OPENING NIGHT GALA-2026 Spring Fest

Spring 2026 Film Festival Opening Night Gala
Come to the Dietrich’s Opening Night Gala!
Don't miss out on the food and fun of opening night! Bring your friends and enjoy food, two films, beer, wine, desserts and good fun.
Doors open at 5:30pm.
Call NOW to reserve your seat for the evening. Reservations are needed ONLY for Opening Night Gala.
Delicious hors d'oeuvres and scrumptious desserts provided by local restaurants-- along with wine and beer!
Nimble Hill Winery and Brewery
Fireplace Restaurant
Samario's Pizza
Ma Greenley's BBQ
Tioga Bistro
T&C Grille/bakery420

So call 570-836-1022, x 3 to reserve seats now!
Admission: $40 in advance, $45 at the door

Year: 2026

4/17 5:30 PM

2026 Spring Film Festival

Spring 2026 Film Festival
Spring Festival will run from Friday, April 17 through Thursday, May 7
Enjoy 23 films in 21 days!
We strive to bring you some of the year's best independent and foreign films, many of which go on to become Oscar nominees!
We pride ourselves on being one of Northeast Pennsylvania's premiere art houses, and invite you to come and enjoy all the various films we offer during festival!
Tickets are available at the door, or on our website.
Film Festival movie tickets are $8.50 each (*excluding opening night.)

THE FESTIVAL BROCHURE is available as two PDF files on the film festival page under the calendar.
Here are the direct links to the brochure files:
INSIDE Brochure: 2026 Spring FilmFest Brochure inside DRAFT3
OUTSIDE Brochure: 2026 Spring FilmFest Brochure outside DRAFT3

Year: 2026

Genre: various

Rating: various

Length: various

Cast: various

4/17 7:00 PM

5/07 7:00 PM

TOW

TOW- An Opening Night Feature

Rated: R; 105 minutes;in English; Directed by: Stephanie Laing
Starring: Rose Byrne, Jason Cottle, Elsie Fisher
Tow starring Academy Award nominee Rose Byrne is inspired by the
true story of a homeless Seattle woman living in her car who fights a
relentless legal and bureaucratic battle to reclaim her impounded
vehicle after a staggering $21,634 tow bill. The film traces her
struggle for justice and dignity against entrenched systems of
indifference. Amanda’s quest draws her into a community of fellow
unhoused women and a young lawyer who helps her navigate the
maze of courtrooms and red tape, turning a personal crisis into a
broader commentary on resilience and human connection.

Year: 2025

Genre: Drama

Rating: R

Length: 1hr45min

Cast: Rose Byrne, Jason Cottle, Elsie Fisher

4/19 4:30 PM

4/23 2:15 PM

4/26 4:30 PM

4/30 12:00 PM

5/04 7:00 PM

FANTASY LIFE

Fantasy Life - An Opening Night Feature

Rated: R; 91 minutes; in English; Directed by: Matthew Shear
Starring: Amanda Peet, Matthew Shear, Bob Balaban
Fantasy Life is a comedy-drama written, directed by, and starring Matthew Shear, alongside Amanda Peet and a talented ensemble. The story follows an anxious, unemployed paralegal who takes a job babysitting his therapist’s granddaughters and becomes entangled with their mother, a struggling actress whose marriage to a touring rock bassist is falling apart. As the summer unfolds on Martha’s Vineyard, their shared anxieties and emotional struggles lead to an unexpected bond and complicated family dynamics.

Year: 2025

Genre: Romance

Rating: R

Length: 1hr40min

Cast: Amanda Peet, Matthew Shear, Bob Balaban

4/22 2:30 PM

4/24 12:00 PM

4/30 2:30 PM

5/01 7:00 PM

André is an Idiot

not rated; 88 minutes; in English; Directed by: Tony Benna
André Is an Idiot is a documentary that stars André Ricciardi as himself on a deeply personal and irreverent journey after receiving a terminal colon cancer diagnosis. When André realizes his illness might have been detected earlier if he’d gotten a colonoscopy, he decides to make a film about how he plans to live — and die — with humor, curiosity, and wild creativity, blending footage with imaginative animated sequences. The result is both hilarious and poignant, offering a life-affirming portrait of a man confronting mortality on his own terms.

Year: 2025

Genre: Documentary

Rating: Not Rated

Length: 1hr30min

Cast: André Ricciardi as himself

4/21 12:00 PM

4/30 2:15 PM

5/03 12:00 PM

5/04 2:30 PM

Calle Málaga

not rated; 116 minutes; in Spanish, Arabic with subtitles; Directed by: Maryam Touzani
Starring: Carmen Maura, Marta Etura, Ahmed Boulane
Calle Málaga is a Spanish-language drama that follows María Ángeles, a 79-year-old Spanish woman living alone in Tangier whose quiet life is disrupted when her daughter arrives from Madrid with a plan to sell the apartment that has long been her sanctuary. Determined to protect her home and the memories it holds, María Ángeles begins a personal fight that also leads her to rediscover love, independence, and a renewed sense of identity.

Year: 2025

Genre: Drama

Rating: Not Rated

Length: 2hr

Cast: Carmen Maura, Marta Etura, Ahmed Boulane

4/18 4:30 PM

4/29 2:30 PM

5/03 4:30 PM

5/05 7:00 PM

Dreams

not rated; 98 minutes; in English, Spanish with subtitles; Directed by: Michel Franco
Starring: Jessica Chastain, Isaac Hernández, Rupert Friend
Dreams is a romantic drama starring Jessica Chastain as Jennifer, a wealthy San Francisco socialite who embarks on a secret and intense romance with a young Mexican ballet dancer, whose journey toward the United States is both literal and emotional. The film explores themes of power, class disparity, desire, and the complex motivations that drive the lovers into each other’s orbit and then to the brink of destruction.

Year: 2025

Genre: Romance/Drama

Rating: Not Rated

Length: 1hr40min

Cast: Jessica Chastain, Isaac Hernández, Rupert Friend

4/20 7:00 PM

4/25 12:00 PM

4/30 12:00 PM

EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert

rated: PG-13; 96 minutes; in English;Directed by: Baz Luhrmann
EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert directed by the legendary Baz Luhrmann, is a concert documentary starring the legendary rock-and-roll icon Elvis Presley through restored archival performances and newly uncovered interview audio. The film blends never-before-seen concert footage with Presley narrating elements of his own life, creating an immersive portrait of his stage presence and personal reflections during the height of his fame. Built from newly restored archival material discovered during the production of Luhrmann's earlier film Elvis, the documentary recreates the excitement of Presley’s live shows and explores the pressures of his career.

Year: 2025

Genre: Documentary/Music

Rating: PG-13

Length: 1hr40min

Cast: Elvis Presley

4/20 2:30 PM

4/22 7:00 PM

4/25 7:00 PM

4/28 12:00 PM

5/01 4:30 PM

5/07 7:00 PM

Exhibition on Screen: Turner and Constable

not rated; 93 minutes; in English; Directed by: David Bickerstaff
Exhibition on Screen: Turner and Constable is an art documentary that
explores the lives and works of British landscape painters J.M.W. Turner and John Constable. Featuring expert commentary and rare archival footage, the film examines how their contrasting styles — Turner’s dramatic, atmospheric vision versus Constable’s detailed, naturalistic landscapes — shaped the course of 19th-century art. The documentary follows major exhibitions of both artists, offering viewers an immersive experience of their paintings and the historical contexts that inspired them.

Year: 2026

Genre: Documentary/Music

Rating: Not Rated

Length: 1hr40min

4/20 12:00 PM

4/27 12:00 PM

5/02 4:30 PM

Four Rational People

not rated; 113 minutes; in English; Directed by: Tristan Cook
Four Rational People is a documentary that chronicles the final season of the legendary Emerson String Quartet, whose members prepare to conclude a celebrated 50-year career. The film follows the quartet on the road as they rehearse, reflect on decades of collaboration, and grapple with the emotional decision to disband after earning nine Grammy Awards during their career. Through archival footage and intimate behind-the-scenes moments, the documentary explores aging, artistic legacy, and the unique creative dialogue that defines a string quartet.

Year: 2025

Genre: Documentary/Music

Rating: Not Rated

Length: 1hr50min

Cast: Emerson String Quartet

4/19 12:00 PM

4/23 5:00 PM

4/26 12:00 PM

4/28 12:00 PM

5/06 12:00 PM

Ghost Elephants

Rated: PG; 98 minutes; in English; Directed by: Werner Herzog
Ghost Elephants is a documentary directed by Werner Herzog that follows conservation biologist Steve Boyes on a decade-long expedition into Angola’s remote highlands in search of a mysterious, possibly undiscovered herd of elephants. Blending science, indigenous tracking knowledge, and Herzog’s philosophical narration, the film explores both the physical journey and the deeper human obsession with uncovering nature’s secrets.

Year: 2025

Genre: Documentary

Rating: PG

Length: 1hr40min

4/18 7:00 PM

4/24 7:00 PM

4/26 2:15 PM

4/30 4:30 PM

5/02 9:15 PM

5/06 2:15 PM

Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die

Rated: R; 134 minutes; in English; Directed by: Gore Verbinski
Starring: Sam Rockwell, Juno Temple, Michael Peña
Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die is a science-fiction comedy directed by Gore Verbinski and starring Sam Rockwell and a talented ensemble. The film follows a disheveled man from the future who bursts into a Los Angeles diner claiming he must recruit a specific group of strangers to help stop a rogue artificial intelligence from causing humanity’s collapse. As the unlikely team embarks on a chaotic, time-bending mission, their personal stories and struggles reveal how technology has reshaped their lives and the fate of the future.

Year: 2025

Genre: Sci-fi/Comedy

Rating: R

Length: 2hr10min

Cast: Sam Rockwell, Juno Temple, Michael Peña

4/18 9:15 PM

4/23 12:00 PM

4/25 9:15 PM

4/27 7:00 PM

4/30 7:00 PM

5/06 7:00 PM

Idiotka

not rated; 82 minutes;in English, Russian with subtitles; Directed by: Nastasya Popov
Starring: Anna Baryshnikov, Camila Mendes, Galina Jovovich
Idiotka is a satirical indie comedy about a struggling fashion designer
in West Hollywood who enters a cutthroat reality TV competition to
save her family’s apartment, only to face pressure to exploit her
personal hardships for entertainment. Blending sharp satire with
heartfelt family drama, it critiques the absurdity and manipulation of
reality television while exploring immigrant identity and ambition.

Year: 2025

Genre: Comedy/Family

Rating: Not Rated

Length: 1hr30min

Cast: Anna Baryshnikov, Camila Mendes, Galina Jovovich

4/20 4:30 PM

4/24 2:30 PM

4/29 7:00 PM

5/05 12:00 PM

Late Shift

not rated; 92 minutes; in German, Turkish, French with subtitles; Directed by: Petra Biondina Volpe
Starring: Leonie Benesch, Sonja Riesen, Alireza Bayram
Late Shift follows Floria, a dedicated nurse working a chaotic night in an understaffed hospital ward, where mounting emergencies turn her shift into a tense race against time. Premiering at the Berlin International Film Festival, the film drew strong attention for its intense, realistic portrayal of healthcare workers under pressure.

Year: 2025

Genre: Drama

Rating: Not Rated

Length: 1hr30min

Cast: Leonie Benesch, Sonja Riesen, Alireza Bayram

4/20 2:15 PM

4/24 9:15 PM

4/27 2:30 PM

5/01 12:00 PM

5/03 2:00 PM

5/07 2:30 PM

Midwinter Break

rated: PG-13; 90 minutes; in English; Directed by Polly Findlay
Starring: Lesley Manville, Ciarán Hinds, Julie Lamberton
Midwinter Break starring Lesley Manville and Ciarán Hinds, follows long-married Irish couple Stella and Gerry as a spontaneous Christmas trip to Amsterdam forces them to confront buried trauma, fading intimacy, and unresolved tensions in their decades-long relationship. As the couple revisits painful memories and differing spiritual paths, their quiet holiday becomes a reckoning about whether their marriage can endure.

Year: 2026

Genre: Drama

Rating: PG-13

Length: 1hr30min

Cast: Lesley Manville, Ciarán Hinds, Julie Lamberton

4/18 2:15 PM

4/23 12:00 PM

4/28 7:00 PM

5/02 2:30 PM

5/05 4:30 PM

Mr. Nobody Against Putin

not rated; 90 minutes; in Russian with subtitles; Directed by: David Borenstein, Pavel Talankin
Winner of the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature, Mr. Nobody Against Putin follows a Russian schoolteacher who secretly films how propaganda and militarization spread through his small-town school after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Through two years of hidden footage, they document how ordinary citizens and institutions are drawn into supporting an authoritarian system.

Year: 2025

Genre: Documentary

Rating: Not Rated

Length: 1hr30min

4/19 7:00 PM

4/23 2:30 PM

4/26 7:00 PM

5/01 2:15 PM

5/06 4:30 PM

A Poet

not rated; 123 minutes; in Spanish with subtitles; Directed by: Simón Mesa Soto
Starring: Rebeca Andrade, Guillermo Cardona, Alisson Correa
A Poet, follows Oscar, a middle-aged, unsuccessful poet in Medellín
whose life of existential drift takes an unexpected turn when he begins
mentoring a talented teenage student, forcing him to confront his own
failures and stubborn artistic ideals. Blending humor and melancholy, A
Poet explores the messy realities of creativity, ambition, and resilience
against social and personal odds.

Year: 2025

Genre: Drama/Humor

Rating: Not Rated

Length: 2hr

Cast: Rebeca Andrade, Guillermo Cardona, Alisson Correa

4/22 12:00 PM

4/27 2:30 PM

5/07 12:00 PM

Pompei: Below the Clouds

not rated; 115 minutes;in Italian, Arabic, Japanese, Neapolitan, English with subtitles; Directed by: Gianfranco Rosi
Pompei: Below the Clouds is a observational documentary that captures the everyday lives of residents, archaeologists, firefighters, and workers living in and around Naples and Pompei beneath the looming presence of Mount Vesuvius. Through quiet, black-and-white vignettes filmed over several years, it reflects on how modern life unfolds amid the buried history of the ancient Roman city destroyed by the volcano in 79 AD.

Year: 2025

Genre: Documentary

Rating: Not Rated

Length: 1hr50min

4/18 12:00 PM

4/23 7:00 PM

4/25 2:15 PM

5/01 12:00 PM

5/07 4:30 PM

The President's Cake

rated: PG-13; 105 minutes;in Arabic with subtitles;Directed by: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
The President’s Cake is a coming-of-age drama set in 1990s Iraq that follows a young girl tasked with baking a mandatory birthday cake for the president despite extreme poverty and food shortages. As she journeys through the city with her friend and encounters the harsh realities of life under dictatorship, the story blends childhood adventure with political critique.

Year: 2025

Genre: Drama

Rating: PG-13

Length: 1hr40min

Cast: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem

4/20 12:00 PM

4/24 4:30 PM

4/28 4:30 PM

She Dances

rated: PG-13; 93 minutes; in English; Directed by: Rick Gomez
Starring: Ethan Hawke, Wynn Everett, Steve Zahn
Starring Steve Zahn and Ethan Hawke, She Dances follows the story of a father and daughter forced to reconnect on the road to her final dance competition, where they must confront their fractured relationship. As they navigate a shared tragedy, the whirlwind of the Young Miss Southeast Regional Dance Finals becomes the backdrop for their journey toward healing. She Dances is a story about rediscovering family and finding yourself — about accepting what is, letting it shape you, and recognizing who you are through the memories of those you love most.

Year: 2025

Genre: Comedy/Drama

Rating: PG-13

Length: 1hr40min

Cast: Ethan Hawke, Wynn Everett, Steve Zahn

4/19 2:30 PM

4/22 4:30 PM

4/24 2:30 PM

4/29 4:30 PM

5/04 4:30 PM

Sound of Falling

not rated; 155 minutes; in German with subtitles;Directed by: Mascha Schilinski
Starring: Hanna Heckt, Lena Urzendowsky, Susanne Wuest
Winner of the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, Sound of Falling is a German drama that unfolds as a poetic, dream-like portrait of four girls from different generations connected by life on the same remote farmhouse in Germany’s Altmark, exploring how trauma, memory, and desire echo across time.

Year: 2025

Genre: War/Drama

Rating: Not Rated

Length: 2hr30min

Cast: Hanna Heckt, Lena Urzendowsky, Susanne Wuest

4/21 2:30 PM

4/27 11:45 AM

5/02 12:00 PM

5/04 11:45 AM

The Voice of Hind Rajab

not rated; 89 minutes; in Arabic with subtitles, English; Directed by: Kaouther Ben Hania
Starring: Saja Kilani, Motaz Malhees, Amer Hlehel
Nominated for Best International Feature at the Academy Awards, The Voice of Hind Rajab is a powerful docudrama that reconstructs the harrowing true story of six-year-old Hind Rajab in Gaza, using real audio from her desperate call to the Palestine Red Crescent as volunteers race to save her life while under fire.

Year: 2025

Genre: War/Drama

Rating: Not Rated

Length: 1hr30min

Cast: Saja Kilani, Motaz Malhees, Amer Hlehel

4/21 2:15 PM

4/27 4:30 PM

5/01 2:30 PM

Wisdom of Happiness

not rated; 90 minutes;in English; Directed by: Barbara Miller, Philip Delaquis
Wisdom of Happiness is a documentary featuring an intimate cinematic conversation with the 14th Dalai Lama, as he reflects on compassion, inner peace, and the pursuit of happiness in a turbulent modern world. The film blends newly seen archival footage with the Dalai Lama’s direct guidance on confronting fear, suffering, and global unrest with mindfulness and heart-centered wisdom.

Year: 2025

Genre: Documentary

Rating: Not Rated

Length: 1hr30min

Cast: Dalai Lama

4/21 12:00 PM

4/25 5:00 PM

4/28 2:30 PM

5/03 7:00 PM

Oscar Nominated Short Films 2026: ANIMATED

Runtime: 83 minutes
2026 Oscar-Nominated Shorts — Animated isn’t one single film, but a showcase of the five animated short films nominated for the Academy
Award for Best Animated Short Film at the 98th Academy Awards. The lineup includes Butterfly, a hand-painted French short about Olympic
swimmer and Holocaust survivor Alfred Nakache; Forevergreen, a CGI tale of a bear cub and an evergreen tree; Retirement Plan, a brief but
poignant animated reflection narrated by Domhnall Gleeson on life and legacy; The Three Sisters, a quirky, dialogue-free short about connection
and solitude and The Girl Who Cried Pearls (Winner), a Canadian stop-motion fable exploring love and greed.

Year: 2026

Genre: various

Rating: Not Rated

Length: 1hr30min

4/21 4:30 PM

4/28 2:15 PM

5/02 7:00 PM

5/05 2:30 PM

Oscar Nominated Short Films 2026: LIVE ACTION

Runtime: 119 minutes
2026 Oscar-Nominated Shorts — Live Action isn’t a single film, but a collection of five distinguished short films nominated for Best Live Action Short Film at the 98th Academy Awards. These include The Singers (Shared Winner), a U.S. bar-room tale of unlikely musical camaraderie; A Friend of Dorothy, starring Miriam Margolyes and Stephen Fry as an elderly widow whose life is changed by a shy teen’s friendship; Butcher’s Stain, a tense Israeli drama about a supermarket worker fighting to clear his name; Two People Exchanging Saliva (Shared Winner), a surreal French-U.S. story about forbidden affection in a repressive society, and Jane Austen’s Period Drama, a humorous 1813-set short about love and unexpected bodily surprises.

Year: 2026

Genre: various

Rating: various

Length: 2hr

4/21 7:00 PM

4/24 12:00 PM

4/29 12:00 PM

5/01 9:15 PM