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ScreenRant is pleased to present an exclusive first look at the official 2026 poster for The Lower East Side Film Festival, which returns on April 30 for its 16th year. The festival has also unveiled its full lineup, bringing several exciting independent films to the forefront and announcing various events to take advantage of downtown.
Designed by CHAMPIONS, this year’s set of posters features typeface meant to resemble Village East Cinema’s gorgeous marquee lettering. LESFF, which encapsulates much of the vibrancy that New York City has to offer, began in 2011 and has been growing steadily ever since.
Though all titles are independent, there is no shortage of star power at the festival, from the opening night film (Run Amok) headlined by The Conjuring‘s Patrick Wilson to the closing night documentary (Public Access) executive produced by The Smashing Machine‘s Benny Safdie. The festival’s slate is full of feature films, short showcases, and retrospectives — with the full list of projects and events included below (synopses courtesy of LESFF’s official press release).
A Closer Look At The Lower East Side Film Festival’s Posters & Line-Up
Thursday, April 30th – OPENING NIGHT
BIG APPLE, SHORT FILMS – NEW YORK FILMMAKER SHORTS
6:30pm at Village East Cinema 181-189 2nd Ave
New York. What can we say? It’s the greatest city in the world, and these filmmakers remind us why. From a rich stranger’s party in Midtown, to the chessboards of Washington Square Park, from high school days in the Bronx, or a late drunken night in Bushwick, the Big Apple unravels in these shorts that celebrate our city.
Films include: Being Bublé, The Chessplayers of New York, Nervous Energy, The Nest, and Grown. Filmmakers will be in attendance for Q&A to follow, and doors open 30 minutes before the scheduled screening time.
OPENING NIGHT FILM + PARTY: NY PREMIERE – RUN AMOK
8:30pm at Village East Cinema 181-189 2nd Ave
This year’s festival will open with the New York Premiere of Run Amok. The debut feature from writer/director NB Mager and starring Alyssa Marvin alongside Patrick Wilson, Margaret Cho, Elizabeth Marvel, and Molly Ringwald, the film centers on a teenage girl who channels trauma into art, staging an audacious musical that confronts the unresolved aftermath of a school tragedy.
After the film, the Village East Cinema transforms into our Opening Night Party. Ticket includes film + party with open bar from our sponsors, Live DJ, special guests, and party favors. The cast and crew in attendance for Q&A to follow, and doors open 30 minutes before scheduled screening time. Afterparty to follow inside Village East Cinema.
Friday, May 1st
THE 2026 FILMMAKER RECEPTION
2 – 4pm at ICP (The International Center of Photography)
Join us for the annual Filmmaker Reception – where LESFF 2026 Filmmakers are invited to meet & mingle for an afternoon at The International Center of Photography Museum in the Lower East Side, featuring three floors of exhibition space showcasing leading photography and visual culture. Our filmmaker reception will begin at 2pm on the first floor, and after you’ve mingled for a bit, starting at 3pm all guests are invited to explore the exhibitions. The Filmmaker Reception is sponsored by The Lo-Down Culture Cast. Free rsvp for 2026 filmmakers, limited tickets available to the public.
LIVING THE DREAM SHORTS
6pm at Village East Cinema
We’re all just trying to make it. The hustle; the grind; putting pedal to the metal (literally, in some cases), trying our damnedest to make our dreams come true. These shorts remind us to shoot for the stars, but maybe don’t quit your day job….
Films include: The Actor, Creator, You Will Enjoy This, Bent, and Choy: The Making Of. Filmmakers in attendance for Q&A to follow, and doors open 30 minutes before the scheduled screening time.
FEATURE FILM: NEW YORK CITY PREMIERE – OCCUPY CANNES
6:30pm at Village East Cinema
In this feature documentary, Lloyd Kaufman, creator of The Toxic Avenger, leads the Troma Team’s battles for independent art at the Cannes Film Festival, as the industry increasingly marginalizes independent voices. Occupy Cannes dives into the underbelly of this glamorous event, revealing a vibrant subculture exploring the intersection of artistic expression, grassroots activism, and the mainstream film industry.
Written and directed by Lily Hayes Kaufman, with filmmakers in attendance for Q&A to follow. Doors open 30 minutes before the scheduled screening time.
IDENTITY CRISIS SHORTS
8:00pm at Village East Cinema
From a secret obsession with death metal to a very public obsession with hookah, from exploring a crush, a new friendship, or a new enemy, these short films invite us to examine our own identities – and the people around us who shape who we are.
Films include: Headbang, Hookah Head, Dressed to the Nines, All At Once, Short King, and Cake. Filmmakers in attendance for Q&A to follow, and doors open 30 minutes before the scheduled screening time.
FEATURE FILM: NY PREMIERE – DANNY IS MY BOYFRIEND
8:30pm at Village East Cinema
Making its New York premiere, Danny Is My Boyfriend introduces the chaotic comedic minds of Mechi Lakatos and Lucy Sandler. In this joyful, lo-fi revenge romp through Los Angeles, they play two delightfully delulu women who make a shocking discovery: they’ve both been dating the same man.
Written and directed by Lucy Sandler and Mechi Lakatos. Starring Lucy Sandler, Mechi Lakatos, Brooke Smith, Eli Powers, Rachel Brunner, David Schedule, and Lauren Burns. Filmmakers in attendance for Q&A to follow, and doors open 30 minutes before the scheduled screening time.
Saturday, May 2nd
FEATURE FILM: NY PREMIERE – THE HAND THAT FEEDS
3:30pm at Village East Cinema
A sensorial, immersive film where minimalist visuals are elevated by a lush, enveloping soundtrack, drawing us into the rich inner world of a hip-hop musician as he becomes increasingly isolated from the outside world. Writer, director, composer, and star Mtume Gant emerges as a singular filmmaking voice, alongside standout performances from Tony Award winner Kara Young and Chinaza Uche.
Written and directed by Mtume Gant. Starring Mtume Gant, Kara Young, and Chinaza Uche. Filmmakers in attendance for Q&A to follow, and doors open 30 minutes before the scheduled screening time.
FEATURE FILM: NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE – CAN’T GO OVER IT
4:30pm at Village East Cinema
A quietly funny, offbeat look at friendship, Can’t Go Over It, follows two queer friends on their annual Adirondacks backpacking trip as small cracks in their bond begin to surface. Shot entirely on the trail, writer/director Ethan Fuirst blends natural performances with a stripped-down, immersive style to capture the humor and tenderness of growing up and growing apart.
Written and directed by Ethan Fuirst, the film stars Taylor Trensch and Susannah Perkins. Filmmakers in attendance for Q&A to follow, and doors open 30 minutes before the scheduled screening time.
STAY INDIE SPOTLIGHT: NEW YORK CITY PREMIERE – THE ARK
5:30pm at Village East Cinema
Back for its second year is LESFF’s Stay Indie Project, launched in collaboration with BFD Productions, a development lab that supports films through resources, financing, and hands-on production support to help bring bold independent stories to the screen. This year, the program adds a Stay Indie Spotlight screening again with the New York City Premiere of The Ark.
The Ark, drops us into eastern Ukraine as one young family chooses to stay behind and care for their farm during the war. What begins with a single request to care for a soldier’s goats, turns into something much bigger, as abandoned animals start arriving from every direction. Cows, dogs, cats, donkeys, ducks, crocodiles – eventually hundreds of animals – all finding refuge and a new life at Green Grove Farm.
Directed by Jeremy Chilnick and Viacheslav Rakovskyi, and narrated and executive produced by Kyra Sedgwick. This film is screening out of competition, but filmmakers will be in attendance, and doors open 30 minutes before the scheduled screening time.
FEATURE FILM: WORLD PREMIERE – HOMUNCULUS
7pm at Village East Cinema
Making its World Premiere, Homunculus, adapted from the play by Santiago Mallan, collapses the boundary between theater and cinema in a darkly-comedic, surreal exploration of love, ego, and artistic obsession. In his directorial debut, Owen Kirby skillfully drops us into the volatile orbit of Mimi and Clay’s toxic romance, where Mimi has commissioned her devoted assistant, Bootbutt, for a sculpture of her ex, sparking a spiral of romantic misfires, mistaken identity, occult detours, and a wry meditation on the act of creation.
Directed by Owen Kibby and written by Santiago Mallan and Owen Kibby, the film stars Mitra Jouhari, Ruby McCollister, Jeremy Gill, Aitana Doyle, and Jake Innerst. Cast and crew will be in attendance for Q&A to follow, and doors open 30 minutes before the scheduled screening time.
FEATURE FILM: NY PREMIERE – THE PLAN
7:30pm at Village East Cinema
Shot in a single, breathless take, The Plan is a tense, darkly funny pressure cooker about a group of young adults whose shared purpose to change the world slowly unravels into paranoia, desire, and doubt. The debut feature from writer/director Jessica Barr, anchored by sharp performances and formal precision, becomes less about the plan itself than the fragile bonds holding them together.
Written and directed by Jessica Barr, the film stars Ryan Simpkins, An-Li Bogan, Eve Lindley, Percy Hynes White, Logan Miller, Jordan Hull, Frank Mosley, and Arkira Chantaratananond. Filmmakers will be in attendance for Q&A to follow, and doors open 30 minutes before the scheduled screening time.
MIND F*CK SHORTS
9pm at Village East Cinema
Buckle up for our late-night feral fave dedicated to taking you on a wild ride – equal parts funny, squirmy, creepy, trippy, and just generally mind-f*cky!
Films Include: Potato Potato, I love Yuuu, Echelon, What the Heck is Going On, and The Debut. Filmmakers in attendance for Q&A to follow, and doors open 30 minutes before the scheduled screening time.
Sunday, May 3rd
IT’S COMPLICATED SHORTS
6pm at Village East Cinema
Come along for the highs, lows, awkward, sexy, and sometimes difficult moments of relationships. From giddy new beginnings to bumps in the road, from getting over an ex to finding love when you least expect it, these filmmakers might just be working through some stuff.
Films include: To Have and To Hold, Homebodies, Cottonmouth, The Hole, No Rush, and Stay Awhile. Filmmakers in attendance for Q&A to follow, and doors open 30 minutes before the scheduled screening time.
DOC SHORTS
7pm at Village East Cinema
These short docs provide intimate portraits of aspiration; taking you on a journey that is surprising, inspiring, sometimes heartbreaking, and in one case just oddly true yet hard to believe.
Films include: Being Bublé, Bent, La Línea, and The Nest. Filmmakers in attendance for Q&A to follow, and doors open 30 minutes before the scheduled screening time.
GHOST WORLD 25-YEAR RETROSPECTIVE w/ CAST REUNION
8pm at Village East Cinema
LESFF 2026 will host the 25th Anniversary screening of Ghost World, the beloved cult classic from director Terry Zwigoff, starring Thora Birch, Scarlett Johansson, and Steve Buscemi. Adapted from Daniel Clowes’ graphic novel, the film remains a sharp, funny, and deeply relatable portrait of youth, identity, and not fitting in.
Cast in attendance for Q&A, followed by a screening of the film (out of competition), and doors open 30 minutes before the scheduled screening time.
Monday, May 4th – CLOSING NIGHT
CLOSING NIGHT FILM: NY PREMIERE – PUBLIC ACCESS
7:30PM at Village East Cinema
LESFF 2026 will close with the New York Premiere of Public Access, the feature documentary from director David Shadrack Smith, produced by Sara Crow and Anne-Marcelle Ngabiran, and executive produced by Wren Arthur, Steve Buscemi and Benny Safdie. The film offers an unprecedented look at New York City’s public access television boom in the 1970s and 80s, where unfiltered creators transformed the airwaves into a free-speech battleground, foreshadowing today’s creator-driven media landscape.
Directed by David Shadrack Smith, produced by Sara Crow and Anne-Marcelle Ngabiran, and executive produced by Wren Arthur, Steve Buscemi, and Benny Safdie. Filmmakers in attendance for Q&A to follow, and doors open 30 minutes before the scheduled screening time.
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https://screenrant.com/lower-east-side-film-festival-official-posters-line-up/
Tatiana Hullender
Almontather Rassoul
