MENDOCINO CO., 5/7/25 – Films about art, the environment and social justice dominate this year’s 18th annual Mendocino Film Festival taking place in Mendocino and Fort Bragg later this month.
Over 65 films from 20 countries will be featured at this year’s festival. It’s also the first time over half the films are directed by women, the festival said.
Documentary features include “Coastal” about rock musician and activist Neil Young, “Marcella” about famed Italian chef Marcella Hazan, comedic takes on mental health with “Anxiety Club;” “Ai Wei Wei’s Turandot,” a feature about the Chinese artist-activist, and “One to One: John and Yoko” about the life of John Lennon and Yoko Ono in early 1970s Greenwich Village.
A handful of films will focus on the environment, including “Sequoias of the Sea” about the destruction of kelp forests and “Row of Life” about Paralympian ocean rower, veteran and Guinness World Record holder Angela Madsen’s attempt to travel solo across the Pacific Ocean.
The festival is also heavy on social justice films, including “Art Spiegelman: Disaster Is My Muse,” about the Pulitzer Prize winning creator of “Maus,” “From Here/From There” about the first undocumented attorney to argue a case at the U.S. Supreme Court, and “Sally!”, about Mendocino County’s own radical feminist icon Sally Gearhart.
Native American films also take a spotlight at the festival. The Hawaiian film “Standing Above the Clouds” features a family of activists that take a stand to protect a sacred mountain from becoming the site of the world’s largest telescope. “Our Ocean, Our Future,” a short film about the Kashia Band of Pomo Indians, a federally recognized tribe whose territory spans much of the Sonoma Coast, will also be shown.
Cinephiles looking to escape reality can do so at the festival’s selection of drama, comedy, thrillers and sci-fi films. One highlight is “Bad Shabbos,” a comedy about murder, mayhem and a well-intentioned Shabbat dinner gone wrong.
Additional activities include book signings, meet and greets with film stars and directors, comedy shows, and concerts.
The Mendocino Film Festival takes place May 29-June 1 in Mendocino and Fort Bragg. Tickets start at $15. The schedule of events and ticket sales are available at http://www.mendofilm.org.