January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2020
The Film Center’s Northwest Tracking program showcases the work of independent filmmakers living and working in the Northwest—Alaska, British Columbia, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington—whose work reflects the vibrant cinematic culture of the region. Whether presenting single artist retrospectives, new features, documentaries, or inspired collections of short works, Northwest Tracking offers testimony to the creativity and talent in our flourishing media arts community.
View Northwest Tracking filmmaker profiles
Stories from the River
Directed by Woodrow Hunt
A shorts series created in partnership with Confluence and Woodrow Hunt (Klamath/Modoc, Cherokee) of Tule Films. Indigenous elders and leaders …
NW Music Video Showcase
Directed by Various
The Northwest has a strong tradition in music video creation, and we celebrate it with an evening of music videos …
A Perfect 14
Directed by Giovanna Morales Vargas
Presenting the parallels between society and the fashion industry, A Perfect 14 examines the segregation plus-size models face as they …
A Universe: Films by Laura Heit
Directed by Laura Heit
At the heart of animator, filmmaker, and puppeteer Laura Heit’s creative universe is a yearning to connect to human emotions. …
Best of the BendFilm Festival
Directed by Various
Now in its 16th year, BendFilm Festival, which takes place every October, showcases short and feature-length films from around the …
Black Pool
Directed by Dustin Morrow
Set over the course of a single night, Michael, an Irishman living in the United States, believes he has found …
Canopy Stories
Directed by Various
Presented as part of the Portland Circuit, a partnership between the Oregon Made Creative Foundation, the Hollywood Theatre, The Clinton …
Convergence and Cacophony: Experimental Documents from Dustin Zemel
Directed by Dustin Zemel
Combining multiple layers of visuals and audio, filmmaker, artist, and PhD recipient Dustin Zemel pushes the boundaries on stable environments …
EXTRA ORDINARY: Short Films & Videos About Everyday Life by Julie Perini
Directed by Julie Perini
Portland-based filmmaker Julie Perini has created two feature-length documentaries examining socio-political subjects and issues in the Northwest. In addition to …
Grickle: A Cartoon World by Graham Annable
Directed by Graham Annable
Oscar-nominated cartoonist and animator Graham Annable presents an evening of short works from his humorously imaginative world of Grickle. Filled …
Internal Review: Films by Northwest Film Center Staff
Directed by Various
Join us for a showcase of work by filmmakers on staff at the Northwest Film Center. Films to be screened …
Karen Doesn’t Dream
Directed by Zach Huckaby
Karen is having issues with insomnia. She also works at an adult video store and sells alcohol to kids from …
Mary Janes: The Women of Weed
Directed by Windy Borman
As legalization spreads, cannabis is one of the fastest-growing industries in the nation. It is also an industry led by …
My Summer As A Goth
Directed by Tara Johnson-Medinger
The OregonMade Creative Foundation has teamed up with four of the best independent cinemas in Portland, The Northwest Film Center, …
Nostalgia, Post-Memory and Autobiographical: The Films of Sydney Southam
Directed by Sydney Southam
Working with archival 16mm film and constructs of the documentary format, Sydney Southam is a co-founding member of the illustrious …
Our Trails Too
Directed by Liz Haan, Emilia Quinton
The Northwest Film Center is proud to partner with QDoc Film Festival, Women In Film Portland, and Northwest Documentary to celebrate …
Phoenix, Oregon
Directed by Gary Lundgren
Directed and produced by Ashland, Oregon based filmmaker duo Gary and Anne Lundgren, Phoenix, Oregon tells the story of Bobby …
Prospect
Directed by Zeek Earl, Chris Caldwell
This engaging science fiction thriller tells the story of a young girl, Cee, played by the up-and-coming Sophie Thatcher, as …
Samurai in the Oregon Sky
Directed by Ilana Sol
Presented in partnership with WorldOregon, director Ilana Sol’s documentary tells the story of Japanese pilot Nobuo Fujita, who catapulted his …
Seven Years of Screendance: Films by Robert Uehlin
Directed by Robert Uehlin
Specializing in the translation of contemporary choreography into the language of film, current resident curator of the annual DanceBARN Screendance …
Solo: The Evolution of the One Man Band
Directed by Billy Dimes
There are many solo musical acts, however for the creative musicians who wield multiple instruments at once, the unique moniker …
TECHNIQUES OF OBSERVATION: Experimental Ethnography and Recent Abstractions by Kathryn Ramey
Directed by Kathryn Ramey
Filmmaker Kathryn Ramey comes home to the Northwest on a film tour, presenting a four-film program. Beginning with Yanqui Walker …
The Animated Films of Richard Reeves, 1992-2018
Directed by Richard Reeves
Working in the tradition of animation greats such as Norman McClaren, Len Lye, and Mary Ellen Butte, Canadian animator Richard …
The Chunta (Las Chuntá)
Directed by Genevieve Roudane
In a small town in Mexico, once a year, men transform into women and become the Chunta. Follow two gender-bending …
The I Never Trilogy
Directed by Mig Windows, Rory Owens
The I Never trilogy is an anthology of ghost stories exploring themes of heartbreak, infidelity, suicide, and the supernatural. Loosely …
The Last Gospel of The Pagan Babies
Directed by Jean Donohue
In 1960s Kentucky, the old-world gay scene took a dramatic turn towards the future as the The Pagan Babies, a …
The Lyric Project Season 2: How to Say Goodbye
Directed by Ezekiel Brown
In this follow-up to director Ezekiel Brown’s first season of The Lyric Project, he continues to ask the question: “What …
The Native Wisdom Documentary Film Series
Directed by Lawrence Johnson, Tim Keenan Burgess
Presented in conjunction with Portland-based non-profit Wisdom of the Elders, this short series explores how climate change is affecting native …
The Qualities of Being Human: The Films of Evan Raymond Spitzer
Directed by Evan Raymond Spitzer
Oregon-based filmmaker Evan Raymond Spitzer presents three uniquely crafted films, each using different techniques. In Praise of Shadows (2014) is …
This Mountain Life
Directed by Grant Baldwin
British Columbia is a province in which 75% of its geographical landscape is made up of large mountains. While many …
Undertones II
Directed by Various
An evening of live video and analog projections in the Whitsell Auditorium and the Portland Art Museum sculpture court, paired …
Visual Fluidity: The Animated Films of Neely Goniodsky
Directed by Neely Goniodsky
Seattle-based filmmaker Neely Goniodsky presents an evening of her visually hypnotic animated films that span the course of 13 years. …
Whitman at the Whitsell
Directed by Marilyn Zornado, Various, Joan Gratz, Devon Damonte
An evening of animation and poetry in celebration of the American poet Walt Whitman’s 200th birthday. Portland-based animator Marilyn Zornado …
Women in Film PDX: Member Screening
Join Women in Film PDX as they present their fourth annual member screening, in which recent films made by members …
Work in Progress
Directed by Adam Sekuler
On its surface, Work In Progress is a film that looks at labor: paid and unpaid, material and immaterial, examining …
Works in Progress Film Screening
Directed by Derek Ewell, Jenny Watters, Darian Slayton Fleming, Fuchsia Lin, Kurtis Hough, Dicky Dahl, Suzanne Moulton, Matt McCormick, Joanna Priestley
Join us for an evening of works-in-progress by Oregon- and Washington-based filmmakers who are both fulfilling a grant requirement and …
Zulu Summer
Directed by Joseph Litzinger, Eric Michael Schrader
What began as an assumed spam email at a local radio station—something along the lines of a Nigerian prince asking …