Despite the anti-trans dial being turned up across the country, the annual San Francisco Transgender Film Festival (SFTFF) returns with more than 40 films from around the world, showcasing creative resistance to the current political scapegoating of trans and gender non-conforming communities.
Started in 1997, SFTFF is North America’s first and longest running transgender film festival. Known for uplifting underrepresented voices, DIY-aesthetics, brave filmmaking, and super-queer quirkiness, the festival has films this year that display trans and gender non-conforming filmmakers responding to the climate of hate with unmatched bursts of creativity.
SFTFF 2025 will offer both in-person and online programs from November 13–23, 2025, with a rich offering of four programs, featuring a range of films across genres from documentaries and politics to animation, dance, music, romance, horror, and experimental films.
Programs 1–4 will be held at the historic Roxie Theater November 13–15. These same 4 programs will be offered online, on-demand for free November 16–23. All in-person programs will be ASL-interpreted, and all films in-person and online will be captioned for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing audiences.
Says Artistic Director Shawna Virago, “You can’t keep us down. Since we started, resistance has been our middle name. Through our films, we’ve pushed back against the stifling confines of the gender-binary and also the never-ending wave of anti-trans attacks and discrimination, all through the power of art.”
In support of community safety, KN95 masks will be provided and required. Roxie’s entrance, lobby, bathrooms, and audience seating are wheelchair accessible, and the Roxie has all-gender bathrooms. While SFTFF is not a scent-free event, SFTFF encourages in-person audiences to be mindful of avoiding perfumes and scented products.
In these politically fraught times, with trans civil rights and protections being stolen, SFTFF understands gathering in community to watch trans films is a statement, an affirmation, and a loving act of liberation and resistance.
Says Virago, “We know that getting together right now to watch our films is especially important; it’s a statement, an affirmation, and an act of solidarity.”
Adds Managing Director Eric Garica, “We hope this year’s Festival provides some relief, inspiration, joy, and connection for our communities.”
Films Featured at SFTFF 2025
At Home
At Home is an intergenerational experimental documentary exploring queer friendship as a way of life. Through the voices of a 29-year-old trans musician and a 79-year-old lesbian archivist, the film weaves together stories of self-discovery, chosen family, and community building. Directed by Aubrey Pandori.
Monster in the Mirror
(in the Time of Executive Orders)
Part song and dance theatricality, part a drag-inspired joyful resistance, this performance art piece celebrates the existence of trans and nonbinary people through the recruitment of monsters. Directed by Al Ellison.
Dragfox
In this animated short, a young person’s search for identity gets interrupted by a mysterious neighborhood fox. Together, they embark on a magical journey to the attic to discover the surprising things they might have in common, and how to celebrate the ways in which they differ. Featuring Ian McKellen as the voice of “Ginger Snap the Fox.” Directed by Lisa Ott.
Strange Power
Strange Power is a short film selection and song from a larger horror musical called MAXA, The Maddest Woman in the World. Paying homage to the “poor witches of the Middle Ages” who burned at the stake before her, Paula Maxa recounts her transformation to fame at the Grand Guignol, where her horrifying talents are worshipped by audiences. Directed by Daniella Caggiano.
The Martial Forest
This is Kung Fu Trans from the Future! In a dystopian future, exiled Kung Fu master Big Sister 13 leads a gang of trans and queer fighters who reclaim a forgotten zone and transform it into the Martial Forest—a secret training ground where care is as powerful as combat. Together, they fight to survive rising violence and build a future rooted in chosen family and trans resistance. Directed by J Traingular.
A New Creation Story
Blending animation, poetry, music, and stories rooted in various cultures and live elements, A New Creation Story celebrates Black Trans community and retells the making of the Universe—taking us on a journey from before the first molecule was crafted until the precise moment where everything has truly come to be. Directed by J Mase III, Lady Dane Figueroa Edidi, and Audria LB.
After What Happened at the Library
In the wake of a terrifying encounter, an overwhelmed drag queen struggles under the weight of public attention. Inspired by the viral true story of Kyle Casey Chu. Directed by Syra McCarthy.
Babyteeth
On the night his alcoholic mother relapses, a trans teen discovers something monstrous lurking just beneath the skin of his fractured home. When young Toni becomes convinced that a monster is hiding under his bed, his best friend Marcus joins him for a sleepover to prove it’s all in his imagination. But as the night deepens, unsettling events make it clear that something terrifying lurks in the shadows. Directed by Paul X Sanchez IV.
I Feel Like Throwing Up
Musician Ryan Cassata’s music video is a hopeful, visual journey through illness, identity, and empowerment. Our hero faces off against a MAGA mob, radiating power, pride, and that kind of love that builds unshakeable community. Directed by Tom Goss.
2025 San Francisco Transgender Film Festival (SFTFF)
November 13–23, 2025
Tix: $0+ sliding scale
Info/Tix: https://sftff.org/
Arts & Entertainment
Published on November 6, 2025
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