What’s Ahead for the 2026 Charlotte Film Festival
Photo: Charlotte Film Festival
The Charlotte Film Festival returns this month, bringing filmmakers, local cinephiles, and emerging talent together for another celebration of storytelling on the big screen.
This year’s festival will offer audiences the chance to discover an eclectic lineup of films while connecting with the people behind them. From anticipated screenings to daily talks, here’s what attendees can expect from this year’s event.
What’s Coming to the Screen
This year’s program spans narrative and documentary features, animated films, student work, shorts programs, and special presentations. With stories ranging from the deeply personal to the historically significant, there is plenty to explore throughout the six-day festival. Among the full lineup, these three films have already caught my attention as Front Row Charlotte picks.
Photo: Charlotte Film Festival
Once Upon a Time in Harlem
More than 50 years in the making, Once Upon a Time in Harlem transports audiences to a 1972 gathering of Harlem Renaissance luminaries at Duke Ellington’s townhouse. Originally filmed by pioneering documentarian William Greaves and later completed by his son, David Greaves, the documentary captures artists, writers, musicians, and thinkers reflecting on the movement they helped shape. For its rare footage and preservation of Black cultural history, this is at the top of my list. The film will screen on September 22nd and again on September 27th.
What Will I Become?
Winner of the Amnesty International Film Award at the Berlin International Film Festival, What Will I Become? examines grief, mental health, and trans boyhood through the personal experiences of directors Lexie Bean and Logan Rozos. The documentary also shares the stories of Blake Brockington and Kyler Prescott, two young trans men remembered as artists and community advocates, while exploring care, resilience, and masculinity within the transmasculine community. It screens on September 26th.
Papertown
Closer to home, Papertown follows the people of Canton, North Carolina, after the unexpected closure of the 115-year-old paper mill that had long shaped the town’s economy and identity. Directors Ben Roberts and Jeremy Seifert document the turbulent months between the announcement and the mill’s final whistle, keeping the focus on the workers, families, and neighbors confronting an uncertain future. The documentary will screen with the short film Final Press on September 26th.
In Between the Films
Beyond the screenings, attendees can stop by Eighty Eights for a series of free, hourlong Daily Talks beginning at 4 PM. Topics include changes to state and federal film incentives on September 23rd, documentary funding on September 24th, the art of animation on September 25th, turning creative ideas into producible projects on September 26th, and disability representation in film on September 27th.
Photo: Charlotte Film Festival
The festival’s Flicks & Bites program also offers ticket holders exclusive specials at thirteen Charlotte restaurants and bars from September 22nd through 27th. Participating locations include Soul Gastrolounge, Cabo Fish Taco, Benny Pennello’s, Morelia Ice Cream Paletas, Grey’s Diner & Community Kitchen, Le’s Sandwiches, Seoul Food Meat Company, and several other neighborhood favorites.
Planning Your Festival Visit
The Charlotte Film Festival will run from September 22nd through 27th at The Independent Picture House, located at 4237 Raleigh Street.
Photo: Charlotte Film Festival
Individual screening tickets are $15. Attendees planning to see several films can purchase a five-pack for $55 or a ten-pack for $95. The $250 Discover Different Pass includes access to every film, the Filmmaker Lounge, festival merchandise, transit passes, and additional perks.
