What to know about the Bentonville Film Festival

What to know about the Bentonville Film Festival

The Bentonville Film Festival returns this week with a mix of celebrity events, competition films, free outdoor screenings and family programming.

The big picture: Chaired by Geena Davis, the festival focuses on work by women, nonbinary people, people of color, the LGBTQ+ community, people with disabilities, and people with diverse body types.

  • It's become one of Northwest Arkansas' most visible entertainment events.

    • State of play: The 12th annual festival runs Tuesday-Sunday, with tickets and passes on sale now.

  • This year's lineup includes 34 feature competition films, including five world premieres, plus the return of the Homegrown section focused on local and regional filmmakers.
  • Davis' signature Geena & Friends table read — where actors reimagine iconic all-male scenes through an all-female lens — is set for opening day at The Momentary, with Davis, Alysia Reiner, Alexandra Shipp, Toks Olagundoye and Bevin Bru.

    • A few key events this week:

  • Tuesday: Coffee talks with Ree Drummond and Chef JJ Johnson, Geena & Friends and the opening film "Family Movie," with Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick expected for a post-screening conversation. It starts at 7:30pm, but tickets are sold out.
  • Wednesday: BFF STEAM Sessions: The Next Frame — a day exploring the future of storytelling, creativity, technology, AI and STEAM education — runs 9am-4pm, followed by a Crayola Pitch Event where creators pitch kids' content concepts. Bobby Flay also joins a Coffee Talk in the morning. Other screenings include "Cookie Queens," a documentary following four Girl Scouts during cookie-selling season, and "Baby/Girls," a documentary about teen births filmed in Arkansas.
  • Thursday: Festival Village opens at The Momentary from 5-10pm, with free outdoor screenings including "How to Train Your Dragon" and "F1: The Movie." Other screenings include "Street Smart," the festival's centerpiece film, and "Valentina."
  • Friday: Festival Village continues 4-10pm, with "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone," "Jurassic World Rebirth" and a pet expo. Other screenings include "Kids Like Me."
  • Saturday: Walmart Toy Corner, live kids' performances, free outdoor movies including "Superman," "Wicked: For Good" and "KPop Demon Hunters," plus an America 250 fireworks show. Other screenings include "The Musical" and "Summer 2000: The X-Cetra Story."
  • Sunday: The closing event features a preview screening of Netflix's "Little House on the Prairie" and a Q&A with showrunner Rebecca Sonnenshine and cast members.

    • Go deeper: See the full schedule at BFF.

    The bottom line: BFF has evolved from a movie fest to a summer culture event for families as well as film buffs.