THANK YOU!

What an incredible Slamdance ‘26 festival it’s been! To everyone who came and took part, it felt like we caught the biggest wave together and rode it into shore beautifully. I want to thank all the filmmakers for presenting their new work, their perspectives and reflecting who we are. What a brilliant showcase you have given us.  

This year, we saw terrific growth at the festival and surpassed over $100,000 at our box office. We achieved this while maintaining festival accessibility with all access passes priced at just $50. As the entertainment industry continues to face massive disruption, Slamdance in Los Angeles is proof that through an event experience you can still grow cinema and fill every seat in the house. Some might think celebrity culture remains the only way to do this but the Slamdance community has known for a long time that when it comes to recognizing talent, launching careers and attracting an audience grassroots film communities can really do it themselves. 

None of what we accomplished this year could have been achieved without the support of our great sponsors and community partners. Thank you to each and every one, especially the Directors Guild of America for being our presenting sponsor and Easterseals for being our accessibility inclusion partner.

I’d also like to thank every Slamdance programmer and jury member for continuing to shape and grow our mission as an artist led organization. They have few rules to follow and those we have aren’t always adhered to exactly. But that’s the point of Slamdance; to accept everyone for who they are as artists, not to conform and not to control. As we saw last week, this works!

Last but not least, I’d like to thank our exceptional festival team for running our showcase. They are Krystin Braverman, Austin Welsh, Anna Lee Lawson, Lizzie Friedrich, Paul Sbrizzi, Lily Calvert, Hayden Jennings, Eddie Bernard, Edel Rodriguez, Bailey Pauze, Emma Mazurek, Nichole Alvarez, Britney Belliston, Jeremy Pelsinski, Jackie Carlson, Skizz Cyzyk, Andy Viner, Lauren Desberg, Andi Benge, Emil Ravelo, Anita Bengert, Lindsay Cross, Audrey Gonzales, Ethan Honza, Eric Auman, Heather Rossi, Ray Taylor, Holly Maniatty, Juliet Romeo, John Lawson, all of our Compton Unified School District and Occidental College students, Taylor Miller and board members Paul Rachman and Marie Jamora.

Together, we are Slamdance!

Onward and upward, Peter Baxter