Santa Cruz Film Festival

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Santa Cruz Film Festival

🎥 The premiere indie film fest of Santa Cruz, CA
🎞️ Catch the Next Wave of Independent Filmmaking 🎟️ Oct 2026
Curated Films · Music · Parties · Awards

09/04/2026

✨ One night. One table. One film. And the people who made the magic happen. 👨🏼‍🍳+ 🎥

On September 15, HOME Restaurant becomes our stage for an intimate SCFF evening built around two kinds of storytelling: one on the plate, and one on the screen.

Chef Brad Briske is creating a delicious menu for the night, while filmmaker Dan Eason joins us in person for a screening of “Through My Board.”
Afterward, Dan will take us inside the inspiration, people, and real-life stories behind the film.

Expect incredible food, a compelling film, great conversation, and the kind of evening that reminds us why gathering around art matters.

Dinner + Movie
09.15.26 | 6–9 PM
HOME Restaurant, Soquel

The plot twist? Only 12 seats remain.

🎟️ Link in bio or use the QR code (swipe left) to grab yours before the credits roll.

09/03/2026

Some things are hard to define. SCFF is one of them, with the upcoming fun, films and parties/celebrations….but we gave it a shot.

Santa Cruz Film Festival (noun):
Five unforgettable days when independent films, fearless storytellers and one wildly creative community take over Santa Cruz.

Used in a sentence:
“I came for one film and left with a new favorite filmmaker, an appreciation for our local chefs and culinary wizards, public spaces, and three new friends and plans for the after-party.”

The screens light up. Santa Cruz shows up.

Will you?

October 14–18, 2026
Come for the films. Stay for the people, parties and possibilities.

09/01/2026

There is something powerful about what happens when a film community truly shows up for one another.

That is what we are building at the Santa Cruz Film Festival.

We want SCFF to be more than five days of screenings. We want it to be a place where filmmakers feel supported, where audiences discover work they might never otherwise see, where new relationships begin, and where conversations can lead to collaborations, opportunities and the next great idea.

Our events throughout the year are designed with that purpose in mind: to bring people together, create genuine connections, share knowledge, open doors and add real value to our growing moving arts community.

And now, it’s almost time for the main event. This past week, we announced our 2026 lineup of films to incredible excitement and fanfare—and we could not be more excited about what’s ahead. We genuinely believe this may be our strongest year of films yet.

Bold independent voices. Extraordinary stories. Filmmakers coming to Santa Cruz to share their work. Industry conversations and educational opportunities. Parties, panels and gatherings created not simply to fill a calendar, but to bring this community closer together.

Because a thriving film culture doesn’t happen by accident.

It happens when people show up.

For the films.
For the filmmakers.
For each other.
And for the possibility of what we can build together.
We would love for you to be part of it.

Will you join us October 14–18 for the 2026 Santa Cruz Film Festival? 🎬

Come watch something unexpected. Meet someone new. Start a conversation. Support an artist.

Be part of something special.

08/30/2026

Good morning Santa Cruz! ☀️

Something is taking shape.

The image that will define the 2026 Santa Cruz Film Festival is almost ready to step into the light—and soon, the artist behind it.
The chosen artist will be notified August 31, 2026 and we couldn’t be more excited to share their work you!

Join us for the official SCFF 2026 Artist + Poster Reveal.
Light bites + Bubbly + W**e

Monday, September 28
6:30–8 PM
MK Contemporary Art Gallery
703 Front Street · Downtown Santa Cruz

Co-hosted by MK Contemporary Art Gallery + Ripple Effect Arts Festival.

Save the date. This is only the beginning.

08/29/2026

AND THE WINNER IS… MONICA! 🎬✨

Monica’s winning screenplay is about to become something even bigger: her very first film.

She’ll be stepping into production alongside filmmakers and SCFF board members, Bilko Cuervo and Jeff Warrick, with James Duisenberg providing lighting support. And once the cameras stop rolling, the finished film will be shown at the 2026 Santa Cruz Film Festival!

A writer gets an opportunity. Filmmakers share their craft. A community comes together to turn an idea on the page into something we can all experience on the screen.

And the “screenwriting class of 2026” is jumping in to help her wherever needed.

This is what community looks like. 🧍🏻‍♀️🧍🏻🧍🏼‍♀️🧍🏼🧍🏽‍♀️🧍🏽

Congratulations, Monica—we can’t wait to see your story come to life!

08/27/2026

What a night. 🎬✨

More than 65 filmmakers, film lovers, friends and familiar faces filled Woodhouse for our SCFF Reveal Party, and from the moment people walked in, the room was alive.

There was laughter across the tables, filmmakers meeting filmmakers, new connections being made, old friends catching up—and plenty of plates filled with mouthwatering salads, samosas and flatbreads.

Then came the moment everyone had been waiting for.

We revealed our 2026 Opening Night film, Lunar Sway - making its California Premiere at SCFF - and announced that star Liza Weil and writer/director Nick Butler will be joining us in person. Thank you lizaweil and Nick Butler for making your way to our beautiful coastal town!

The room erupted. Cheers, applause, huge smiles—the kind of energy that reminds us exactly why we do this.

Because SCFF is about more than watching films. It’s about gathering around them. Meeting the people who make them. Starting conversations. Finding collaborators. Laughing together. And building a film community that feels unmistakably Santa Cruz.

Thank you to everyone who showed up and made the night what it was.

If the Reveal Party was the preview…

October is going to be something special. 🌙🎥

08/26/2026

Today’s the day. 🌙🎬

We’ve dropped the clues. We’ve teased the moon, the hat, the mystery guest, the California Premiere… and now it’s time to finally show our hand.

Join us tonight at Woodhouse for the SCFF 2026 Reveal Party as we unveil our Opening Night film, reveal who’s coming to Santa Cruz, and give you the first look at what’s ahead for this year’s festival.

Follow the winding road. Trust the clues.

The reveal happens tonight.

6–9pm | Woodhouse Brewing & Blending
119 Madrone Street, Santa Cruz
$10 suggested donation

See you there. 👀

08/25/2026

There’s something in the moonlight… 🌙

A California Premiere.
A director in the room.
A star you definitely know.
And one beautifully bizarre comedy about misfits, secrets, questionable choices and a con-artist mother.

We’re still keeping a few cards close to the chest—but not for long.

Tomorrow night at Woodhouse, we’re pulling back the curtain at our SCFF Reveal Party and sharing what’s coming to Opening Night and beyond.

Come for the clues. Stay for the reveal.

Wednesday, August 26 | 6–9pm
Woodhouse Brewing & Blending
119 Madrone Street, Santa Cruz

$10 suggested donation
Food, drinks, filmmakers, film lovers—and a few surprises.

See you under the moon. 🎬🌙

08/24/2026

Santa Cruz….we’re getting closer.

Our Opening Night film is bold, funny, unexpected—and just a little unhinged.
And when the lights go down, we won’t just be welcoming a new film to California.

We’ll be welcoming the people who made it.

The director will be here.
The star will be here.
And you’ll have the chance to experience the film with them, in the room, on the night of its California Premiere.

We could tell you who.

But where’s the fun in that? 👀

Tomorrow, another piece of the story drops. 🎬🌙

🎉Opening Night | SCFF 2026🎉

08/23/2026

YOU’VE SEEN HER BEFORE.

Maybe in Stars Hollow.
Maybe in a courtroom.
Maybe somewhere considerably more dangerous.

She’s played characters who are brilliant, complicated, fierce, funny—and impossible to forget.

And this October, you’ll see her somewhere completely different…Santa Cruz.

She’s joining us in person for the California Premiere of our Opening Night film at the 2026 Santa Cruz Film Festival.

But we’re not giving you the name just yet. 🎬

Think you know who it is?

Drop your best guess below. 👀

The big reveal is coming.

Address

Santa Cruz, CA
95060

Website

http://www.santacruzfilmfestivals.org/

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