Slamdance Unstoppable: On The Road, Summer 2025

Since its founding, Slamdance has been about disruption — about carving out space for stories the industry has overlooked and creating access where there was none. Launched in 2020, Slamdance Unstoppable was built by and for filmmakers with visible and non-visible disabilities, with the mission to eliminate prejudices and gatekeeping that have long shut their voices out.

This summer, Slamdance Unstoppable: On The Road carried that mission to seven cities across the U.S., bringing vital films into arthouse theaters and communities nationwide. The tour’s purpose was clear: elevate disabled artists, connect with audiences, expand opportunities for authentic storytelling, and partner with arthouses to better represent films made by disabled filmmakers. To widen the impact, each program blended Slamdance Unstoppable selections with films programmed from Sundance, ReelAbilities, Superfest, and the Easterseals Disability Film Challenge — creating cross-pollination between disability-led cinema and the broader independent film landscape.

The tour began where Slamdance has deep roots: Salt Lake City. Launching with Salt Lake Film Society (SLFS), the opening night became an invitation for what followed.

“Slamdance’s innovative new tour Unstoppable: On the Road will link arthouse audiences nationwide with disabled filmmakers, creating a platform for these unrepresented voices like never before. Given Utah’s rich history with Slamdance, it only seemed right that Salt Lake Film Society would be the first stop on the Unstoppable tour.”

— Tori Baker, CEO of SLFS

SLFS’s leadership in accessibility and its passion for addressing underrepresentation in arthouses made it the natural and welcome launch partner. Salt Lake proved to be a great place to start our tour!

The Unstoppable On The Road lineup featured both feature and short films drawn from major festivals and showcases committed to disability and independent storytelling.

Feature highlights included:

• My Own Normal (Dir. Alexander Freeman)
• Disposable Humanity (Dir. Cameron S. Mitchell)
• Thunder Rolls: The World of Blind Baseball (Dir. Susanne Schwibs)
• Loud Love (Dir. Bing Wang)
• Complicated (Dir. Andrew Abrahams)
• Racewalkers (Dir. Phil Moniz & Kevin Claydon)

Short film highlights included:

• Audio Description (Dir. Luke J. Salewski)
• Iron Lung (Dir. Andrew Reid)
• POSSUM (Dir. Daisy Rosato)
• Call the ADA (Dir. Nicholas Paul Ybarra)
• Working Differently (Dir. Hannah Currie)
• Take Me Home (Dir. Liz Sargent)
• View From the Floor (Dir. Megan Griffiths & Mindie Lind)

Together, these films — programmed from Slamdance alongside ReelAbilities, Superfest, Sundance and the Easterseals Disability Film Challenge — redefined expectations of disability cinema, proving it to be bold, intimate, disruptive, and essential.

For the participating filmmakers, we organized a 40% gross revenue share of the box office. Slamdance took 10% to go towards our costs and each theater took in 50%.

Ongoing coverage in arts and disability media affirmed the tour’s cultural resonance, showing that audiences and critics alike recognized the importance of its presence in independent cinema. In a moment when arthouses are seeking renewal, this tour carried a sense of purpose and connection — giving audiences all the more reason to return and discover anew.

The tour itself became a journey through the landscape of American cinema — each stop unfolding like a chapter, showing both how much has been accomplished and how much further there is to go.

From Salt Lake City, we moved west to Santa Ana, where The Frida Cinema embraced the tour with grassroots fervor. Continuing up the coast to Seattle, the SIFF Uptown Cinema welcomed us into one of the strongest arthouse communities in the country.

The Midwest followed. In Chicago, the Music Box Theatre gave Unstoppable films a historic stage, connecting new voices with one of America’s most storied independent screens. Just north in Milwaukee, Milwaukee Film carried the momentum into a city-wide celebration of diverse storytelling. Crossing east, Manhattan’s Marlene Meyerson JCC linked Unstoppable to a cultural hub already deeply rooted in accessibility work. Finally, in Miami Beach, O Cinema closed the tour by embracing the community and energy we had built for Slamdance Miami, a fitting reminder of why this movement can’t stop.

None of this could have happened without the work laid down before the festival began. Early planning secured partnerships, prepared accessible infrastructure, and paved the way for the tour to launch seamlessly this summer.

Our marketing efforts began with a strong vision, but what made it resonate was shifting into a more organic, community-driven approach. Filmmakers, disability organizations, and grassroots partners became the tour’s strongest advocates, carrying its message into new places with genuine connection. That mirrors Unstoppable’s ethos: authentic, people-driven, and rooted in trust.

Perhaps the most meaningful outcome was a renewed sense of who our filmmakers are — and what fuels them. Many came not just to highlight their work, but to build something larger: a culture of access, a more inclusive vision of independent cinema, and a deeper connection with audiences. Their willingness to show up, travel, engage, and share their stories became the real heartbeat of the tour — a reminder that the greater good of Slamdance lives in the people who carry it forward.

The tour may have ended, but what stays with us is clear: disability-led cinema is not niche — it is essential. This summer showed that when disabled artists lead, cinema itself expands. Independent film grows stronger, more inventive, and more inclusive when its most disruptive voices are given the stage.

Unstoppable On The Road wasn’t just a program in motion — it was a movement in motion. It doesn’t stop at seven cities; it ripples outward through every conversation, every connection, every story told.

Slamdance will always be rooted in authenticity, accessibility, and disruption. These aren’t buzzwords — they are the ground we stand on.

The tour proved that when those values travel into communities, they create lasting impact: new partnerships, renewed faith from audiences, and an expanding trust in disability-led storytelling. What began as our Unstoppable summer of screening events is now an outline for deeper, year-round community building.

Our work continues with every story shared, every audience engaged, every connection made. Festival submissions are open for Slamdance 2026 until October 15. For filmmakers thinking about submitting to us our call is bold: bring us films that like those in the Unstoppable program that disrupt and demand to be seen.  

Taylor Miller