Showcasing the work of filmmakers and stories with direct ties to the state of Colorado, the lineup of 19 films includes five features, five documentary shorts, and nine narrative shorts demonstrating a powerful range of local stories and those from homegrown filmmakers.
The entire 48th Denver Film Festival program will be announced on October 4th. Member tickets go on sale October 5th, and general public tickets go on sale October 6th.
Director Raúl O. Paz-Pastrana A revealing chronicle of the immigrant workers who care for elite racehorses, sustaining a multi-billion-dollar industry. Filmed in the vérité style by a Colorado-based director, this documentary examines the grueling demands of labor and the pride of a community.
Directors Vickie Curtis & Doug Anderson In response to a tragedy that claimed the lives of 41 girls in a Guatemalan “Safe Home,” two sisters channel their grief into an act of defiance by using towering puppets, fire, and performance to confront gender violence. This Colorado-produced documentary documents their defiance and the healing that can come through art making. Honored at Sheffield DocFest with the International First Feature Award, Comparsa affirms how creativity can transform grief into strength and survival.
Director Kahane Corn Cooperman Welcome to Creede, Colorado—a 300-person mining town at 9,000 feet—where ranchers, miners, and a repertory theater company share the same main street. This documentary weaves together multiple storylines, from the theater that reshaped the town’s economy and brought cosmopolitan audiences into a conservative community, to the next generation navigating questions of identity, including a trans student at the local school. With humor and heart, it presents Creede as a surprising microcosm of America, where deep divides and unexpected solidarities coexist.
Directors Daniel Junge & Sam Pollard A film honoring the life and legacy of Archbishop Carl Bean, the Motown singer turned minister whose 1977 anthem I Was Born This Way became a groundbreaking declaration of queer pride. Directed by Academy Award winner Daniel Junge alongside Sam Pollard, it blends archival footage, animation, and interviews with cultural icons to honor Bean’s music, ministry, activism, and his resounding message that "love is for everyone."
Director Max Walker-Silverman Set in the aftermath of a devastating wildfire near Durango in southwestern Colorado, Dusty (Josh O’Connor), a cowboy who loses his family ranch, drifts into a FEMA trailer park on the edge of town. There, he reconnects with his young daughter and ex-wife while finding kinship with neighbors who also lost everything, forming an unlikely community. Directed by Colorado filmmaker Max Walker-Silverman (A Love Song), Rebuilding conveys love, and the possibility of starting over in luminous golden-hour footage.
Films include THE AMERICAN STANZA (dir. Shaffer J. Nickel), INTO THE CHUTES (dir. Jenna Rice), FOR THE PEOPLE (dir. Dewi Sungai), COW SENSE (dir. Keely Kernan), and MOVING LINE (dir. Cameron Wyatt).
Films include ECHO EQUINOX (dir. Jack Cosgriff), ANIMAL MATH (dir. Robbie C. Ward), THE HOUSE OF PUSSY (dir. Fiona Lynette McNeal), PARTY DEMON (dirs. Preston Tompkins, Zach Reinert), POTLUCK (dir. Matt Sandoval), THE CALL (dir. Kelly Sears), A KNOCK IN THE DARK (dir. Estee Fox Bershof), SILENT GENERATION (dir. Francisco Solorzano), and I LOVE YOU AND I AM GOING TO FIX YOU (dir. Bruce Tetsuya).
