The Utah Queer Film Festival is settling into a permanent home this year, with organizers set to screen 35 LGBTQIA+ independent films over three days in Salt Lake City's Marmalade District as the event marks its 23rd year. The lineup includes 11 feature films and 24 shorts drawn from local, national and international filmmakers, with screenings running November 6 through 8, 2026.
For the first time, the festival's in-person screenings, Q&As and artist performances will all take place inside the Utah Film Center's new in-house theater at its Geralyn White Dreyfous building, according to the festival's website. The building sits at 375 W 400 N, giving the festival a fixed address after years of moving between venues. Select films from the lineup will also stream online from November 9 through 15, so audiences outside the immediate area can catch part of the program after the in-person weekend wraps.
As reported by ABC4 Utah, Festival Program Director Cat Palmer described the event's spirit simply: the festival, Palmer said, is about imagining what is possible. That framing lines up with this year's official theme, “Queer Films, Queer Futures,” which the festival says guided its programming choices for 2026.
A Lineup With Something For Everyone
This year's slate includes a film starring Tyler Glenn of Neon Trees, along with a title ABC4 Utah describes as one that will appeal to fans of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. The festival is also presenting its second annual awards ceremony, recognizing standout queer programming from the 2026 slate, according to Utah Film Center. Among this year's titles is Second Nature: Gender and Sexuality in the Animal World, produced and narrated by Elliott Page, per the same source.
The Utah Queer Film Festival is a program of the nonprofit Utah Film Center, and it traces its roots back to a handful of screenings held during Pride Week in 2003. In the more than two decades since, the event has served over 33,000 attendees from Utah and across the country, the organization notes on its page about the festival's history. It was known as Damn These Heels Queer Film Festival until a 2024 rebrand that gave it its current name.
Tickets And Access Options
Individual movie tickets run $15, while a festival pass covering all films for the weekend costs $60, according to ABC4 Utah's reporting. The festival also offers a pay-what-you-can option, a nod to keeping the event accessible to a broad swath of attendees regardless of budget. Full film listings and the screening schedule are posted on the festival's own site, uqff.org.
The Utah Film Center has described the festival as having grown into more than a single annual event, noting that UQFF has expanded into a year-round series offering queer film titles throughout the calendar, not just during the November weekend. The center also points out that the festival makes a point of highlighting Utah-based filmmakers and artists alongside its international and independent selections, per the Utah Film Center's festival page.
A Long-Running Platform In Salt Lake City
For over 20 years, the festival has served as a vital platform for Utah's LGBTQIA+ community, according to KRCL, which also identifies Palmer as the festival's director. That continuity, paired with the new fixed venue inside the Utah Film Center's building, gives this year's 23rd edition a settled, long-term feel compared to earlier years of the event.
Filmmakers hoping to submit work to future editions must hold all necessary rights to their films, including any music used, and entries must contain LGBTQIA2S+ content, subjects or characters, according to submission guidelines posted on FilmFreeway. For now, though, the focus is on the weekend of November 6 through 8, when the Marmalade District becomes the center of Utah's queer film scene for another year.
