Some Milwaukee things come and go, while some become icons. Mandatory Milwaukee is all about the latter. This week: the Milwaukee Film Festival!

In case you missed it, the 2026 Milwaukee Film Festival is happening…NOW. The 18th annual fest kicked off April 16, and runs through April 30. That makes today, April 23, the beginning of MFF’s second week. It’s the point in the fest where the die-hards are separated from the casuals. It’s the point in the fest where the first week is a blur and the second week looms like a threat. A beautiful, delirious, can’t-miss threat.

Yes, a TON of features and shorts have already lit up the screens of the Oriental and Downer theaters, and there’s still a ton to go. If I include a “Festival Eve” friends/family/sponsors party on April 15, I’ve seen 12 MFF26 films so far. Not too shabby! In order, those films are:

You Had To Be There
Ueck
Carolina Caroline
Severin Presents: A Bay Of Blood
Now! More! Yes!
I Want Your Sex
Shorts: The Best Damn F*#@ing Midnight Program Ever. Shit.
A Useful Ghost
The General feat. Anvil Orchestra
Burn
Beyond The Duplex Planet
Hokum

Want to know my thoughts on Ueck? I shared them HERE. Want to know what the guy behind me yelled during the midnight screening of A Bay Of Blood? I compiled those yells HERE. My favorite film so far? Probably a tie between the Milwaukee-made Now! More! Yes! and the bleak-but-masterful Burn. (I’m not considering Buster Keaton’s The General, because, as Milwaukee Film Executive Director Susan Kerns said in her intro, it wouldn’t be fair to judge modern filmmakers against Buster Keaton.)

In addition to the films, my MFF26 has been filled with numerous hangs and chats with friends, eight slices of pizza from Ian’s, dozens of Miller High Lifes from Landmark Lanes, and countless games of pinball (also at Landmark Lanes). Hell, I even set a personal best on the James Bond table last night! If I don’t hit one billion by April 30 I’m never playing pinball again.

Looking ahead, here’s my wildly ambitious, never-gonna-happen-but-I’ll-try-anyway Week 2 itinerary. What’s yours?

THURSDAY, APRIL 23

Genrequeer Shorts
Downer Theatre (North Cinema) 7 p.m.

Obsession
Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema) 9 p.m.

FRIDAY, APRIL 24

The Reed Sisters: An American Story
Downer Theatre (South Cinema) 1:45 p.m.

The Big Cheese
Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema) 7 p.m.

Ixonia’s Mild Kingdom
Oriental Theatre (Lubar Cinema) 9 p.m.

Saccharine
Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema) 10 p.m.

Flush
Oriental Theatre (Lubar Cinema) 11:59 p.m.

SATURDAY, APRIL 25

Panel: On Music Journalism And Documentary Storytelling
East Library 3 p.m.

Shorts: Most Dramatic
Downer Theatre (South Cinema) 3:30 p.m.

Bright Beautiful World: The Infectious Joy Of Pat McCurdy
Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema) 6:30 p.m.

Stop Making Sense
Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema) 9:30 p.m.

SUNDAY, APRIL 26

Kids Shorts: Size Large
Downer Theatre (South Cinema) 1:45 p.m.

Cinebuds LIVE: Labyrinth
Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema) 3:30 p.m.

Hen
Downer Theatre (South Cinema) 7:30 p.m.

MONDAY, APRIL 27

Perla
Downer Theatre (South Cinema) 1 p.m.

The Python Hunt
Oriental Theatre (Lubar Cinema) 3:30 p.m.

The Milwaukee Show II
Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema) 7:30 p.m.

TUESDAY, APRIL 28

Seized
Downer Theatre (South Cinema) 2 p.m.

MKE Music Video Show
Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema) 6:30 p.m.

Shorts: Out Of This World
Downer Theatre (North Cinema) 10 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 29

Kings Of Venice
Oriental Theatre (Lubar Cinema) 5 p.m.

Mārama
Downer Theatre (North Cinema) 9:15 p.m.

THURSDAY, APRIL 30

Closing Night: Power Ballad
Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema) 7:30 p.m.

And here’s a shot of the card that runs before the Milwaukee Record-sponsored Cinema Hooligante films. Seeing our logo on a big screen never gets old.

So here’s to MFF26 Week 1, and here’s to buckling up for Week 2! Love ya, Milwaukee Film. Everything about you is Mandatory Milwaukee.