Hilo Palace Theater | June 1 + 2
screenings |filmmaker Q&As |industry panel
Tickets available online + at the Theater Box Office.
Purchase tickets for individual screenings, listed below, OR an Access Pass for discounted access to ALL screenings and industry events.
To get the most out of your festival experience, purchase a MIHFF Access Pass, which offers you access to all screenings, our industry panel and speaker series (Hilo, June 1+2, $30) OR our Best of Fest screening series (Kona, June 14, $15). Note: Access pass not appicable for opening night silent disco. Due to venue separation, passes for Kona and Hilo must be purchased separately and are non-transferable.
SCHEDULE | screenings and more
Opening Night Silent Disco Dance Party
Hilo Palace Theater | Friday, May 31
8-10pm, doors open 7:30
Tickets: $20 **not included in festival access pass
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*Headphones provided at venue.
A fully unique experience, our opening night "silent disco" is a headphones-only dance party with DJ services from Headphones Only Party Systems Hawai'i.
Saturday June 1 | Hilo Palace Theater
Speaker Series 10:00am -11:30am
The Art of Cinematography with Ron Garcia, ASC (Hawai’i 5.0, Twin Peaks)
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Emerging Filmmakers | 12:00pm -1:35pm, Sat 6/1, Hilo Palace
A block of four made-in-Hawaii short films created by first-time filmmakers.
Waterworks
Drama | 20 min | Directed by Cheyenne Lawes*
*in attendance with Assistant Director Angie Anderson
After breaking up with her boyfriend, Ray struggles with people's expectations for how emotional she should be.
Music + Experimental| 2:00 - 3:45pm, Sat 6/1, Hilo Palace
A block of ten made-in-hawaii shorts, from music videos to animation and more.
Hamakua
Music video | 4 min | Directed by Dominik Walczuk*
*in attendance
A dance of time, this musical story weaves the past and present to showcase the growth of artist Nahko Bear.
Running For Grace | 4:30-6:40pm, Sat 6/1, Hilo Palace
This feature-length film explores young love and prejudice on a 1920s Kona coffee farm.
Family | 1 hour 50 min | Directed by David L. Cunningham
An orphan uses his blazing speed to deliver medicine to the coffee pickers in the mountains of Hawaii. Young love soon blossoms when he begins a forbidden romance with the daughter of a plantation owner.
Stoke + Ho'omau | 7:30-9:30pm, Sat 6/1, Hilo Palace
Feature film Stoke will be preceded by short film Ho'omau as part of our HIFF Hana Hou selections.
STOKE
Drama | 1 hour 27 min | Directed by Phillips Payson* and Zoe Eisenberg*
* in attendance with lead actor Randall Galius Jr.
A struggling tourist hires two aspiring tour guides to take her to an active volcano on the big island of Hawaii.
Sunday June 2 | Hilo Palace Theater
Industry Panel 10-11:30am
Community-Based Filmmaking: The Importance of Collaboration
​with the Hawai’i Filmmaker’s Collective (HFC)
Series |12pm - 2 pm, Sun 6/2, Hilo Palace
A block of four made-in-Hawai'i episodic series, from comedy to sci-fi and more.
Potluck with Smooch:
Cray Cray Crepes
Comedy | 23 min | Directed by Diq Diamond*
*in attendance with Executive Producer Rebecca Jennings, HMUA June Jones, Director of Photography Ted Tunney, Recipe wrangler Jeri Lynn Endo, head of Graphics Robert Maclean.
Smooch, his dysfunctional Chronic Crew, some colorful culinarians and a THC induced haze are a recipe for a delectable stew of stoney comedy.
HIFF HANA HOU showcase |2:30 - 4:45pm, Sun 6/2, Hilo Palace
A block of three made-in-Hawai'i films from the Hawai'i International Film Festival.
Sincerely, Kaye
Drama | 10 min | Directed by Kristle Backe
In attendance: Cinematographer Shaneika Aguilar
A young woman reflects on how her parents’ divorce and unstable upbringing affects the way she approaches relationships as an adult.
Shorts: Narrative + Doc |5:15-6:50 pm, Sun 6/2, Hilo Palace
Nine made-in-Hawai'i short films, both narrative and documentary.
Donut Dynamite!
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Doc | 3 min | Directed by Austin Michael Alimbuyuguen
Donut Dynamite follows a tiny, celebrated donut shop in Maui where everything from the sprinkles and up are created from scratch.
Awards Ceremony + Closing Night Films
Out of State + Kaumakaiwa |7:30-9:10pm, Sun 6/2, Hilo Palace
A short awards ceremony will precede our closing night selections of Out of State and Kaumaukaiwa.
Out of State
Doc | 1 hour 20 min | Directed by Ciara Lacy
In attendance: special guest Akiko Masuda
This celebrated, award-winning documentary is the story of native Hawaiian prisoners shipped 3,000 miles across the ocean to a for-profit prison in the desert of Arizona.