Milwaukee Film Festival announces 2025 attendance and winners, 2026 dates

The 2025 Milwaukee Film Festival wrapped up last week. It was a blast! From April 24 through May 8, more than 200 feature films and short films screened at the Oriental and Downer theatres. There were Q&As, panel discussions, and even a 15-day treasure hunt organized by ye olde Milwaukee Record. So how many people enjoyed this year’s film festival? Well…

About the same number of people who enjoyed last year’s film festival. On Wednesday, Milwaukee Film announced a 2025 attendance of 32,004 “across the screenings and events on offer.” In 2024, there were 32,624 attendees.

While MFF25 featured fewer screens (there were no screenings at the Avalon or Times) and fewer films than MFF24, the 2025 attendance illustrates “the growth of the average attendance at each screening of 47% over 2024’s averages,” Milwaukee Film notes.

“This year’s Milwaukee Film Festival was two weeks of cinematic bliss. There’s something magical about the Film Festival—the crowds, the historic theatres, the mystery of what you’ll see next, and the sense that, for two hours, strangers are becoming a community, united by stories on the big screen,” says Susan Kerns, Executive Director of Milwaukee Film, in a press release. “I have such immense gratitude that I get to be part of this and can help bring these experiences to the people of our city.”

What else? Milwaukee Film raised $150,550 through its REEL Impact Drive. A silent auction netted an additional $12,000 for the non-profit. Oh, and the 2026 Milwaukee Film Festival is set for April 16-30, 2026. Before that, Milwaukee Film’s second annual Dialogues Documentary Festival will take place September 18-21, 2025. Mark your calendars!

And last but not least, here are the big winners of MFF25, courtesy of Milwaukee Film. Congrats!

2025 ABELE CATALYST AWARD

The Abele Catalyst Award is presented annually by Milwaukee Film to a person or entity who has been catalytic to the organization. This year, the award was presented posthumously to Carmen and Bill Haberman on Opening Night of the 2025 Milwaukee Film Festival.

2025 JURY AWARD WINNERS

Luminaries Jury Award – Middletown (dirs. Jesse Moss, Amanda McBaine)
Special Mention: Pavements (dir. Alex Ross Perry)

Emerging Fiction Jury Award – Outerlands (dir. Elena Oxman)
Special Mentions: Color Book (dir. David Fortune), DJ Ahmet (dir. Georgi Unkovski)

Emerging Documentary Jury Award – Remaining Native (dir. Paige Bethmann)
Special Mentions: Life After (dir. Reid Davenport), A Mother Apart (dir. Laurie Townshend)

Cream City Cinema Jury Award – Zastava Brothers (dir. Pep Stojanovic)
Cream City Cinema Jury Award – What Happened to Dorothy Bell? (dir. Danny Villanueva Jr.)
Cream City Cinema Jury Award – CYCLE (dirs. Laura Dyan Kezman, William Howell)
Special Mentions: Mandatory Bathroom Break (dir. Alyssa Sue Borkowski), One Minute Remaining (dir. Colin Sytsma), MINE! (dir. Lou Morton)

Shorts Jury Award – It Shouldn’t Rain Tomorrow (dir. Maria Trigo Teixeira)
Special Mention for Directing – Juan Vicente Manrique, Looking for a Donkey
Special Mention for Cinematography – Pablo García Gallego, Ripe!
Special Mention for Acting – Bonnie Hellman, Susana

Kids’ Choice Jury Award – The Carp and the Child (dirs. Morgane Simon and Arnaud Demuynck)
Special Mentions:
Most Inspirational – Skate in the City (dir. Lies van der Auwera)
Best Representation – Unibrow (dir. Nedda Sharshar)
Best Mixed Media Animation – Hello Summer (dir. Martin Smatana, Veronika Zacharová)
Best Message – Dynasty and Destiny (dir. Travis Lee Ratcliff)

2025 AUDIENCE AWARD WINNERS

Attendees voted to determine the Allan H. (Bud) and Suzanne L. Selig Audience Awards. This year’s winning feature and short films were:

Best Feature – The Librarians (dir. Kim A Snyder)

Best Short – Jane Austen’s Period Drama (dirs. Julia Aks and Steve Pinder)