Join The Maine Outdoor Film Festival for an indoor screening of the DOGWOOD PROGRAM at Talbot Auditorium part of University of Southern Maine's Portland campus.

Where: Talbot Auditorium, 85 Bedford St Portland, ME 04101 United (Google Maps Link)

Parking: Street Parking

When: Saturday July 26, 2025. Doors at 2:40PM, films begin at 3PM

Tickets: $15 advance, $18 at the door

Hosted by: WMPG, Southern Maine's Community Radio State

This Event is Included in:

All-Access Pass

Friends of MOFF Pass

Matinee Pass

More info:

Outside water is allowed.

email moff@maineoutdoorfilmfestival.com with questions!

Film Program

WELCOME HOME

Welcome Home celebrates the incredible story of wolf reintroduction to Colorado. When the people of Colorado voted to return wolves to the state, they set in motion a unique conservation success story. Welcome Home shows the value of returning this iconic and beloved carnivore to Colorado and how the state is recovering wolves in a thoughtful way that cares for wildlife and people.

POLAR BEAR COUNTRY

In the northern reaches of Manitoba, resting on the edge of Canada's Hudson Bay, sits the small town of Churchill. Home to fewer than 1000 year-round residents, Churchill is a remarkable place: it plays host to an annual beluga whale migration, is visited by the Northern Lights over 300 times per year, and sits in a pristine tundra that truly embodies the term "wilderness". Churchill's most famous visitor, however, is the mighty Polar Bear. Every year, hundreds of bears gather on the shoreline surrounding Churchill, awaiting the sea ice that forms on Hudson Bay during winter. Once it forms, they'll use it as a platform from which to hunt seals, but until then, they wait on the coast, creating a fascinating, and potentially dangerous, interaction between the residents of Churchill and the world's largest land carnivore. "Polar Bear Country" explores this interaction, learning how Churchillians have learned to co-exist with, protect, and share their love of these apex predators. Through extensive on-location interviews and rarely-witnessed encounters, the film guides its audience through a town that is exploring the bleeding edge of human/wildlife coexistence.

REFUGE ALASKA

Refuge Alaska is a musical interpretation of our National Wildlife Refuges in Alaska. Nonprofit organization Sustain Music & Nature collaborated with skilled composer-musicians and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service — Alaska Region to highlight 13 of Alaska’s 16 refuges, showcasing its wildlife and natural beauty in this four-movement short film and original score. With the mission to highlight these remote gems in Alaska, board member and creative director Sam Kassirer conceived Refuge Alaska in response to the pandemic. Unable to travel or gather physically, composer-musicians connected virtually, exploring northern landscapes many had yet to experience firsthand. With Sustain's traditional Songscape projects paused, the nonprofit sought new ways to raise awareness about the vulnerability of public lands. Videos provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, filmed by various videographers over the years, sparked a unique artistic collaboration blending music and film. The four contemporary keyboardists and composers — Derry deBorja (Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit), Sam Kassirer (Josh Ritter), Akie Bermiss (Lake Street Dive), and Matt Douglas (Mountain Goats) — were tasked with creating individual musical movements.

DE GRAASLINIES

In De Graaslinies, we follow Hanke Karreman, the last shepherdess in Zeeuws-Vlaanderen, whose life is deeply intertwined with nature. As she leads her flock through all kinds of weather, she demonstrates how tradition, dedication, and respect for nature come together in a vanishing profession that honors our connection to the landscape.

TALK TO FRANK

My name is Frank, and I'm a cocker spaniel from Manchester. My story began when I moved in with Maleek, my human. He wasn't in a great place--having just finished a four-year sentence, he found himself transitioning from one prison to another: the COVID lockdown and a debilitating depression. I gave him no choice; he had to start walking me. One walk led to another, and soon we were running. Before he knew it, we were on our way up Pen Y Ghent, his first mountain. The mountains are his spiritual home, he needs them just as much as I do. His ambition is to run in the Alps. To push his boundaries and tackle a route higher and further than he has ever been before. So that's our plan. Together we are going to go to the Alps, we're going to see the peaks, the ridges, the summits, and we're going to heal together.

BLOCK DOG

A glimpse into the lives of eight dogs brought together in BC's wilderness as the steadfast companions and fierce protectors of a young crew of intrepid tree planters.