Mendocino Film Festival

Mendocino Film Festival The Mendocino Film Festival brings independent film to a gorgeous location. May 28-May 31, 2026 We established the Mendocino Film Festival in 2006.
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In developing our vision statement and goals, we strove to reflect our appreciation of community and the simpler, outdoors-oriented Mendocino lifestyle. In such a quiet and beautiful environment, attending filmmakers can focus less on hype and more on craft and creative kinship. They can hike the headlands and share their work with passionate colleagues and attendees. Mendocino is known for its artistic and politically active population, so local audiences are informed, engaged and supportive.

As we reflect on an incredible weekend of film, storytelling, and community, we’d like to congratulate the recipients of...
06/02/2026

As we reflect on an incredible weekend of film, storytelling, and community, we’d like to congratulate the recipients of this year’s Mendocino Film Festival awards.

🏆 Best Documentary (Tie)
Nuisance Bear & American Pachuco

🏆 Best Narrative Feature
We Shall Not Be Moved

🏆 Special Acting Award
Happy Birthday

🏆 Best Short Film
Baddest Speechwriter of All (Portraits Shorts)

From powerful documentaries to unforgettable performances and thought-provoking narratives, these films left a lasting impression on audiences throughout the festival.

Thank you to all of the filmmakers, jurors, volunteers, sponsors, and festivalgoers who helped make this year’s celebration of independent cinema so special. Until next year.

06/01/2026

Wow. What an amazing weekend we’ve just had. 🎬✨

Over the past few days, we gathered in theaters, tents, galleries, and community spaces to laugh, cry, learn, reflect, and experience stories from around the world together.

To our filmmakers, sponsors, members, volunteers, board, staff, hospitality partners, donors, and everyone who attended: thank you. The Mendocino Film Festival exists because of this incredible community and the belief that storytelling has the power to connect us.

We are filled with gratitude for every conversation after a screening, every packed theater, every standing ovation, every volunteer shift, and every person who chose to spend their weekend celebrating independent film on the Mendocino Coast.

Thank you for being part of the story.

See you next year as we celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the Mendocino Film Festival. 🎥

05/29/2026

Last night’s Members Premiere featuring our Feel Good Shorts was filled with laughter, emotion, inspiring stories, and a room full of people who love film. It was the perfect way to kick off the 19th Annual Mendocino Film Festival.

A heartfelt thank you to Noyo Harbor Inn for sponsoring this special event, Mendo Sotheby’s for supporting our beautiful Festival Tent year after year, the Matt Rowland Team for helping bring it all together, and to our incredible volunteers, staff, sponsors, filmmakers, and community members who make this festival possible.

Now it’s time for a weekend filled with films, conversations, discoveries, and unforgettable moments. Enjoy the festival weekend!

Travel the world from your NorCal seat 🌎🎬See the World brings together a dynamic collection of international short films...
05/26/2026

Travel the world from your NorCal seat 🌎🎬

See the World brings together a dynamic collection of international short films that journey through Poland, Japan, Peru, Nepal, and beyond — exploring culture, humanity, and unexpected moments through a global lens.

Thought-provoking, visually rich, and full of perspective, this shorts program is a reminder of how storytelling can connect us across borders.

🗓 Friday, May 29
🕓 4:00 PM
📍 Festival Tent
🗓 Sunday, May 31
🕐 1:00 PM
📍 Crown Hall

Q&A with filmmakers after the screening.
Film sponsor: SCP Mendocino Inn & Farm

Next weekend! A fun morning for the whole family 🎬🚲Join us for our Children’s Program featuring a delightful collection ...
05/24/2026

Next weekend! A fun morning for the whole family 🎬🚲

Join us for our Children’s Program featuring a delightful collection of short films from around the world, presented in partnership with the New York International Children’s Festival.
From searching for the perfect pancake to interviewing a crocodile, these imaginative and heartwarming shorts are sure to enchant audiences of all ages.

✨ Free bike giveaway during the program!
Perfect for kids ages 5+ and a wonderful introduction to the magic of the big screen.
🗓 Saturday, May 30
🕙 10:00 AM
📍 Coast Cinemas
Free children’s program.

A hopeful and inspiring collection centered around conservation, restoration, and our connection to the natural world 🌿🎬...
05/24/2026

A hopeful and inspiring collection centered around conservation, restoration, and our connection to the natural world 🌿🎬

Keeping It Wild brings together powerful short films exploring rewilding efforts, land stewardship, environmental restoration, and the people working to protect the landscapes and species that shape our planet.

Featuring stories from Mendocino County and beyond, this thoughtful shorts program reminds us what’s possible when communities come together to care for the land.

🗓 Saturday, May 30
🕙 10:00 AM
📍 Festival Tent
Followed by a panel discussion with Mendocino Land Trust staff after the screening.

🗓 Sunday, May 31
🕙 10:00 AM
📍 Coast Cinemas
Film sponsor: Mendocino Land Trust

Grit, creativity, determination, and some truly unforgettable characters 🎬Our Portraits short film program brings togeth...
05/23/2026

Grit, creativity, determination, and some truly unforgettable characters 🎬

Our Portraits short film program brings together a collection of inspiring and wildly unique stories — from a man walking across America in silence for 17 years, to a world-record-holding 95-year-old deadlifter, a giant pencil carving tradition, and reflections from Martin Luther King Jr.’s legendary speechwriter.

Thoughtful, uplifting, and full of personality, this is one of those programs that stays with you long after the credits roll.

🗓 Friday, May 29
🕙 10:00 AM
📍 Festival Tent
🗓 Saturday, May 30
🕓 4:00 PM
📍 Matheson

Q&A with filmmakers after the screening.
Film sponsor: Mendocino Preservation Fund

A festival favorite returns 🎬Reel Mendo celebrates the creativity, stories, landscapes, and voices of Mendocino County t...
05/23/2026

A festival favorite returns 🎬
Reel Mendo celebrates the creativity, stories, landscapes, and voices of Mendocino County through a collection of short films made by local filmmakers.

From redwood symphonies and community stories to local food systems, conservation, love, and memory, this beloved program captures the spirit of the coast in all its beauty and complexity.

Featuring films by Ethan DeLorenzo, Michael Fearon, Frej Barty, Monica Stein-Olson, Cassandra Young, Chisato Uyeki Hughes, Lemia Bodden, and more.

🗓 Sunday, May 31
🕔 5:00 PM
📍 Festival Tent

Q&A with filmmakers after the screening.
Film sponsor: Frankie’s Mendocino

A wild story you truly couldn’t make up 🎬Amazing Live Sea Monkeys dives into the bizarre and fascinating history behind ...
05/23/2026

A wild story you truly couldn’t make up 🎬

Amazing Live Sea Monkeys dives into the bizarre and fascinating history behind one of the most iconic novelty products ever created — from comic book ads to a strange battle over ownership and legacy.
Unexpected, entertaining, and full of twists.

🗓 Saturday, May 30
🕢 7:30 PM
📍 Crown Hall

Film sponsor: Mendocino Botanical Gardens; Newberger & Associates; Todd Newberger Architect

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45062 Ukiah Street
Mendocino, CA
95460

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