The 11th Mammoth Lakes Film Festival (MLFF) taking place in-person from May 21-25, 2025, in Mammoth Lakes, California will open with the psychological drama Went Up the Hill, directed by Samuel Van Grinsven and starring Dacre Montgomery, Vicky Krieps, and Sarah Peirse. Inspired by writer/director Samuel Van Grinsven’s memories of his childhood in New Zealand’s South Island, it’s an intimate, modern ghost story that explores the extremes of grief in the pursuit of letting go.
The closing night will feature “Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore” directed by Shoshannah Stern, a documentary that explores Matlin’s challenges and triumphs as a groundbreaking performer and role model.
“We are excited to present a slate of bold and innovative films for this year’s festival. We thrive on giving filmmakers a platform to present highly personal work in a live theatrical setting, the way films should be experienced,” said Festival Director Shira Dubrovner, “bringing stories to light that open up our awareness — the first step toward positive change within ourselves as well as out in the world.”
Director of Programming Paul Sbrizzi added, “Our mission is to showcase independent film as a place where creativity runs free, discovering new truths and manifesting new forms. Our documentary program explores life in remote areas of the planet, from a sex worker island in Bangladesh to Bedouins living in the deserts of Israel to children surviving gang warfare in Haiti; our narrative program bends fiction into a panoply of thrilling shapes and possibilities.”
The 2025 Mammoth Lakes Film Festival feature film line-up:
Core Competitions
North American Narrative Features:
Alice Heart (USA) – An aimless college student in Philadelphia aspires to be a writer but rebelliously drops out of school, and navigates love and work in hilariously cringe-inducing ways. Directed and written by Michael Macera
Dead Lover (Canada) A lonely gravedigger who stinks of corpses finally meets her dream man, but their whirlwind affair is cut short when he tragically drowns at sea. Grief-stricken, she goes to morbid lengths to resurrect him through madcap experiments. Directed by Grace Glowicki; written by Grace Glowicki and Ben Petrie.
Isaiah’s Phone (USA) – A socially awkward high school student films himself as he blunders through attempts to make friends, spiralling into a dark place where his only close relationship is with his phone. Directed and written by Frederic Da. World Premiere
Portal to Hell (USA) – A routine debt collector’s life is turned upside down when a portal to hell opens in his local laundromat followed by a demon who offers him a deal – three souls to save his neighbor from being dragged to hell. Directed and written by Woody Bess.
The True Beauty of Being Bitten by a Tick (USA) – A woman visits her friend’s countryside home, joining a small group for what promises to be a cozy weekend of food and games. A tick bite leads to unsettling developments that transform their idyllic retreat into something sinister. Directed by Pete Ohs; written by Zoë Chao, James Cusati-Moyer, Jeremy O. Harris, Callie Hernandez, and Pete Ohs. West Coast Premiere
International Narrative Features:
A Place Far From Home (Russian Federation) – Olezhka is a 9-year-old boy with fair hair, living in an orphanage. His mere presence has a magnetic effect on people. However, Olezhka himself remains indifferent to those around him, with only one aspiration – to be adopted. Directed and written by Diana Mashanova. West Coast Premiere
The Batrachians (Spain) – Lorena and Mauro navigate a tense day as they prepare to host their friends Andreína and David for dinner. Beneath their fragile harmony lie Lorena’s unmet expectations and Mauro’s longing. The arrival of the other couple only amplifies these dynamics, exposing cracks in both relationships.Directed and written by Diego Salomon. World Premiere
Sound of Love (Japan) – A man and a woman, connected by sound. They cannot see each other’s faces and do not know each other’s identity. What fate awaits them? Directed and written by Ayuta Yoshikawa. West Coast Premiere
We’re On Air (Portugal) – Fátima says she no longer has feelings, but finds herself dreaming about her new policeman neighbor. Her son Vítor secretly wears that policeman’s uniform, hoping it might bring pleasure to a boy he met online. A spiral of insomnia and nocturnal illusions leads to misunderstandings and impossible relationships, all seeking a little air. Directed and written by Diogo Costa Amarante. North American Premiere
Documentary Features:
The Accidental Spy (USA) – The story of how one man became entangled in a complex geopolitical web, how he risked everything to protect his family, and how he was cruelly betrayed by the country he strived to defend. Directed by Anthony Wonke. West Coast Premiere
Coroner to the Stars (USA) – The extraordinary journey of Dr. Thomas Noguchi, the former Los Angeles County Chief Medical Examiner-Coroner whose groundbreaking autopsies forever shaped American culture. From Marilyn Monroe and Robert Kennedy to Sharon Tate and Natalie Wood, Noguchi’s fearless pursuit of truth often placed him in the crosshairs of controversy. Directed by Ben Hethcoat and Keita Ideno.
Land With No Rider (USA) – In a remote corner of Southwestern New Mexico, the last remaining cowboys eke out a fragile survival between industrial and protected lands. Their herds diminished, these aging stewards of the land live in a shrinking world of isolation, vulnerability, and rugged beauty. Directed by Tamar Lando. West Coast Premiere
The Passion of Mahmoud (Iran) – A stunningly deconstructed hybrid documentary about Mahmoud — a colorful, creative married man who explores his past life and his lost dreams. Although he seems to have a domineering attitude towards the women in his family, in reality he is haunted by memories and wanders on the border between reality and fantasy. Directed and written by Davoud Abdolmaleki. US Premiere
Tales of Banishanta (Bangladesh) – On Banishanta Island in Bangladesh, about 150 girls and women aredependent on the sex trade inside a state licensed brothel on the bank of the Pashur river. They battle with bad weather and try to come to terms with their effective enslavement. Directed by Shahadat Hossain. North American Premiere
WTO/99 (USA) – From November 30th to December 3rd 1999, tens of thousands of people occupied the streets of Seattle to make known their concerns about the World Trade Organization and its impact on the environment, human rights, and labor. Directed by Ian Bell. West Coast Premiere
Spotlight Presentations:
Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore (USA) – In 1987, at the age of just 21, Marlee Matlin shattered expectations as the first Deaf actor to win an Academy Award® for her groundbreaking performance in Children of a Lesser God. Catapulted into the spotlight, she seized the moment to challenge an industry unprepared for her immense talent, emerging as a trailblazer not only as a performer but also as an author and activist. Directed by Shoshannah Stern.
Predators (USA) – A deep dive into an unnerving investigation of Dateline’s To Catch a Predator, pulling back the curtain on the show’s complicated legacy. Directed by David Osit.
Take off the Blindfold Adjust Your Eyes Look in the Mirror See the Face of Your Mother (USA) – A cartoon in a genre of its own, this sequel to Barber Westchester and Secrets and Lies in a Town of Sinners starts with a Der Wienerschnitzel employee getting a hot dog extracted from their eyeball and progresses to the universe is waking up to itself, prophets receiving visions, and God-defying towers formed in hedonistic abundance toppling over. Directed and written by Jonnï Peppers. World Premiere
Went Up The Hill (New Zealand) – A psychological drama inspired by writer/director Samuel Van Grinsven’s memories of his childhood in New Zealand’s South Island. An intimate, modern ghost story that explores the extremes of grief in the pursuit of letting go. Directed by Samuel Van Grinsven. Written by Jory Anast and Samuel Van Grinsven.
The festival will also feature a Short Films Program of 37 Narrative Shorts, 16 documentary shorts and 12 animation shorts, as well as a program of music videos and a screenplay competition.
MLFF jurors include: Allison Amon (EP, Superconductor), Tyler Coats (Journalist,THR), James Costa (Producer, Queendom), Sarah Diamond (Slamdance), Caleb Hammond (Journalist), Shaun Hill (Indican Pictures), Malin Kan (festival programmer, formerly with AFI Fest), David Massey (Filmmaker), Scenery Samundra (Music Supervisor, Motive Creative), Kirsten Kiwi Smith (Writer, 10 Things I Hate About You) Jacques Thelemaque (Filmmaker, Founder of Filmmakers Alliance) and Jamie Wolf (Animator).
Over $40,000 in cash and prizes will be awarded to this year’s films and screenplays in competition, in eleven categories. Winners will be announced on May 25 at the Awards Ceremony.