Attendees gather outside the Calabasas Film Festival’s opening event during the 13th annual celebration of film and entertainment. The Sept. 23 cocktail reception welcomed filmmakers, producers and attendees, according to festival co-founder and director Kelley Fries Miller and chairman emeritus Joe Fries. Photos by Haylie Ross
The Calabasas community came together to celebrate local storytelling and independent cinema at the 13th Annual Calabasas Film Festival.
The five-day festival took place Sept. 23-27 and featured screenings across multiple genres, Q&A sessions and social events that brought filmmakers, sponsors and audiences together.
Kelley Miller and her sister, Nicole Fries, built the festival together out of their shared love for film and storytelling.
“We are basically a glorified screening festival with a ton of parties,” Kelley Fries Miller said.
A Look Inside the Festival
Miller said the festival grew out of her and her sister’s shared love for film and storytelling.
“It’s just something my sister and I started together,” Miller said. “Something that we both love — film — and want to celebrate it.”
The five-day festival kicked off with an opening cocktail event sponsored by Livelle, a luxury senior-living community expected to open in 2028.
Guests enjoy drinks and hors d’oeuvres at the Louis B. Mayer Theatre during the Calabasas Film Festival’s opening cocktail event Sept. 23. The reception gave attendees an opportunity to connect at the start of the five-day festival.
Later in the evening, the festival screened the war drama “Atonement” by Oscar-nominated war drama director Reed Van Dyk. The film starred actors Boyd Holbrook, Kenneth Branagh and Hiam Abbass.
“Atonement” previously received two nominations at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival in France, according to IMDb.
The film poster for “Atonement,” a war drama directed by Reed Van Dyk. The film screened during the first night of the festival. Graphic courtesy of Next Best Picture
The rest of the night proceeded with VIP parties, cocktail events hosted by various sponsors and screenings of “I Play Rocky” and “Ugly Cry.”
Additional programming for the week featured a Shorts Film Program and an Alliance of Women Directors block, followed by an outdoor evening screening of “The Goonies.”
This Year’s Festival
Miller said the festival creates a welcoming environment for filmmakers and audiences.
“You’re in the theater and you’re laughing and crying and it’s kind of just all over the place for the five days,” Miller said. “It’s really exciting to have a mix of different films — it brings different people and different experiences.”
The festival also emphasized the importance of women in the film industry.
With the help of the Alliance of Women Directors Program, the festival gave female filmmakers a dedicated platform to share their work.
The Broader Mission
For Fries, bringing quality films to Calabasas means maintaining relationships with studios and filmmakers — creating an experience that extends far beyond the screen.
“Gotta have relationships with the studios so you can get premium quality films,” Fries said.
The festival’s final day highlighted local talent with a dedicated student day, which began with a Student Film Program, showcasing films submitted by local high school students at Chaminade and Viewpoint High School.
The festival received roughly 100 student submissions, which organizers narrowed down to about ten films for the final program, Fries said.
Livelle’s Sponsorship
With a focus on serving the elderly in the Calabasas area, Livelle saw the festival as an opportunity to connect with an audience that aligns with its mission, according to Livelle’s website.
“[We] just thought it was a really nice event for us to invite some of our prospects and clients to enjoy the arts,” said Ryan Exline, director of operations management for Life Care Services.
Located adjacent to the Motion Picture & Television Fund campus in Woodland Hills, Livelle is a planned senior-living community expected to open in 2028, according to the company’s website.
Exline said he hopes that Livelle’s sponsorship would bring quality food and drinks to the people enjoying the space.
This story was copy edited by Haylie Ross.
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