2024 Festival Film Schedule

A year in the lives of six members of the Minnesota Roller Derby, as they compete to win the Hydra, the top international prize of the sport...

This screening will be preceded by a live musical performance by the local Ely band "Chicka-dee-dee-dee" in the Festival Lounge from 4-5PM.

Growing up in an orphanage, eight-year-old Maddox's sole wish is to be adopted. Thinking God sent him a sign that it would come true...

Amidst tragedy and hardship, discover the enduring Spirit of Powwow as Nibinamik fulfills the wishes of those who have passed on...

On Christmas Eve, 1967, two young Indigenous girls are forced to battle the elements, confront their darkest secrets and work together....

Filmmaker Sergio Rapu follows Anishinaabe artist Jonathan Thunder as he dives deep into the inspirations behind his surrealist paintings and animations...

In 2001, Polar Explorer, Lonnie Dupre and his partner John Hoelscher circumnavigated Greenland. It took them five years to complete the project...

When a sociopathic hired hand murders an entire family, the town of Schafer, North Dakota rises up to take justice into their own hands...

Screening followed by a Q&A with the film's director Charlie Griak.

The Apassingoks are a typical American family. They watch the NBA, have a dog named Blue, and are often glued to social media...

Sponsored by the Ely Folk School as part of our Indigenous Students Day Program. The Friday morning screening will be followed by a catered meal for the students held at the Ely Senior Center.

Storytelling is the way knowledge, lessons, and teachings are passed on in Indigenous cultures. These stories take us back to our roots and share the values of our communities, local and abroad, using a variety of techniques.

Screening followed by a Q&A with filmmaker Ginew Benton.

The year is 1968. Nowa Cumig, better known by his English name Dennis Banks, has started a movement with a few friends...

Sponsored by Waawaate Programs as part of our Indigenous Students Day Program. The screening will be followed by a panel on the American Indian movement, featuring community leaders and others who were connected to the original movement leaders.

Culture is powerful, the very essence of who we are in community. These films embody a broad range of cultural creativity, while utilizing humor, everyday interactions, painful pasts, the power of the land and language, to show the essence of what it means to be Indigenous.

Screening followed by Q&A with filmmakers in attendance.

A Deadly Invader Destroying People’s Lives...
Tenacious Scientists Determined To Defeat It

Followed by a Q&A with the film's director, Thomas Lindsey Haskin.

Synopsis: Kid Candidate tells the story a 24-year old experimental musician and his unlikely run for city council after his spoof campaign video went viral.

"Documentaries and creative films that capture a range of perspectives about human nature and belonging. These films feature local and national stories that explore the challenges, the beauty and the politics of our relationships with the outdoors."

Sponsored by Boundary Waters Connect, this screening will be followed by a Q&A with filmmakers and subjects in attendance.

The search for an authentic life leads an existential bike mechanic to discover the universal truths and transformative powers of love.

Screening followed by a Q&A with filmmaker John Biesack of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

A master of Japanese drumming and a Korean adoptee from Minnesota boldly convene an all-female troupe to perform Taiko, the Japanese drumming...

Sponsored by Northern Lakes Arts Association, this screeening is followed by a Q&A with the film's Co-Director and Cinematographer, Keri Pickett.

After the death of his father, Aden and his mother, Sarah, find themselves responsible for the sale of his family home...

Screening followed by Q&A with the film's director Vanessa M.H. Powers & Producer Abigail Capaul.

A delightful range of stories that will entertain, educate and amuse. Science, brilliant animation and coming-of-age are all part of this excellent block. Made by kids or for kids, these films are certain to inspire creativity and conversation.

Sponsored by Grand Ely Lodge, this screening is followed by a Q&A with the filmmakers in attendance, plus a surprise guest appearance by one of the film's subjects...

Polka is still enjoyed all over the country. But where did this unique musical genre originate? And which state can lay claim to being the one true State of Polka?

In a small town absurdly divided by the US/Canada Border, a jaded US Border Patrol agent solves local cases while engaging in a fierce rivalry...

This collection of shorts is wide in its range of topics and social outreach. The films tell of how we seek connections with one another, how necessary education and access are to building a good life, how our families can drive an outsized hobby, and how in spite of aging, the need for sexual intimacy endures.

Screening followed by a Q&A with filmmakers in attendance.

Blackwaters encompasses the power of five Black men whose paths have been challenged with loss, defeat, fear, and pain...

Sponsored by Tofte Lake Center, this screening will be followed by a Q&A with the filmmakers Chad Brown and M. Baxley.

Rural America has long been a space where Queer folks can anticipate danger and discrimination. Our nation's wilderness areas involve the same hazards.

Sponsored by Tofte Lake Center, this screening will be followed by a Q&A with the filmmakers Chad Brown and M. Baxley.

Blue, a 35 year old, Navajo, singer-songwriter has lost her creative spark to a series of bad relationships and to the harsh Minneapolis winter...

“Are you curious to watch films and hear from students of the craft of filmmaking? These four short films were created through a series of Hands-On Filmmaking workshops the Upper Midwest Film Office hosts right here on the Iron Range! Students and instructors who participated in the workshops will be curating a conversation about what it takes to make a movie as a team.”

Sponsored by UMFO, this screening will be followed by a Q&A with filmmakers & film workshop parrticipants.

The Apassingoks are a typical American family. They watch the NBA, have a dog named Blue, and are often glued to social media...

Sponsored by the Ely Folk School, this screening will be preceded by a Happy Hour at the Ely Folk School across the street, 4-5PM.

“Flying Lessons” follows two estranged sisters forced together by their mother’s sudden death: Beatrice, an autistic high schooler...

This screening will be followed by a Q&A with the film's director Sarah Waldron.

It’s been called the toughest endurance race in the world ... why would anyone do this, especially when it’s 40 degrees below zero? 

Sponsored by The Ely Echo, this screening will be followed by a Q&A with Duluth-based filmmaker Marius Anderson and a special guest appearance from the Arrowhead 135...

Prepare to be creeped out and entertained. You will never look at a peanut butter & jelly sandwich the same. Warning: Some of these films present disturbing images. Viewer discretion advised.

Screening followed by Q&A with filmmakers in attendance. Join us afterwards for the EFF24 After Party - Live Music Upstairs at the Boathouse Brewpub!

THE ARC OF OBLIVION explores a quirk of humankind: in a universe that erases its tracks, we humans are hellbent on leaving a trace. 

After the death of their father, brothers Mitch and Tommy decide to carry on the tradition of their family's week-long bough harvest...

Screening followed by a Q&A with filmmakers Nickolaus Swedlund and Matt Roy.

The wolf polarizes and fascinates, and it brings disorder into our system. 150 years after the wolf was wiped out in Central Europe, it is inexorably conquering its place. 

Screening followed by a Q&A with filmmaker Thomas Horat. Join us afterwards for a Learn & Discuss event across the street at the Ely Folk School, 2:30-3:30PM.

When a sociopathic hired hand murders an entire family, the town of Schafer, North Dakota rises up to take justice into their own hands...