The 2026 festival was held September 25-27 at the historic Rivoli Theatre in downtown Seward, NE.
The 2026 festival was held September 25-27 at the historic Rivoli Theatre in downtown Seward, NE.
SESSION — NIFP’S FISCAL SPONSORSHIP – A PRACTICAL GUIDE
Chad Haufschild – NIFP Representative
Nebraska Independent Film Projects’ treasurer, Chad Haufschild, walks you through how fiscal sponsorship works, from the application process all the way to receiving disbursement checks.
DIRECTORS ROUNDTABLE
Tom Knoblauch – Facilitator
Join us for a roundtable discussion with Nebraska filmmakers Bill Hedges, Maverick Knox, Brent Scott Maze, Margaux Towne, Michael G. White, and CynFranecia Yvette.
ACTORS ROUNDTABLE
Janell Patton Wolford – Facilitator
Join us for a roundtable discussion with Nebraska actors Matthew Hebert, Betty Schram, Christian Velez, Rachel Williamson, and Deborah Wilson.
WRITERS BLOCK
Shelby Hagerdon & Michael G. White – Facilitators
SESSION – SPEED NETWORKING
Patrick Lambrecht & Greg A. Gale – Facilitators
Join the Flatwater team for a session of rapid-fire speed networking! Speed networking is similar to speed dating…focusing on finding your future project collaborators. Meet new faces and reconnect with old friends.
A new employee at WeCorp discovers some oddities with the company’s training video. Winner of the 2026 FFF 48-Hour Film Challenge.
In a Montana fire lookout, a grieving woman summons her fiancé’s ghost and must release the past before it consumes her.
A wedding goes horribly wrong.
After the chaos of the last few weeks, the entire family goes to therapy, but bringing the Truth Detector along wasn’t the best idea.
A short documentary exploring America’s sandhill cranes, blending natural and social history with insights from leading crane experts.
A faded one‑hit wonder confronts the truth behind his only song when the daughter of a lost love returns with the past in her hands.
Quinn returns home to sucker money from her estranged half-sister, but a nightmarish evening forces her to fight for solace in their broken relationship.
† Student Film
A man searches for his partner after she disappears in their home.
When left home alone, Ruffin the cat goes on an adventure to the rooftop to play in an all-cat band.
Doing laundry on a quiet Saturday night, Erin opens up to a nosy stranger.
After losing a close friend, a young man battles inner demons and searches for a way out of the cage he’s built around himself.
Reporter Patricia Packard is hunted by every villain she’s ever exposed—each choosing the same moment to strike.
A short documentary film about creative Rob Kasel and his illustration company, Poor Character.
Cole has planned the perfect date night, only to be foiled by the jealousy of his greatest nemesis…his mother.
Dylan D. Brown | 2026 | 5min | Drama | PG-13
An hour before their mother’s funeral, three siblings are forced to reckon with the horrifying reality of their childhood.
At his grandfather’s 84th birthday, 12‑year‑old Jackson meets Patina, a larger‑than‑life woman whose arrival bends time and reveals hidden stories.
Haunted by WWI, artist John Amory seeks peace on the Doyle estate, but when debutante Lilly becomes his muse, her father’s anger threatens his new life.
Decades after addiction nearly killed him, a queer musician revisits the music, memories, and wreckage left behind in a search for meaning and survival.
* First-time Filmmaker
When Amelia lands the lead in their school play and Billie gets nothing, jealousy consumes Billie, driving her to sabotage her best friend’s moment onstage.
† Student Film
West helps Oliver, a ghost only she can see, cross over before he fades—only to learn his unfinished business isn’t ritual but human connection and love.
Two French waiters closing up for the night have their routine upended by a mysterious old man who may be there for far more than a late drink.
O Con reveals the story of one man’s mission to build a safe, magical three‑day showcase for the Omaha metro’s counter‑culture community.
Amanda races to confess her feelings for her best friend Ellie before graduation, navigating self‑acceptance, her faith, and the fear of losing the person she loves.
† Student Film
A news team tours a long-running haunted house and gets more than the story they came for.
After losing her partner, Amber leaves her mushroom farm job for a road trip to find a rare psychedelic mushroom she hopes will bring closure.
After returning to Omaha to document its racial justice movement, Nick seeks common ground with his pro‑Trump father after a stage‑4 cancer diagnosis.
* First-time Filmmaker
A local filmmaking legend looks back at his 60-year path from watching movies to making them.
Raised in a Colorado mountain town, Jessica abandons her violinist roots until loss forces her back to the music that brings hope and calm to her community.
A man struggles to choose between the family he knows and the one he’s never met.
* First-time Filmmaker † Student Film
At a coworker’s farewell party, celebration turns to terror when an unseen force picks them off one by one every time the lights flicker.
When her estranged mother seeks forgiveness, a woman must choose between clinging to old wounds or embracing the grace that could free them both.
Amid a swirl of despondency and desire, a sudden disappearance disrupts an all-consuming romance.
* First-time Filmmaker
Local blues artist, Jeni Grouws, answers questions about herself and the music scene in Omaha.
† Student Film
A young man must reclaim his life after experiencing an unexplained event in the mountains.
As deadly heat nears its tipping point, Amber waits for relocation while Middle America swelters—until she realizes the true danger is closer than she thinks.
Eric Meyer meditates on the meaning of being homeless.
On her first day nannying in Brooklyn, Kayla cares for little Woodrow—until a “simple” job quickly proves anything can go wrong.
A portrait of urban Indigenous women whose inter‑generational resilience and shared wisdom guide a healing journey through past trauma and present life.
A woman trapped in the quiet decay of her relationship finds unexpected freedom in moments of desire and solitude that slowly awaken her to herself.
Desmond and his friend try to beat the final boss of their favorite video game.
* First-time Filmmaker
Grace searches for a charger and meets past versions of herself on each floor, forcing her to face what she’s learned before senior year arrives.
* First-time Filmmaker † Student Film
An international student reflects on love, memory, and longing as she navigates life between her new home and the motherland she can’t let go of.
A couple is troubled with news that will test their relationship.
Two teens navigate a series of escape rooms as they learn what it means to “escape.”
* First-time Filmmaker † Student Film
A devoted father takes his kids on an educational outing, only to realize the content may be more than they’re ready to face.
On the day she buries her father, Elysia meets a long‑lost relative whose shocking revelation reshapes everything she believed about his death.
A stop-motion LEGO brick film about a college student who finds refuge within his dreams.
† Student Film
After losing his phone in a porta potty, a lonely man befriends a blue creature below, finding a bizarre but genuine connection amid the filth.
* First-time Filmmaker
Three generations of Dodge men serve Nebraska as firefighters, battling danger and loss across decades while always answering the call.
After his grandmother’s death, Lucas turns to an AI for comfort, spiraling into isolation until its limits force him to face his grief and reconnect.
As he races to prepare for a surprise first date, an anxious young man’s mind spirals with surreal visions of his date’s reaction to his disability.
* First-time Filmmaker † Student Film
Trapped in a strange manor, Louise must find what she is missing to escape.
* First-time Filmmaker † Student Film
A young man receives a rabbit and cash, leading him to an old manor where he uncovers a strange link between the runaway rabbit and its owner.
* First-time Filmmaker † Student Film
An anxious couple faces an appointment that challenges their hopes for parenthood, forcing them to confront uncertainties about their future son.
* First-time Filmmaker † Student Film
Melanie’s painting day is upended by former lover Eric, sparking stories of five couples whose lives and inspirations have shaped her art.
Professional fixer Bullock navigates the challenges of middle management in this darkly comedic crime story.
Anyone who has lost a pet knows the precious grief that marks how much that animal mattered.
A mother can only watch as her teen daughter succumbs to a mysterious illness that leaves her pale and barely able to take a breath.
Dennis is in over his head with a debt he owes, but as he scrambles to get the money, he quickly finds out his time is up!
* First-time Filmmaker
When an ornithologist’s funding gets cut, her nurturing of abandoned bird eggs leads to a transformation as her marriage crumbles.
† Student Film
Three students travel to Bare, Iowa in October 2011 to shoot a student documentary about a local legend known as the Bare Stench.
Estranged siblings, stranded after a reckless night, confront their broken bond and past wounds as they struggle to move forward before time runs out.
Anna Wilson, Omaha’s Gilded Age Madame, built wealth, gave it away, and became a lasting legend whose underworld legacy still shapes the city.
Detective Artemis chases stolen treats from a jive‑dog bar and uncovers a sprawling conspiracy threatening the daycare’s coolest cats.
Sydney Mackwood created a chemical in a lab. He doesn’t know how he created it, but he deeply regrets his creation.
* First-time Filmmaker † Student Film
