📅Thursday, April 24th – Sunday, April 27th
🕓Showtimes vary
📍Langston Hughes Performing Arts Institute: 104 17th Ave S, Seattle
💰Passes range from $135 all-access to $50 single-day passes
Black film is a mirror, a megaphone and a movement that highlights what happens when Black voices shape the narrative. The Seattle Black Film Festival returns to celebrate this storytelling tradition at Langston Hughes Performing Arts Institute. For over two decades, this festival has archived the past, challenged the present and inspired the future, allowing filmmakers a space to shape cinematic canon — on their own terms.
At SBFF 2025, explore over 100 films across genres, from international films and experimental flicks to music videos and documentaries. In addition to screenings, the festival offers networking events, after-parties and panels to learn about what happened behind the scenes.
Some quick highlights from the 2025 program:
🎥“Music Never Sleeps”: This experimental-reality docuseries explores how music connects people around the globe. In it, members of the African diaspora living in Seattle travel to Kenya, returning home to find connection and creative inspiration.
🎥“Wonder Child”: This family-friendly short film is about a millennial who tries meditation only to wind up back in the 90s and sitting across from her 10-year-old self.
🎥“Langston’s Legacy Block”: One of the many blocks of short films curated for the festival, this series features films that explore storytelling through rhythm and verse.
🎥“The Devil Ain’t Pius”: Part comedy, part horror, this short film explores the family secrets of Pius Montgomery, the owner of Uncle Piu’s Devilishly Hot Hot Sauce.
🎥“Over the Bridge”: A psychological thriller set in Lagos, Nigeria, this film explores the need to succeed’s toll on one man’s mental health.
💁 Pro tips
🚗Street parking fills up fast, so carpool or take King County Metro buses or the streetcar.
🍽️Refreshments will be available for purchase, but don’t forget to stop by one of the many Black-owned restaurants nearby like Soulful Dishes or the newly reopened Marjorie.
💻For those who can’t make it in person, watch from the comfort of your home with virtual access.
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