BendFilm unveils first 22 competition features for 2026 festival

BEND, Ore. — The countdown to the 23rd annual Bend Film Festival is underway, with organizers announcing the first 22 competition features selected for this year’s event.

BendFilm announced the competition feature lineup Friday morning, including eight narrative features, eight documentary features, three environmental and outdoor features and three Indigenous features.

The newly announced films include Take Me Home, State of Firsts, Union County, Hanging by a Wire, A Life Illuminated, The River Remembers, The Lake and Aanikoobijigan (Ancestor), among others.

BendFilm Managing Director of Programming and Artistic Vision Selin Sevinç said this year’s selections explore the human experience.

“I think this year’s fest offers a slate of films that boldly examines the human heart,” Sevinç said. “My hope is that the festival once again will gift the audience a space to pause and allow expansion of the imagination, empathy, and compassion.”

Friday’s announcement is only the first portion of the 2026 lineup. BendFilm says additional announcements covering shorts, spotlights, Local Focus selections and more will be released over the next several weeks.

Festival passes and ticket packs are already available. Ticket reservations begin Sept. 11 for BendFilm members, followed by sponsors and All Access passholders Sept. 15 and Full Film and Student passholders Sept. 17. Individual tickets become available to everyone Sept. 18.

The 23rd annual Bend Film Festival runs Oct. 7–11 in Bend.

KTVZ's Lance Campbell is working to learn more about this year’s selections and what audiences can expect from the festival.