16 Slamdance Films to Check Out as the Indie Fest Hits L.A.

For years, the Slamdance Film Festival has existed in the shadow of Sundance. Founded in 1995, Slamdance always been a parallel (but unrelated) event that ran in Park City at the same time as Sundance, providing a platform to outsider artists making fringe cinema not showcased at the bigger festival. It helped launch the careers of A-listers like Christopher Nolan (“Following”) and the Russo Brothers (“Welcome to Collinwood”), proving itself to be a vital piece of the indie film ecosystem. 

With Sundance considering a move to Cincinnati or Boulder, Park City’s future as a film festival destination is in flux. Slamdance ended up being the first domino to fall, relocating to Los Angeles and moving to a February calendar spot. This year’s festival will be the first in its new L.A. home and the beginning of an era where Slamdance can have the spotlight to itself — and potentially become the dominant film festival in a city that has never quite been able to call a major one its own, other than AFI. Slamdance already made its mark on the local independent film scene, introducing itself to Los Angeles by hosting the inaugural Indies award show in December. 

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The 2025 lineup includes exactly the kind of programming Slamdance prides itself on elevating — which is to say that you might not have heard of anyone involved with any of the films you end up seeing. In a festival ecosystem where overnight successes at prestigious festivals often take a decade to manufacture, that’s a feature, not a bug. The lineup is heavy on first-time filmmakers, often working with microbudgets and non-professional actors. The purest way to experience the festival might just be to dive in head first and see as many screenings as you can without any expectations, as you never know when you’re walking into the next cult classic from an auteur who will be universally celebrated a decade from now. 

IndieWire dove into the lineup and picked 16 films that piqued our interest. If you’re looking for a primer on films to check out this weekend, keep reading for our personal, inconclusive Slamdance bucket list. This year’s Slamdance runs February 20-26.

Wilson Chapman contributed to this story.

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