The Call for Entries for the 2026 Milwaukee Film Festival closes January 31! Submit your film today at FilmFreeway.com
September 24-27, 2026
Documentary films open conversations and expand minds. Mark your calendar for September 24-27 in 2026 and plan to join us for four days of films and discussions that will fill your heart and mind with timely, relevant, and true stories.
Thank you to Potawatomi Casino Hotel for sponsoring the 2025 Dialogues Documentary Festival! Support like theirs make these programs possible.
Stay tuned for first dibs on passes and all the festival information you’ll need as the dates approach.
— 2025 Dialogues Documentary Festival Attendee“It’s almost too much to put in words. Milwaukee Film does an exceptional job of connecting the audience with people whose lives are so dramatically different from our own. That experience renders understanding, compassion, empathy, and advocacy for the subject matter. More of this, in our ugly and divisive world, PLEASE!”
Check out our 2025 Dialogues Documentary Festival lineup. Earlier Festival Guides can be made available upon request.
Dialogues Documentary Festival takes over screens at the Oriental and Downer Theatre each Fall for a long weekend chock-full of ideas.
Tickets and passes will be available here. Early Bird passes will be on sale in summer.
We show documentaries that are timely and relevant for Milwaukee. Often fresh from Festivals like Tribeca, True/False or SXSW, we show a range of docs that didn’t quite make the timing for MFF in spring!
We have Q&As, talkbacks and even panels in the cinema right after many screenings in DDF. Check out the film guide to see what’s planned.
Because there are so few slots in DDF we don’t open for full submissions. We do often find great films for Dialogues during our MFF season, so if you’re thinking of submitting your film, you should send it our way for MFF!
Most documentaries are unrated, meaning that they have not been reviewed by the MPAA. Documentaries can feature tough real-life scenarios, so viewer discretion is advised regardless of age. We do not feature a section of family-friendly films in DDF, though we will share in film descriptions if any films feel especially kid-friendly.
— 2025 Dialogues Documentary Festival AttendeeMilwaukee Film is committed to elevating and celebrating EVERYONE’S story – and the films chosen for this event were reflective of that commitment, mission, and purpose. Such a vast array of lived experiences and human emotion. I learned so much.