DFF 2026 | Session 11 | Driftless Short Film Festival
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The following films have been selected for the 2026 Driftless Short Films Festival (subject to change due to schedule and time constraints):
LIVES:VISIBLE (2017, Michelle Citron, 34 min) — Lesbians in a box… 2000 private snapshots hidden away for over fifty years reveal the rich history of Chicago’s working class butch/fem life in the pre-Stonewall era. Spanning four decades, from the 1930s to the 1960s, the snapshots provide a rare look at a vanished and vibrant Lesbian culture: images of lovers and friends as they played, posed, worked, partied, drank, and aged. Lives:Visible explores the ephemeral nature of culture and the power of the images we make.
THE PERFECT MIDWEST BIKEPACKING ROUTE (2026, Leigh Foster, 16 min) — After years of driving the same highway between Chicago and Saint Paul, filmmaker Leigh Foster sets out to travel the distance by bicycle instead. Over 572 miles, the familiar trip becomes something entirely different: ten days of small towns, back roads, changing landscapes, and the unexpected places between two cities he has called home.
BETWEEN THE EARS (2025, Timothy Lonsdale, 8 min) — A charming Wisconsin couple finds fun, fulfillment and like-minded friends while traveling the country to go trail-riding with their mules. If you called Diane and Chuck Gross mulish, they’d take that as a compliment. They, along with Josie and Traveler— their mules, not their children— have been to 21 states in pursuit of the trail-riding experience.
LANGUAGE BACK (2025, Dusan Harminc, 7 min) — A short documentary about the importance of Native American Language Revitalization shot in Milwaukee, Keshena and Bjorklunden with Indigenous Nations Poets.
L'OPERA DELL-IDOLO DITATO (2026, Wil Loper, 7 min) — Two sociologists discover an idol that gives them the power to sing opera.
THE AGENT GAME (2026, Mary Huff, 6 min) — A woman’s mission has been compromised and finds herself on the run from a dangerous threat.
THE DEAL (2026, Marc Crandall, 6 min) — Underworld dealers negotiate a buy from a mysterious new supplier.
OUT OF A DREAM (L'UN PASSE D'UN RÉVE, 2026, Antoine Sextier, 6 min) — In a quiet bourgeois suburb, a young filmmaker wanders aimlessly, camera in hand, through deserted streets, hidden paths and forgotten parks. He films reality in search of a secret vibration. Little by little, reality begins to waver: on the screen of his camcorder appears a presence his eyes cannot perceive. A silhouette then drifts through these places like a buried memory, leading to a meeting suspended outside of time.
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With its mission of screening the best in Wisconsin independent cinema in a theater that is worthy of the art that it is showcasing, the Driftless Film Festival returns for its 17th edition this fall.
Founded in 2009 by filmmakers Darren Burrows and Nicholas Langholff, the Driftless Film Festival has been the center of independent film in the Driftless Area of southwestern Wisconsin. From hard-hitting documentaries to thought provoking features to timely short films, the DFF strives to highlight local, regional, and world cinema alike. Join us for this year’s festival, taking place November 4-8, 2026.
DFF screens each of its films in the Mineral Point Opera House. Beautifully restored in 2009, and with its new marquee finally in place, the theatre retains the atmosphere of its origins as a 1915 vaudeville house. Brought to life by film screenings and live performances year round, the Opera House is both an elegant testament to Mineral Point’s passion for preservation and a showcase space for some of the best entertainment in the region.
Each year the festival hosts filmmakers from across the country. Special guests have included Mark Metcalf (Animal House, Seinfeld, Little Red), Anthony Arendt (Muscle Shoals, Avatar), and Matt Adams (We Cause Scenes) among many others. Not only do visiting filmmakers present revealing Q&A discussions during the festival, but the weekend provides an opportunity for filmmakers and attendees to mingle outside the screenings. Friendships form over coffee at the local diner and drafts at the main street bars. This opportunity for one-on-one connection kindles the union of film and community at DFF.
From popular festival hits to locally-produced art, the Driftless Film Festival seeks to showcase the most thought-provoking, innovative, and creative independent cinema of our time. These films will hit home in a place that feels like home. We welcome you to join us.
LIVES:VISIBLE (2017, Michelle Citron, 34 min) — Lesbians in a box… 2000 private snapshots hidden away for over fifty years reveal the rich history of Chicago’s working class butch/fem life in the pre-Stonewall era. Spanning four decades, from the 1930s to the 1960s, the snapshots provide a rare look at a vanished and vibrant Lesbian culture: images of lovers and friends as they played, posed, worked, partied, drank, and aged. Lives:Visible explores the ephemeral nature of culture and the power of the images we make.
THE PERFECT MIDWEST BIKEPACKING ROUTE (2026, Leigh Foster, 16 min) — After years of driving the same highway between Chicago and Saint Paul, filmmaker Leigh Foster sets out to travel the distance by bicycle instead. Over 572 miles, the familiar trip becomes something entirely different: ten days of small towns, back roads, changing landscapes, and the unexpected places between two cities he has called home.
BETWEEN THE EARS (2025, Timothy Lonsdale, 8 min) — A charming Wisconsin couple finds fun, fulfillment and like-minded friends while traveling the country to go trail-riding with their mules. If you called Diane and Chuck Gross mulish, they’d take that as a compliment. They, along with Josie and Traveler— their mules, not their children— have been to 21 states in pursuit of the trail-riding experience.
LANGUAGE BACK (2025, Dusan Harminc, 7 min) — A short documentary about the importance of Native American Language Revitalization shot in Milwaukee, Keshena and Bjorklunden with Indigenous Nations Poets.
L'OPERA DELL-IDOLO DITATO (2026, Wil Loper, 7 min) — Two sociologists discover an idol that gives them the power to sing opera.
THE AGENT GAME (2026, Mary Huff, 6 min) — A woman’s mission has been compromised and finds herself on the run from a dangerous threat.
THE DEAL (2026, Marc Crandall, 6 min) — Underworld dealers negotiate a buy from a mysterious new supplier.
OUT OF A DREAM (L'UN PASSE D'UN RÉVE, 2026, Antoine Sextier, 6 min) — In a quiet bourgeois suburb, a young filmmaker wanders aimlessly, camera in hand, through deserted streets, hidden paths and forgotten parks. He films reality in search of a secret vibration. Little by little, reality begins to waver: on the screen of his camcorder appears a presence his eyes cannot perceive. A silhouette then drifts through these places like a buried memory, leading to a meeting suspended outside of time.
--
With its mission of screening the best in Wisconsin independent cinema in a theater that is worthy of the art that it is showcasing, the Driftless Film Festival returns for its 17th edition this fall.
Founded in 2009 by filmmakers Darren Burrows and Nicholas Langholff, the Driftless Film Festival has been the center of independent film in the Driftless Area of southwestern Wisconsin. From hard-hitting documentaries to thought provoking features to timely short films, the DFF strives to highlight local, regional, and world cinema alike. Join us for this year’s festival, taking place November 4-8, 2026.
DFF screens each of its films in the Mineral Point Opera House. Beautifully restored in 2009, and with its new marquee finally in place, the theatre retains the atmosphere of its origins as a 1915 vaudeville house. Brought to life by film screenings and live performances year round, the Opera House is both an elegant testament to Mineral Point’s passion for preservation and a showcase space for some of the best entertainment in the region.
Each year the festival hosts filmmakers from across the country. Special guests have included Mark Metcalf (Animal House, Seinfeld, Little Red), Anthony Arendt (Muscle Shoals, Avatar), and Matt Adams (We Cause Scenes) among many others. Not only do visiting filmmakers present revealing Q&A discussions during the festival, but the weekend provides an opportunity for filmmakers and attendees to mingle outside the screenings. Friendships form over coffee at the local diner and drafts at the main street bars. This opportunity for one-on-one connection kindles the union of film and community at DFF.
From popular festival hits to locally-produced art, the Driftless Film Festival seeks to showcase the most thought-provoking, innovative, and creative independent cinema of our time. These films will hit home in a place that feels like home. We welcome you to join us.
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Where is it happening?
139 High St, Mineral Point, WI, United States, Wisconsin 53565
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
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Host or PublisherDriftless Film Festival
