The 2026 Milwaukee Film Festival cometh! From April 16-30, more than 100 feature films and 130 short films will light up the screens of the Oriental and Downer theaters. (The full lineup can be found HERE. Tickets and passes are available HERE.) Using the magic of a Milwaukee Record Sponsor Pass (love ya, Cinema Hooligante!), I plan on seeing 40 to 50 films.
Will I actually pull it off? Nope, absolutely not. But I’ll give it a shot!
So here’s my wildly ambitious, never-gonna-happen-but-I’ll-try-anyway MFF26 itinerary. Some notes: like previous years, this itinerary flagrantly ignores A.) my everyday work responsibilities, B.) my everyday family responsibilities, and C.) my sanity. Think of it like a “fantasy” itinerary. It does, however, factor in other commitment, like my morning and early afternoon at the Midwest Gaming Classic on April 25! So…maybe I’ll actually pull this thing off this year? Ha. Who am I kidding? See you at the fest! (Films/events I ended up attending are in bold.)
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 15
Festival Eve: You Had To Be There
Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema) 7 p.m.
THURSDAY, APRIL 16
Opening Night: Ueck
Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema) 7 p.m.
MFF26 Opening Night Neighborhood Crawl
East Side 9 p.m.
FRIDAY, APRIL 17
Carolina Caroline
Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema) 12:30 p.m.
The Last Spy
Oriental Theatre (Lubar Cinema) 4:30 p.m.
Severin Presents: A Bay Of Blood
Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema) 11:59 p.m.
SATURDAY, APRIL 18
Now! More! Yes!
Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema) 12 p.m.
My Brother’s Killer
Oriental Theatre (Lubar Cinema) 4:15 p.m.
I Want Your Sex
Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema) 9:15 p.m.
Shorts: The Best Damn F*#@ing Midnight Program Ever. /Shit
Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema) 11:59 p.m.
SUNDAY, APRIL 19
The Last Critic
Oriental Theatre (Lubar Cinema) 11 a.m.
Joybubbles
Oriental Theatre (Lubar Cinema) 2:15 p.m.
A Useful Ghost
Downer Theatre (South Cinema) 6:30 p.m.
MONDAY, APRIL 20
Barbara Forever
Downer Theatre (North Cinema) 12:45 p.m.
Cine Sin Fronteras Shorts
Downer Theatre (North Cinema) 3:45 p.m.
The General feat. Anvil Orchestra
Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema) 6 p.m.
Burn
Downer Theatre (North Cinema) 9 p.m.
TUESDAY, APRIL 21
Peter Asher: Everywhere Man
Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema) 1 p.m.
André Is An Idiot
Downer Theatre (North Cinema) 4:45 p.m.
Black Lens Fiction Shorts: For The Dreamers
Downer Theatre (South Cinema) 6:30 p.m.
Beyond The Duplex Planet
Downer Theatre (South Cinema) 9:15 p.m.
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 22
The Life We Leave
Downer Theatre (South Cinema) 1:45 p.m.
Shorts: Stranger Than Fiction
Downer Theatre (North Cinema) 3:45 p.m.
Black Zombie
Downer Theatre (North Cinema) 6:30 p.m.
Hokum
Oriental Theatre (Lubar Cinema) 11 p.m.
THURSDAY, APRIL 23
Late Fame
Downer Theatre (North Cinema) 1:30 p.m.
The Last One For The Road
Oriental Theatre (Lubar Cinema) 4 p.m.
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.
Want more Milwaukee Record? Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter and/or support us on Patreon.
RELATED ARTICLES
• We created a treasure hunt for the 2026 Milwaukee Film Festival. Here’s the first clue
• When and where to see the Cinema Hooligante films at the 2026 Milwaukee Film Festival
• I dropped by Radio Milwaukee’s Cinebuds podcast to talk about MFF26 and Cinema Hooligante
• Guess the popcorn flavors (and listen to me blab) on Milwaukee Film’s ‘Popped Ones’
• Dig into the full program for the 2026 Milwaukee Film Festival
• Bob Uecker documentary will open 2026 Milwaukee Film Festival
• Here’s the Cream City Cinema program for the 2026 Milwaukee Film Festival
• Here’s the Cinema Hooligante program for the 2026 Milwaukee Film Festival
• Here’s the 2026 Milwaukee Film Festival’s Rated K: For Kids program
• Milwaukee Film unveils first set of MFF26 films, festival artwork
• Milwaukee Film buys Downer Theatre, launches restoration campaign
• Milwaukee Film unveils snazzy new logo, website
• Milwaukee Film Festival announces 2025 attendance and winners, 2026 dates