Slamdance returned to Los Angeles in 2026 to celebrate it’s second edition in the city of angels after moving from Park City , Utah (just ahead of Sundance’s own departure from the city). This grassroots festival was established by a group of filmmakers rejected by Sundance in the 1990s to provide an alternative to the mainstream festival circuit.
Whilst I wasn’t able to attend this year’s festival in-person due to a last-minute call up for jury duty, the Slamdance team made the event incredibly easy to cover for virtual attendees by providing advance screener access to the full lineup. This helped me to stay on top of the festival and stopped me from spilling the tea about the case I served on.
The 2026 festival featured 141 films, including 50 world premieres, selected from more than 10,000 submissions. The programmers maintained a strong commitment to diversity across the slate: 50% of the films were directed by female, trans, or non-binary filmmakers, and 41% by BIPOC directors. We love to see it!
Our coverage focused on international titles from outside the United States and Anglophone world. We’ve highlighted our standout feature films and short films from this year’s slate below.
Top Feature Films from Slamdance 2026
Whilst the Slamdance programmers place a lot of importance on local Los Angeles and U.S. filmmakers, the slate also included a wide selection of films from around the world. Here are our top three feature films from Slamdance 2026.
1. Zumeca (Dominican Republic)
Zumeca is a true epic. It draws from pre-colonial dramas such as Aguirre, the Wrath of God and Zama, as well as the cross-cultural romances of Dances with Wolves, to create a unique love story.
While it plays with the white-savior trope, it is not a white savior movie. Instead, it confronts the real brutality of the conquistador colonizers as Indigenous culture is dismantled by religion, weapons, and disease.
It’s carefully shot black and white cinematography, with a constantly moving camera reminiscent of Terrence Malick, gives the film the feeling of a modern classic.
2. Tony Odyssey (Brazil)
Two friends rob their workplace to steal a futuristic drug that sends them on a surreal trip through the underworld in a wild range of Holy Motors-esque scenes, all speaking to the trauma of modern capitalism (and Brazil). Tony Odyssey is far from the perfect film. The scenes don’t flow particularly well, but their originality signals a new cinematic voice to look out for from Brazil.
3. Matapanki (Chile)
If you’re a fan of the Blaxploitation movies of the 1970s and 1980s, you’ll find some comfort in Diego Fuentes’ Matapanki. It’s a punk-sploitation movie in which a punk dude discovers that a mine-sweeped cocktail gives him superpowers. This sets him off on a revolutionary quest to take down the Chilean government… and the U.S. president himself. It’s raw, wild fun, and not to be taken seriously.
HONORABLE MENTIONS
It’s also worth your time to check out two of the Jury Prize winners: Whisperings of the Moon (Cambodia) and Silver (Bolivia). Whisperings of the Moon immaculately captures the feeling of falling in love with it’s Past Lives-esque story. Silver portrays the brutal landscape surrounding the Cerro Rico, one of the Spanish Empire’s largest silver mines, which continues to be mined by the Indigenous Bolivians despite the danger.
Top Short Films from Slamdance 2026
There was also a vast range of short films at Slamdance, from your expected animated, live-action, and documentary shorts, to experimental shorts and even video-game experiences! Here are three of our favorites.
1. Lost Wax (Nigeria)
Omorose Osagie’s Lost Wax is one of the most beautiful-looking films of the festival, regardless of format. The shot composition and balance of black-and-white is truly awesome. The story bounces between different perspectives, creating an intriguing narrative that leaves much to the imagination through a mix of live-action and animation. I’m excited to see how Osagie continues to develop her storytelling in future projects.
2. We Used to Take the Long Way Home (Vietnam)
I’m a sucker for road trip movies, so We Used to Take the Long Way Home really struck a chord with me. It follows a high school road trip reunion, reviving old romances in a similar way to Cambodia’s Whisperings of the Moon (mentioned above). The film leans into high school nostalgia, using playful stickers to separate chapters and a goofy comedic character to inject humor. The 2000s are back!
3. La Mayordomia
Did you know that in the outskirts of Mexico City, and across the country, you can sign up to care for a 16th- or 17th- century baby Jesus doll? La Mayordomia introduces you to the world of these dolls; the people who loan them out, the requirements you must meet to be a candidate parent, and the mandatory handing-over ceremonies. It’s an engrossing glimpse into a unique religious tradition!
Honorable Mentions
If you want more, hunt down two magical-realist shorts: Loquita por ti (Spain) and Levantamuertos: Cumbia for the Dead (Mexico). The former is a romance set against the backdrop of bullfighting, while Levantamuertos follows a mortician who can speak with the dead.
For a diverse range of films from filmmakers you’ve never heard of, but might be the next big thing, the Slamdance Film Festival is one you need to attend. We discovered several filmmakers we’re excited to keep an eye on in the future to see how their work evolves.
Keep an eye on our film festival coverage page for more international films debuting this year.
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