The Bushwick Film Festival turned 19 this fall, filling venues across Brooklyn from October 7 through October 11 with screenings, premieres and conversations about storytelling. Organizers called it the festival's biggest lineup in its history, featuring nearly 100 films from filmmakers representing 60 countries.
Netflix returned as the sponsor of the festival's opening reception, according to Brooklyn Paper. Festival founder and director Kweighbaye Kotee framed this year's theme, “Make Time for Your Dreams,” as a message about priorities, saying people can make space for what matters despite limited time, money or resources. Kotee also said the festival's filmmakers show what can happen when people persist with their ideas.
A Biggest-Ever Slate Across Brooklyn
Ticket sales and schedule details for the 19th edition were confirmed well before opening night. According to Bushwick Daily, the festival brought nearly 100 independent films, series and podcasts to venues across Brooklyn during its five-day run, with the outlet describing the program as the biggest lineup in the festival's 19 years. The bulk of the screenings ran at Williamsburg Cinemas from Thursday through Sunday, with award-winner encores there on Monday, October 12.
Most Bushwick Film Festival venues cluster in the Bushwick and Williamsburg neighborhoods, per the festival's own venues page. The Opening Night sponsorship from Netflix was formally announced in the summer ahead of the festival, with Kotee, the founder and festival director, quoted in that announcement as well.
A True-Story Drama Made Without a Crew
Among the works making their world debut at the festival was June and Roy, produced by and starring Isabella Werber and Trevor Viner. The film, based on a true story, follows a young woman whose relationship begins to unravel after she notices large amounts of moisturizer missing. Werber said the film explores the mystery of intimacy and how an unexpected event can reveal that one may not fully know someone.
Werber and Viner worked on June and Roy without external help, choosing to direct, shoot and edit the project themselves. Werber described the filmmaking process as an experiment in repeatedly filming scenes with a tripod-mounted camera, a stripped-down approach that shaped the finished film.
A Documentary on a Senegalese Spiritual Leader
The festival's program also included Bamba Fepp, a short documentary directed by Maryam Tricia Murajada. The film examines the peaceful social revolution against French colonial forces led by Senegalese spiritual leader Cheikh Ahmadou Bamba and his followers. Murajada said the film's story offers a universal lesson amid existential questions, global changes and crisis.
The 2026 program marked a shift from last year's edition, which ran October 1 to 5 under the theme “Meet Us at the Movies,” according to Creative Media Times. That 2025 lineup featured 10 world premieres, 11 East Coast premieres and 24 New York premieres, per the same report. The festival, founded in 2007, has grown from a neighborhood showcase into an event now drawing filmmakers from dozens of countries each year.
