENVER – Denver Film announced today its lineup of feature films, as well as documentary and narrative shorts selected for inclusion in the Colorado Spotlight section of the 49th Denver Film Festival (DFF49) taking place Oct. 22 – Nov. 1, 2026 at venues across the Denver-metro area including the Sie FilmCenter, Ellie Caulkins Opera House, Denver Museum of Nature & Science and the MCA Denver at the Holiday Theater.

Showcasing the work of filmmakers and stories with direct ties to the state of Colorado, the lineup of 19 films includes eight features, six documentary shorts and five narrative shorts demonstrating a powerful range of local stories and those from homegrown filmmakers.

The True Grit Award, honoring the best Colorado-produced feature film and celebrating the filmmakers and stories that reflect the creativity, spirit, and distinctive voices of the state, returns to the Festival as a juried award category. Founded in 2014, the award has honored standout films including Keep on Keepin’ On, Liyana, and Cosmic Dawn. The award is sponsored by the Colorado Office of Film, Television & Media (COFTM) and includes a $2,500 cash prize.

Feature documentaries include Art Not As Usual, which chronicles international art exhibitions staged in locations healing from past atrocities by University of Colorado Boulder faculty; The Ascent following Colorado-based bilateral-amputee climber Mandy Horvath’s record-breaking attempt to summit Mt. Kilimanjaro; Denver-based filmmakers Rebekah Henderson and Lilah Park’s Good Help, documenting the extraordinary network of Denver neighbors supporting recently-arrived Venezuelan migrants; Boulder filmmaker and professor Erin Espelie’s Ideas of Order, blending art and science through an exploration of cancer, mortality, and cellular life; The River, a local portrait of families confronting the Colorado River crisis; and Watch You Rise, Boulder-based Isabella Grace Cohn’s intimate examination of sexual harm and healing.

Feature narratives include Denver filmmaker Sheryl Glubok’s Welcome to the Fishbowl, a madcap Colorado road-trip comedy about ambition and second chances; and Ramzi Bashour’s Hot Water, a lyrical road-trip dramedy about a Lebanese-American professor driving across the country with her perpetually delinquent teenage son. Both Welcome to the Fishbowl and Hot Water were recipients of the Colorado Film Incentive, facilitated by the Colorado Office of Film, Television & Media (COFTM), which encourages and supports film production in Colorado.

“The feature films in this year’s Colorado Spotlight are an especially strong reflection of the ambition and range of filmmaking connected to our state,” said Denver Film Festival Artistic Director Matthew Campbell. “These films take us from the summit of Kilimanjaro and the crisis facing the Colorado River to the streets of Denver, inside a biochemistry lab and on road trips across Colorado and the country. They’re funny, deeply personal, visually striking and, at times, incredibly challenging. What connects them is a real sense of curiosity and humanity as told through filmmakers who aren’t afraid to take on big ideas while telling stories that feel intimate, authentic and distinctly their own.”

The 2026 Colorado Spotlight shorts span documentary and narrative, from farmers and rural communities, the legacy of a WWII-era violin, and Indigenous land dispossession to zombie comedies, darkly comic crime, grief, family, incarceration, and apocalyptic visions. Together, these films reflect the breadth, originality, and distinctive storytelling of Colorado filmmakers and communities.

“What I love about this group of films is how different they are from one another, reflecting both the variety and richness of voices, experiences, and perspectives represented across the state,” said Denver Film Festival Programming Manager Ambriehl Turrentine. “You get a real sense of the people and places behind them, whether it’s a story about a rural community, a difficult chapter in someone’s life or something completely strange and unexpected. There’s a wonderful mix of humor and heart in this year’s lineup, and several films really caught me off guard in the best way possible. It’s also exciting and encouraging that we have filmmakers returning to DFF alongside those showing their work here for the first time.”

FEATURE FILMS

ART NOT AS USUAL
Director: Annie Eastman
For 30 years, the Artnauts—a global collective of artists—have brought contemporary art to places the elite art world rarely reaches: the Colombian Amazon, Rwanda’s Kigali Genocide Memorial, and the Korean Demilitarized Zone. Rooted in the belief that art must be understood within its social context, the collective’s 256 exhibitions have become sites of burgeoning friendship, reflection, and exchange. At its center is founder Dr. George Rivera, whose early encounters with racism and classism planted the question that continues to drive the Artnauts: How do we stop hate with love?

Colorado Note: Director Annie Eastman is Denver based and the film profiles The Artnauts, an artist collective primarily composed of University of Colorado, Boulder and founded by University of Colorado, Boulder professor Dr. George Rivera.

THE ASCENT
Directors: Edward Drake, Scott Veltri, Francis Cronin
Winner of the SXSW Audience Award, The Ascent is the inspiring true story of Colorado Springs bilateral-amputee climber Mandy Horvath’s record-breaking attempt to crawl to the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro on her hands. At 21, Mandy lost both of her legs under mysterious circumstances—an event that shattered her trust in the world around her. As she pushes her body to its limits on Africa’s tallest mountain, Mandy must reckon with the unanswered questions of her past and learn to trust again if she is to succeed.

Colorado Note: Mandy Horvath, lead subject of The Ascent, is a Colorado-based bi-lateral above-knee amputee, creative writer, public speaker, actress, mountaineer and 8-time World Record Holder and TIME100 Sports 2026 Honoree.

GOOD HELP
Directors: Rebekah Henderson, Lilah Park
When nearly 40,000 Venezuelan migrants arrived in Denver between 2023 and 2024, the city faced an unprecedented humanitarian crisis. In this urgent, deeply personal World Premiere documentary, Denver-based filmmakers Rebekah Henderson and Lilah Park capture the extraordinary network of local neighbors who stepped up when the system broke—organizing food, rides, warm clothing, and temporary shelter in the freezing winter cold. But as grassroots efforts collide with hard questions of accountability, financial strain, and systemic burnout, Good Help turns a sharp, empathetic lens on our own backyard, delivering a gripping and vital portrait of civic responsibility, community power, and what it truly takes to care for one another.

Colorado Note: Directors Rebekah Henderson and Lilah Park are Denver-based filmmakers and DFF alum (Running with My Girls, DFF44, 2021). Good Help follows Denver metro area residents who came together to support newly arrived Venezuelan migrants.

HOT WATER
Director: Ramzi Bashour
When tightly-wound Lebanese-American professor Layal (Lubna Azabal) runs out of options for her perpetually delinquent teenage son Daniel (Daniel Zolghadri), she sets out on a cross-country drive to hand him off to his father. Featuring exceptional performances, sardonic humor, and stunning landscapes, Ramzi Bashour’s lyrical debut is a road-trip dramedy about letting go and rediscovery, bickering and bittersweet in equal measure as it unravels cultural clashes, parental anxieties, and buried bonds.

Colorado Note: Hot Water was made in Colorado and produced by Colorado-born filmmaker Max Walker-Silverman, a Festival alum who previously screened his acclaimed 2025 drama feature Rebuilding at the 48th Denver Film Festival.

IDEAS OF ORDER
Director: Erin Espelie
Directed by Boulder-based filmmaker and University of Colorado professor Erin Espelie, Ideas of Order stems from a six-year artist residency inside a cutting-edge biochemistry laboratory. Blending scientific investigation with poetic contemplation, the film pairs a fascinating archive of 35mm cellular imagery with a deep look at the delicate mechanics of aggressive cancers and programmed cell death. Juxtaposing microscopic cellular structures with reflections on mortality, poetry, and a human scientist’s personal record, Espelie crafts a visually hypnotic and mind-expanding fusion of science and art that bridges the gap between laboratory research and human wonder.

Colorado Note: Directed by Boulder-based filmmaker and University of Colorado professor Erin Espelie, Ideas of Order was born from her six-year artist residency within a Colorado biochemistry laboratory.

THE RIVER
Director: Mara Gasbarro Tasker
After 5 million years of existence, the Colorado River now fights to survive. This once thriving life source to millions of people and wildlife, is now on the brink of collapse, as human consumption, booming industry, and climate change threaten to dry up its already depleted reservoirs forever. Exploring the fragile equilibrium between human activity and the relentless rhythms of nature, this local Colorado production follows several families navigating the precarious, urgent reality of a vital waterway under threat. Captured through stunning, breathtaking cinematography, The River delivers an intimate, deeply resonant look at community, resilience, and our delicate connection to the natural world.

Colorado Note: Directed by Colorado-based filmmaker Mara Gasbarro Tasker, this locally produced documentary confronts an environmental crisis unfolding amongst the Colorado River.

WATCH YOU RISE
Director: Isabella Grace Cohn
As young Boulder-based filmmaker Isabella Grace Cohn comes of age, what began as an inquiry into preventing sexual harm becomes a deeply personal reckoning when she herself is assaulted. Anchored by intimate conversations with her mother—also a survivor—and stories from LGBTQ+ and BIPOC youth across the country, Watch You Rise bridges raw personal archives with expert insight and hand crafted artistic interludes to navigate the complex web of consent, intergenerational trauma, and healing. A courageous and deeply empathetic documentary, it delivers an essential, urgent blueprint for breaking cycles of harm and opening transformative pathways toward collective justice.

Colorado Note: Isabella Grace Cohn is a Boulder-based filmmaker who was the Key Note Speaker for the 2025 Colorado Take Back The Night event and participated in the 2024 Telluride Student Film Symposium.

WELCOME TO THE FISHBOWL
Director: Sheryl Glubok
Elizabeth is a 40-year-old Denver mom, wife, and former executive assistant to legendary New York literary agent Vivian Traquair, now on the verge of giving up on her own writing dreams. When Vivian offers her a shot at the big leagues in exchange for a “small favor”—chauffeuring a notoriously difficult, bestselling author across Colorado from Denver to Telluride for a prestigious award—what begins as a routine mountain drive turns into an unpredictable, life-altering road trip. But when Elizabeth discovers Vivian’s secret ulterior motive involving a local writer’s retreat, she must decide how far she’ll go to claim the life she actually wants. Directed by Denver native Sheryl Glubok, this screwball comedy was praised by Deadline as a “delightful, madcap journey” starring Natalie Gold (Succession) and Jeremy Swift (Ted Lasso), delivering a witty, high-altitude celebration of ambition, self-discovery, and second chances in our own backyard.

Colorado Note: Directed by Denver-born and based filmmaker Sheryl Glubok and set against Colorado’s iconic mountain landscape and various Denver locales.

COLORADO SHORTS: DOCUMENTARY

All locally-produced and/or shot in Colorado

TALKING TO THE SUN
Director: Megan Sweeney
Talking to the Sun is a short documentary of astronomical proportions following Farmer Frank as he cultivates organic food, promotes healthy eating, and creates a life measured not by scale, but by care—from seed to harvest.

GATORVILLE
Director: Freddie Gluck
In Colorado’s forgotten valley, two siblings face alligators and the ache of leaving youth behind.

THE MELONEERS
Director: Brendan Young
Once a thriving agricultural town famous for its melons, Rocky Ford has faced decades of decline. Amid the hardship, its legendary high school wrestling program remains a source of pride, giving young athletes purpose as a dedicated coach guides them through competition, family, and growing up in rural America.

FAMILY STRINGS
Directors: Daniel Wright, Brendan Young
As his orchestra audition approaches, a young musician receives a donated World War II era violin, connecting him with its benefactor who is grappling with his family’s Nazi past. Bonded by the instrument, they discover that the old violin carries an urgent message.

PEOPLE OF THE SACRED LAND
Directors: Dewi Sungai, Sarah Ortegon HighWalking
People of the Sacred Land follows Richard Williams (Oglala Lakota, Northern Cheyenne) as he explores the Truth, Restoration, and Education Commission of Colorado’s findings, revealing the legal and historical evidence of Native land dispossession and offering a model for Indigenous leaders across the continent.

COLORADO SHORTS: NARRATIVE

All locally-produced and/or shot in Colorado

28 KEGS LATER
Director: Preston Tompkins
During the zombie apocalypse, two unlikely heroes discover the secret to avoiding bites: getting drunk, so they throw the biggest party in town to save as many people as possible. Starring Dave Anthony (Maron) and Gareth Reynolds (New Girl).

TAPIOCA ESOPHAGUS
Director: Jack Cosgriff
When Loretta dies choking on a boba pearl, her two self-absorbed best friends spiral into a wild, drug-fueled crime spree, dragging her corpse along for the ride.

LAY LEFTY DOWN
Director: Traven Rice
Two women unexpectedly unite through stories of grief and laughter, after their family throws a surprise memorial for a left breast.

WE’RE ALL SORRY SOULS
Directors: Alessandra Mesa
Frieda, a ski lift operator in Vail, cares for her neurodivergent brother after their mother’s sudden death while struggling with guilt, loneliness, and financial instability. An encounter with her estranged ex forces her to confront unresolved pain and responsibility.

END OF THINGS
Director: Bruce Tetsuya
An ex-military pilot fears for his daughter’s safety after seeing a vision of the end of the world.

REENTRY
Director: Keenan O’Reilly
After making a pact to get out and stay out, two young men released from prison struggle to rebuild their lives—facing systemic obstacles, fractured families, and the pull of old ties that threaten to unravel everything they promised.

The DFF49 Colorado Spotlight Section is presented by Colorado Office of Film and Television, Mary Watson, Rocky Mountain Public Media, and Colorado Public Radio.

Denver Film and Amazon bring free Festival screenings to Denver-area students

Expanding its commitment to film education and access across Colorado, Denver Film has partnered with Amazon to launch the Student Access Program during this year’s Denver Film Festival. The new initiative will introduce high school students from across the Denver-metro area to independent film and the Festival experience, providing free screenings for approximately 1,600 students during four special presentations at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science. Student film titles will be announced Oct. 3 with the full DFF49 program. For more information, contact: studentprogramming@denverfilm.org.

“Film has a unique ability to open our eyes to new perspectives, spark curiosity and connect us through stories and experiences we might not otherwise encounter,” said Vickie Yakunin, Amazon’s Head of Community Affairs in Colorado. “We’re excited to partner with Denver Film to open the Festival experience to more Denver-area students and give them an opportunity to discover the creativity and collaboration behind bringing stories to the screen. Whether these students already have a passion for film or are experiencing independent cinema for the first time, we hope the program inspires them to see storytelling, and perhaps their own possibilities, in a new way.”

The full DFF49 program will be announced Oct. 3 with tickets to individual screenings, panels and parties on sale to Denver Film members Oct. 4, and to the general public Oct. 5 at 10 a.m. at: www.denverfilm.org/.

DFF49 ticket packs and passes are currently on sale at www.denverfilm.org/.

The Press Accreditation application process is now open for the 49TH Denver Film Festival (DFF49). The application to be considered for Accreditation can be found on the DFF49 website or by clicking here. Applications close Friday, Oct. 16 at 11:59 p.m.

Please contact the DFF49 Media Relations Team with questions:
Marty Schechter: marty@denverfilm.org
Jon Ewing: jon@denverfilm.org
Shea Martin: shea@denverfilm.org

DFF49 Sponsors (as of Sept. 16, 2026)

Colorado Spotlight Sponsors
CBS Colorado
Colorado Office of Film and Television
Colorado Public Radio
Mary Watson

Marquee Sponsors
William LaBahn
Anna and John Sie Foundation
Next50
Amazon
AOR
Halcyon
Sheila K. O’Brien
Dormer Harpring, LLC
Crusonia Wealth Advisors
Betsy Mordecai Heyman
Julie Mordecai
Mercedes-Benz of Denver

Cameo Sponsors
Liberty Global
Visit Denver
BOK Financial
Denver Screen Print & Embroidery
milkhaus
Minuteman Press
Mary Watson
GHP Investment Advisors
Katie Reilly and Shane Harvey

Film Sponsors
Ireland Stapleton
Meow Wolf
Suzanne Siteman
Gloria Campbell & John Verwys
Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, LLP
Consulate General of Canada in Denver

Media
CBS Colorado
Axios
City Cast Denver
Colorado Public Radio
Denverse
Metromode
Rocky Mountain Public Media

Additional Thanks To
Butler Rents
Eldorado Natural Spring Water
MiHi Entertainment
Red Rocks Spirits
Sexy Pizza
Taloma Partners
Denver Community Media
Colorado Dragon Boat
Colorado Film & Video Association (CFVA)
Eventive
Marthas Vineyard African American Film Festival
SAG-AFTRA
Denver Museum of Nature & Science
Ellie Caulkins Opera House at Denver Performing Arts Complex
Market Station
MCA Denver at the Holiday Theater
Tattered Cover Book Store

Proudly Funded By
Colorado Office of Film and Television
Bonfils Stanton Foundation
Denver Arts & Venues
SCFD (Scientific and Cultural Facilities District)

About Denver Film

Denver Film has been transforming and entertaining the Colorado community through the power of diverse voices in film since 1978. Operating as the region’s only membership-based, 501(c)(3) nonprofit film institution, Denver Film has grown into a signature cultural organization in the West, screening international and independent movies found nowhere else in the region.

Serving more than 100,000 patrons annually through 600-plus screenings that include year-round programming at Denver Film’s flagship home the Sie (pronounced SEE) FilmCenter, the annual Denver Film Festival celebration, the iconic Film on the Rocks program at Red Rocks Amphitheater, and Spotlight Festivals including CinemaQ, Women+Film, and the Colorado Dragon Boat Film Festival. Spotlights highlight underrepresented communities and foster inclusivity. Denver Film works to build resilience across all of its programming and events by amplifying diverse voices, promoting equity, and fostering community connections.

For more information or to explore the full suite of Denver Film programming, events, and ticketing visit: denverfilm.org.