Cedar Rapids Independent Film Festival to screen 62 films

Sixty-two films from across the country, including four from the Quad Cities area – and all with an Iowa connection – will take center stage at the 2025 Cedar Rapids Independent Film Festival (CRIFF).

The event is Friday-Sunday, April 4-6, at Collins Road Theatres in Marion, Iowa. 

Selected from a field of 102 entries by a panel of judges, the selections are a diverse slate of short and feature-length narrative, documentary, and freestyle (music video, experimental, prose, art) films from professional, hobbyist, and student filmmakers.

“CRIFF is all about creating a unique filmgoing experience that is unlike mainstream cinema,” says Festival Director Eric Dean Freese. “In one afternoon, you might find a film that makes you laugh and one that makes you cry; one that lets your mind relax and one that opens your mind to new ways of looking at the world.” 

Mr. Freese credits the work of Iowa-connected filmmakers. “This talented, truly worldwide community explores diverse topics and genres, and the stories are told from a wide range of perspectives. Plus, you have the opportunity to connect with the filmmakers, who are motivated more by passion for storytelling than box office receipts.”

Local filmmakers featured

The four films featured at the festival with local ties are: 

• Clean Up – Student Narrative Short-Form – Laura Makari, Jordyn Van Santen, John Reda, Corey Whitlock, of the Augustana College Film Program, Rock Island.
• Love Bites – Student Narrative Short-Form – Ludovica Chiovini  – Augustana College Film Program.
• I went on the adventure of my dreams – Student Documentary – Jack McCarthy – North Scott High School, Eldridge.
• Moved by Waters – Professional Documentary – Kelly Rundle, Tammy Rundle, Fourth Wall Films, Moline.

All Official Selections are films that have an Iowa Connection. It could include crew or cast members who lived, worked, or went to school in Iowa. Or a film that was produced, at least in part, in Iowa. Or it’s a story featuring an Iowa subject or Iowan (present or former, real or fictional). Each film will screen twice over the weekend. Each film will compete for Gold and Silver Eddy, Audience Choice, and Iowa Connection awards, at the Eddy Awards Ceremony, presented by Farmers State Bank, following Saturday night’s screenings. 

Student filmmakers will be celebrated at Student Cinema on Sunday, April 6. Their films will compete for the $1,000 Collins Road Theatres Scholarship and the Student Audience Choice Eddy, voted on by all attendees and awarded following Sunday’s screenings. 

Tickets may be purchased through the Collins Road Theatres box office at collinsroadtheatres.com. Full event passes are $35 for adults and $25 for students. Single sessions are $10 or $8 in advance. Student Cinema Sunday student tickets are $5 in advance. Schedules, film information, and festival details are available at crifm.org/2025-festival/.

What lineup includes

Other Official Selections making up the lineup are: 

• 50mm – Student Narrative Long-Form – Dillon Jacobson – University of Iowa, Iowa City.
• 5683 – Professional Narrative Feature – Brittany Benedict, Michael Huntington and Kevin Shepherd, Cintree Films, Newhall.
• Abraham’s Bridge –Professional Documentary, Elinor Pierce and Justin Limoges – Auburndale, Massachusetts.
• After Ike: A Journey That Changed America – Professional Documentary, Gregory F. Maassen and Michael S. Owen – Washington, D.C.
• Anybody But You – Hobbyist Short  – Derek Smith and Jacob Daniels.
• Baby Doll – Hobbyist Short  – Serena Fath, Ellen Lee and Victoria Jackson, Des Moines.
• Bits & Pieces – Hobbyist Feature – Bauston Van Sickle and Wayne D. Barrett, VanSickle Studios, Newton.
• Blink Once – Professional Freestyle – Jim Haverkamp and Karin Gottshall, Durham, North Carolina.
• Brothers: A Civil War Story – Student Narrative Short-Forn – Casey Schaffer, Matthew Donley, and Zachary Gutherman, DeSales University, Westminster, Colorado.
• Chase –– Hobbyist Short – Lilah Pearl Skaar, Anthony Syracuse, Jme Lee and James Brown, Denver, Iowa.
• Counterfeit – Hobbyist Short – Michael E. Berg, JJ Hillard, Wes Worthing and Andrew McDowell.
• Cuffed! – Student Narrative Short-Form – Kylie Muller, Grace Birkland and Hannah Romell – University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
• Dinner with Gigi – Professional Narrative Short – Courtney Ball, Cedar Rapids.
• EDM is Plastic? – Student Freestyle – Than San – Loras College Creative Media / DUMEDIA, Dubuque.
• Eighteen Years – Student Narrative Short-Form – Emily Surma, Libby Perry and Ellie Coleman – Loras College Creative Media / DUMEDIA, Loras College.
• Exaltation – Student Narrative Long-Form – Will Schwarz, The University of Iowa.
• Facing the Father – Student Narrative Short-Form – Lauren Ulveling, Kylea Nuendorf, Henry Hahn, Ronald Johnson, Ethan Shawgo and Chiefy Loma, Wartburg College, Waverly.
• Flock Together – Student Narrative Short-Form – Andrew Sloth, Leo E. White, University of Georgia, Athens.
• Friends and Neighbors – Professional Documentary – Benjamin Wagner, Wilmington, Delaware.
• From Iowa and Back – The Vietnam Era – Professional Documentary – Jeremy Glazier, Gerard Estella and Megan Turner, Cedar Rapids.
• Garden of Des Moines – Hobbyist Documentary –Teri Underhill, Des Moines.
• The Gates – Hobbyist Feature – Tiffany A. Ketcham and Cody McKinney, Newton.
• Get Over Yourself – Professional Narrative Feature – Thomas Pace, Chicago. 
• Gloves – Student Narrative Short-Form – Isaiah Griffith, John Plewa, Megan Kolbe and Marley Hewitt – University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
• Good Tough Kid – Hobbyist Documentary –  Michael James McDonald, Seth Stoltenow and Joshua Cote, of Wyoming, Michigan. 
• The Grief Project – Regan Hill, Tessa León, Billy Chengary and Phillip Ward, Los Angeles, California.
• Home No Return –- Student Narrative Short-Form – Arman Hodasefat, Philip Rabalais and Taryn Neal, University of Iowa.
• Hunky Dory – Professional Freestyle – Steven Vander Meer, Béla Fleck, Arcata, California.
• Inheritance – Hobbyist Short – Benjamin Schmidt, Alannah Swenka, Coralville.
• Jayden Upton: “Give It Your All” – Student Documentary – Dylan Ervin, Kevin Franks, Nolan Swartz – Loras College Creative Media / DUMEDIA – Loras College.
• Killsbury Doughboy Rises – Student Narrative Short-Form – Parker Miller – University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls.
• Ku: A Love Story – Hobbyist Short, Freestyle – Anita George – Los Angeles, California.
• The Legacy of The Great River Reapers – Student Documentary – Lucas Schoaf, Nora Bruxvoort, Kevin Franks – Loras College Creative Media / DUMEDIA – Loras College – Dubuque.
• Light Painter – Professional Documentary – Eric Smidt, Ames.
• Lost Woods – Professional Narrative Short  – Ben Hagarty, Shawn Stadburg, Pokey Spears, and Matthew Welch, Cedar Falls.
• Loyal Wheels – Student Freestyle  – Than San– Loras College Creative Media / DUMEDIA – Loras College.
• Making Magic – Professional Narrative Short – Patrick Boberg, Brian Hogan, Erin Hogan, Jolene Schultz, Matt Clark and Bill Gongol, Des Moines.
• My Heart Remembers – Professional Feature – Melinda Myers, Melissa Lawrence, Stephen Folker and Brian Lawrence, Lisbon.
• The Negro Artist – Professional Documentary – Nikolas Ira Heftman, Douglas Burns and Ann Wilson, Los Angeles.
• Nightmare At Camp Bloodbath – Professional Narrative Short  – Dylan Arnow, Ryan Brown, Will Perls, Aaron Klisman, Adam Bussell, Los Angeles.
• ORGANIZED TERROR | Eclypse Haunted Attraction: Year 3 Recap – Professional Freestyle Documentary, Nick Orth, Cedar Rapids.
• Paranormal Press – Student Narrative Short-Form – Ava Bertram and JP Smith – Hawkeye Community College, Waterloo.
• Petrichor – Student Freestyle 00 Grace Potratz – University of Iowa.
• Pluto – Student Narrative Short-Form  – Lua Rasga, Nick Hull and Matt Sindt  – University of Iowa.
• Project Lucidity – Hobbyist Short – Erika Chagdes, Alexandra Runnells – University of Iowa.
• Refining Your Craft – Student Narrative Short-Form – Andrew Sloth, Jesse Scales and Austin Yeomans, University of Georgia, Athens. 
• Remote – Professional Feature — Matthew Tribble and Marc Bauer, Cedar Rapids.
• Sew Lucky – Student Narrative Short-Form – Hannah Pedersen, Wyatt Debban, Alijah Mallula and Kylie Muller – Frumble Films – University of Nebraska-Lincoln. 
• Stronghold – Professional Narrative Short – Meghann Artes, Anna Maria Hozian and Joe Lyons,  Chicago.
• Tim Olson: Observing Oddities – Student Documentary – Jessen Weber – Loras College Creative Media / DUMEDIA, Loras College.
• Tina – Professional Narrative Short – Sheri Davenport, Laura Sweeney and Chris Luner – Oakland, California.
• Tinker – Hobbyist Documentary – Ryan Adams, Independence.
• Turn Four – Student Documentary  – Joshua Tigges, Buena Vista University, Storm Lake.
• Unlikely Pair — Student Narrative Short-Form – Sam Madson, Hawkeye Community College, Waterloo.
• Unwritten – Student Freestyle – Hunter Jones – Loras College Creative Media / DUMEDIA – Loras College.
• Weedman — Hobbyist Short – Alannah Swenka and Tristan Bennett.
• The Wordless Ones – Student Narrative Short-Form – Tyler Samuel Dintaman and Daniel Nierling, Hawkeye Community College, Waterloo, Decorah
• Yule Father – Professional Narrative Short – Brittany Benedict, Michael Huntington and Kevin Shepherd.

In addition to Collins Road Theatres and Farmers State Bank, the Cedar Rapids film festival is supported by the Greater Cedar Rapids Community Foundation CRST International Donor-Advised Fund, the Iowa Economic Development Authority, Wired Production Group, and ImOn Communications. Partnership inquiries may be directed to [email protected].