Prisoners at dinner, Michigan City, Ind. 1907 Library of Congress Do bad things: Go to San Quentin. Make good films: Go to San Quentin.
The Hollywood Reporter can exclusively reveal the official selections for the 2026 San Quentin Film Festival (SQFF26). The third-annual installment is set for Oct. 22–23 at the San Quentin Rehabilitation Center in Marin County, Calif. — SQFF26 remains the only film festival held inside of a U.S. prison.
It’s there for good reason: SQFF honors the creative work of current and former incarcerated filmmakers, “spotlighting stories of resilience, redemption and artistic expression from behind the walls, in competition with filmmakers from across the country and around the world,” per the festival.
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“When this festival began, we dreamed of bringing films from different prisons and countries into conversation with one another, while giving formerly incarcerated artists a place for their voices to be heard,” said Cori Thomas, SQFF co-founder and artistic director. “Filmmakers who explore incarceration through their work are part of that conversation, too. I’m thrilled that artists from Cameroon, South Africa, Italy, Spain, and Germany are joining American filmmakers this year. And it is especially meaningful to present special selections from five prisons, including San Quentin. Together, these films create the vibrant chorus of voices we hoped this festival would become.”
The 2026 program has a preview night, Wednesday, Oct. 21, when the first hour of Lynn Novick’s upcoming four-part PBS documentary series Crime and Punishment in America, which features one hell of an impressive voice cast, will screen for an audience of San Quentin residents (we would formerly call them inmates).
Directed by Novick (The Vietnam War, Hemingway, College Behind Bars, The U.S. and the Holocaust) and executive produced by Ken Burns and Sam Pollard, the eight-hour series “explores the history of criminal justice in America, from the pre-colonial period through 21st-century mass incarceration, examining how the intertwined forces of law, power, race and class have shaped and reflected the American experience across four centuries,” according to its synopsis.
A panel discussion with Novick; SQFF co-founder and series consulting producer Rahsaan Thomas, and “survivor advocates” Annie and Jess Nichol will follow. The conversation will be moderated by Kevin D. Sawyer, former editor-in-chief of San Quentin News and recipient of the SQFF24 Best Pitch Award for his documentary project, The History of Prison Journalism.
“The San Quentin Film Festival is an incredible event doing vital, transformative work, bridging communities through the profound power of storytelling and film,” Novick said in a statement. “We feel deeply honored and lucky to share our series in such a unique and important space.”
Narrated by Keith David, Crime and Punishment in America features voice performances by Samuel L. Jackson, Laura Linney, Bobby Cannavale, Matthew Rhys, Michael Stuhlbarg, David Hyde Pierce and BD Wong. The series is produced by Lucas Frank, Vanessa González-Block, Lynn Novick and Prisca Pointdujour. It will air over four consecutive nights on PBS beginning Nov. 16, 2026, and will stream on all PBS digital platforms for four weeks.
Jail Time Records Courtesy of Jail Time Records The 2026 San Quentin Film Festival received 75 submissions for its 2026 competition. The Short Film categories, open exclusively to currently and formerly incarcerated filmmakers, are judged by SQFF’s Industry Jury, the Feature category is evaluated by an Inside Jury composed of San Quentin residents, and the Long Short category is judged by an Inside Jury of residents at Central California Women’s Facility. (“Long Short” is new this year and is comprised of films running up to 40 minutes — the in-betweeners.)
The fest’s pitch competition received an additional 68 submissions from incarcerated writers at 20 facilities across America (and one in Panama — the first ever from outside the U.S.). SQFF’s Industry Jury selects the winners.
Nearly 400 people will attend the two-day festival — half entertainment industry professionals and the other half San Quentin Rehabilitation Center residents. Those who cannot attend will be able to screen the official selections from Oct. 26 to Nov. 8 via screening passes available for sale. Incarcerated people in California will be able to watch the films through the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) institutional channel.
The SQFF26 official selections are below by category.
The Window on Death Row Blake Media Production DOCUMENTARY SHORTS
ARTIST IN SAN QUENTIN Directed by Ryan Pagan San Quentin Rehabilitation Center
THE CIRCLE Directed by Marlene D. McCurtis and Alexa Kershner California State Prison, Los Angeles County
CREATING ART, RECREATING SELF: THE IMPACT OF A PRISON ART CLUB Directed by Cris Gardner Nash Correctional Institution in North Carolina
FREEDOM FROM WITHIN: PRISON YOGA PROJECT Directed by Michael Hinchey
LIFE LETTER Directed by Michael Bell and Rachel McMillian
REVIVE Directed by Ricardo Gutierrez and Kannon Chambers California Correctional Institution at Tehachapi
THE SILENT (R)EVOLUTION: FREEDOM FROM THE INSIDE OUT Directed by Julius Jacolby Irving
SOMEBODY TO LEAN ON Directed by Gabrielle Burton
THE SWALLOW BIRDS OF THE FLEA MARKET Directed by Jose Fernando Flores-Jimenez
NARRATIVE SHORTS
BASEMENT PEOPLE Directed by Christine Swanson
CLEAN SLATE Directed by Alex Geffen and Cass Huckabay
FIRELINE Directed by Robin Takao D’Oench
INTELEJUSTICE Directed by David Shuck
LOCKDOWN Directed by Megean McBride Sanchez and Vic Chopra Washington State Penitentiary
MANY THOUSANDS LOST Directed by Jehan Tyson Patterson
RUN IT BACK Directed by Abby Pierce
SPLIT/SECOND Directed by Lindy Boustedt
LONG SHORTS
BREATHE (Narrative) Directed by Lindy Boustedt Written by incarcerated students in the SHARE Screenwriting program
DAYLIGHT (Narrative) Directed by Jon Kasbe
ON MY ROAD TO DHARMA (Documentary) Directed by Yihuan Zhang
POST CONVICTION (Documentary) Directed by Margaret Byrne
PROLUNG KHMER (Documentary) Directed by Sophear Om and Louis Sále
THE WINDOW ON DEATH ROW (Documentary) Directed by Linda Catherine Freund
DOCUMENTARY FEATURES
THE END OF ISOLATION Directed by Sarah Emily Shourd and Bobby Field
FROM THE INSIDE OUT (THE DEATH PENALTY PROJECT) Directed by David A. Moran
THE HOUR AFTER MIDNIGHT Directed by Patricia van Heerden and Ed Wes
THE INSIDE SCHOLARS Directed by JoeBill Muñoz
JAIL TIME RECORDS Directed by Dione Roach and Steve Happi
MARCH FORTH Directed by Robe Imbriano and Valerie Hong
ONE MINUTE REMAINING Directed by Colin Sytsma
SERVING TIME PART 1: SAN QUENTIN’S QUEER BEGINNINGS Directed by Angie D. Gordon
THANK YOU FOR THINKING OF ME Directed by M. Akram Shibly
WHEN A WITNESS RECANTS Directed by Dawn Porter
NARRATIVE FEATURES
MOSES THE BLACK Directed by Yelena Popovic
SWEETIE Directed by Kenda Sinn
UNION COUNTY Directed by Adam Meeks
VINDICATION TO VICTORY Directed by Matthew Brundige
WITNESS: THE JOHN EDGAR WIDEMAN EXPERIENCE Directed by Cedering Fox
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