Oak Cliff Film Festival returns for its 14th edition with an exciting, eclectic lineup of feature films and other activities June 26-29. The OCFF spreads out to a variety of Oak Cliff venues, including the historic Texas Theatre, Bishop Arts Theatre Center, Kessler Theater, and more. This year’s 4-day film party consists of 26 must-see feature-length films, with 19 movies having their Texas premiere at the fest and two films having their world premiere. The lineup also includes over 60 vastly diverse short films, opening and closing night parties, live music events, and other unique experiences.
Opening Night Films for Oak Cliff Film Festival include: STREET SMART-LESSONS FROM A TV ICON. Join filmmaker Ernie Bustamante for his Texas premiere. This heartfelt documentary tells the story of Sonia Manzano and how she got to Sesame Street, becoming the first Latina on TV in a regular role as the beloved character and trusted grownup Maria. + The Texas premier of OBEX (from the co-creator of Strawberry Mansion). Musician and filmmaker Albert Birney unveils his new, surreal story about a boy searching for his dog through a living homage to 90’s video-game aesthetics.
Spirit of Halloweentown
Directly following: glitch-out in the Texas Theatre lobby with a special DJ performance from PLANET B (members of The Locust). Special Band Performance: After the DFW premiere of SPIRIT OF HALLOWEEN TOWN (from the team behind the acclaimed 2024 doc Butterfly In The Sky, in attendance), gather behind the screen at the Texas Theatre for a live performance from experimental Austin, Texas band and OCFF alumni THE OCTOPUS PROJECT, to close out the Friday evening showcase.
Oak Cliff Film Festival SpeciaL Presentation
Your favorite archival, VHS-collage monsters: EVERYTHING IS TERRIBLE, present the newest, insane, video-Frankenstein installment of their experimental doc series, Memory Hole: ANIMALS ARE OVER! Humankind’s arrogant expectations to forever dominate the food-chain have gotten pretty dumb. The EIT team has stitched together pre-internet chaos re-articulated to showcase the ways we are destroying all animals (ourselves included) for the sake of cheap dopamine blasts and to bolster the profits of a few loser billionaires.
Spotlight Films
LONG LIVE THE STATE, with Filmmaker Matthew Perniciaro (Producer of Her Smell, Skate Kitchen) presenting the Texas premiere of his new feature highlighting the career and lasting alt-comedy impact of seminal, absurdist, 90’s MTV sketch-comedy troupe, The State. As they prepare for their reunion tour + the electric new documentary, MOVE YA’ BODY: THE BIRTH OF HOUSE, explores the meteoric rise of house music and the four Chicago friends who turned an underground sound into a musical phenomenon. Directly following, join the other bodies in motion for a Texas Theatre House DJ party.
Closing Night Film
Filmmaker Todd Stephens (Swan Song, Edge Of Seventeen) returns to OCFF presenting the special, never-before-seen, director’s cut and restoration of his 2001 queer, coming-of-age, cult-comedy; GYPSY 83 (starring Sara Rue, Karen Black and John Doe).
Oak Cliff Film Festival Additional Highlights
World Premiere: Short films from the fourth annual OCFF High School Filmmaking Workshop, presented by TRG and For Oak Cliff. Local high school students will showcase their short films created with equipment donated by Canon utilizing guidance from esteemed OCFF filmmaker associates.
Special Presentation: The MAYA DEREN PROJECT curates a collage of Deren’s pioneering work. MESHES OF THE AFTERNOON, among other incredible short films from the avant-garde film artist’s groundbreaking catalog, are set to an incredible live score performed by TEN THOUSAND LAKES in this haunting and unforgettable audio/visual experience.
Grants for North Texas Filmmakers
The 2025 Oak Cliff Film Festival, in partnership with the Austin Film Society, Ley Line Entertainment, and David Lowery, offers grant funds specifically for emerging North Texas filmmakers. Additionally, the North Texas Pioneer Film Grant of $30,000+ will promote DFW area filmmakers with underrepresented perspectives.
