Bentonville Film Festival Names Top Winners
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- Walter Thompson-Hernández's 'If I Go Will They Miss Me' won best narrative and Judd Ehrlich's 'Jane Elliott Against the World' won best documentary at the 12th Bentonville Film Festival, with winners announced June 20 at a high-energy awards gala.
- Festival chair Geena Davis addressed the audience via video message alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger, saying she could not attend because she was filming the action movie 'The Kellys.'
- The festival opened with the Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick thriller 'Family Movie' and closed June 21 with a special screening of the first episode of the new 'Little House on the Prairie.'
- 'Little House on the Prairie' showrunner Rebecca Sonnenshine received the festival's Rising to the Challenge Award.
- The Bentonville Film Foundation, backed by founding partner Walmart and presenting sponsor Coca-Cola, is a non-profit that explicitly champions female, non-binary, LGBTQIA+, BIPOC, API, and disabled storytellers through research, education, and distribution support.
- Additional jury honors went to 'The Musical' (directorial vision), 'BRB' (lead performances), 'Baby/Girls' (best Homegrown), 'Find the Boy' (best short film), and 'Too Romantic' (best episodic).
Why it matters: The Bentonville Film Foundation, backed by Walmart and Coca-Cola, uses its festival to direct a high-profile platform toward underrepresented storytellers, with its 12th edition drawing star power from Geena Davis, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Kevin Bacon, and Kyra Sedgwick. By honoring a narrative film and a documentary that tackle identity and social challenge as its top prizes, BFF reinforced its stated diversity mandate rather than chasing conventional industry favorites.
