SANTA MONICA FILM FESTIVAL
The Santa Monica Film Festival will take place on Saturday, March 28th, hosted at the Directors Guild of America Theater Complex in Hollywood, California.
PASSES ARE LIVE. 🎟️
The 2026 Santa Monica Film Festival Is Almost Here.
One unforgettable day. Bold indie premieres. Visionary filmmakers. A community that lives and breathes story.
Join us for:
✨ Powerful independent film premieres
🎤 Live filmmaker Q&As
🏆 Awards celebration
🤝 Networking with creatives and industry insiders
📸 Red carpet moments you won’t want to miss
📍 Hosted at the iconic Directors Guild of America
🗓 Saturday, March 28
Whether you’re a filmmaker, film lover, or champion of independent storytelling — this is where connection meets creativity.
If you believe in powerful stories and the artists behind them, we’ll see you there.
🎟️ Get your pass now:
https://santamonicafilmfestival.eventbrite.com
Official Selections
A refreshingly humorous investigative documentary by Ariana Victor.
For decades, geoengineering was mocked as a conspiracy theory. Today, it’s a leading solution being proposed worldwide to fight “climate change.” But what if these so-called future “solutions” stem from a hidden and deeply unsettling past— one whose experiments are already impacting the weather and ecosystems we all depend on? And, perhaps most importantly — why were we trained to ridicule anyone who noticed?
Q&A Panelists: Ariana Victor, Ariana Masters, Mikki Wilis
Baby Love is a feature film directed by Joseph Marconi, featuring Kiana Madeira as Rhiannon "Baby Love" Mitchell, an MMA fighter navigating emotional turmoil and seeking healing through an equine therapy program. The drama is set to have is Los Angeles premiere at the Santa Monica Film Festival.
Gattlin Griffith is a Los Angeles–based filmmaker and lifelong stunt performer who grew up in a multi-generational Hollywood stunt family. His unique perspective blends action, humor, and heart, drawing on a background that spans film sets, rodeo arenas, and equestrian trick riding. After earning his degree in English and Film from UCLA, Gattlin began developing original projects that combine physical spectacle with deeply human stories. Born Outlaws, his latest short, channels his love for the Western genre through an absurdist, comedic lens while exploring themes of family, myth, and legacy.
EAST OF ENCINO is a cinematic puppet-human sketch comedy series that lovingly skewers film tropes with surprising visual sophistication. In this pilot episode, "The Unusual Suspects," a puppet and their human counterpart navigate a series of meticulously crafted parodies—from noir detective stories to prestige drama moments—all grounded in mundane suburban reality.
Shot with genuine cinematic technique, the show subverts the low-budget puppet comedy expectation by committing fully to the filmmaking craft while embracing total absurdity. Each sketch operates as a miniature genre film, complete with dramatic lighting, considered compositions, and deadpan performances that honor the source material while also dismantling it. Each is essentially a small, perfect world built from the bones of the films we've seen a thousand times and loved fiercely.
EAST OF ENCINO proves that puppets and humans can create something both ridiculous and remarkably well-made. A love letter to cinema.
Tensions erupt between a son and his eccentric father as they navigate the sale of a high-end Boy Scout collection.
When a young boy lays eyes on a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition magazine for the first time, he will stop at nothing to get it alone in his bedroom.
Dave, an aging surfer, opens up to an anger management counselor about his triggers such as foilers, onewheels, and vanlifers.
SHINE is the creation of 14-year-old filmmaker Azai Willis, who is dedicated to helping the next generation understand the harmful effects of subliminal messaging, trend culture, and screen addiction. His first short film, To My Generation, received millions of views online and led to Azai delivering his first TED Talk.
In SHINE, Azai explores the shadowy influence of digital mind control and the growing pressure social media places on young people. The film highlights the urgent need for the next generation to recognize these forces and learn how to protect and preserve their inner light.
A fast-food cook is haunted by dark visions that begin to bleed into her reality.
The American Trail follows two friends who embark on a journey to walk across the United States. It’s not as glamorous as it seems — they're pitching tents on the side of the highway and trudging through mud for six months.
White Belt begins just days before Monika “Jac” Jagaciak steps onto the mat at one of the world’s most prestigious Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tournaments. For decades, Monika was known as a face of global fashion discovered at thirteen in her first Hermes campaign, she went on to dominate high fashion runways, front Calvin Klein’s iconic campaigns, and command the stage as a Victoria’s Secret Angel. But after a lifetime in front of the camera, Monika chose a different stage. With guidance from 3x World Champion Gregor Gracie, she trained with relentless discipline for eight months, preparing not as a model but as a fighter. Told in her own voice, through raw and unguarded interviews, the documentary traces her journey from small-town Poland to the heart of America, from controversial child model to mother to martial artist. It is a story of reinvention, capturing what it means for a woman to fight for ownership of her life.