Seattle Film Society

Programming & Transparency

The Seattle Film Society is a filmmaker-run organization dedicated to organizing, cultivating, and celebrating our filmmaking community. As filmmakers and artists ourselves, we face the same challenges as our audience in creating and sharing our work. We believe in the power of an organized, collaborative community to create change and drive the reassessment of our region as a filmmaking hub. We believe that transparency, responsibility, accountability, and trust are key elements in maintaining our community and accomplishing these goals.

Submissions make up the majority of our Locals Only lineups. 90% of our screened works come directly through our submission portal, with the other 10% being a mix of recommendations and local works we encounter elsewhere. We do not program the work of our board or programming team, or work that our board or programming team have creatively collaborated on, unless explicitly stated for specialized events separate from Locals Only.

We seek films from impassioned storytellers who infuse their work with a strong point of view. This includes nonconformist and misfit films that are sometimes excluded from traditional screening spaces. We acknowledge that value is not strictly dictated by prestige or laurels. While not every film is an ideal fit for our screenings, our focus is always centered on the intent of the work and the potential of the artist. We recognize that Programming and Curatorial work is a form of gatekeeping, and seek to combat the exclusive nature of this process by building more accessible bridges of opportunity for artists, connecting them to spaces, experiences, and resources that they may not have been otherwise afforded. We strive to provide a community where fresh, exciting voices are encouraged and thrive.

Our Locals Only events take place on a monthly basis and submissions are open year round. Our screenings are programmed based on the ideal combination of the selected films rather than a set timeline a la a traditional film festival. If we do not feel we will be able to find a place for your film in our programming, we will make every effort to let you know as soon as possible.

This document is inherently subject to evolve and develop to reflect the ongoing thinking and curatorial approach of our team.

Updated as of 8/12/24

Programming Team

  • Marcus Baker

    He/Him

    Favorite Movie: The Heartbreak Kid (1972) Favorite Director: Jane Campion

    Marcus Baker is a Writer/Director from Seattle. His short films have been awarded and featured in numerous film festivals across the country. His interest in film was sparked by reading Sidney Lumet’s Making Movies as a child, and was later spurred on by films like The Dark Knight and Looper. Prior to his directorial work, he worked in both Seattle and Los Angeles in a variety of production and post-production roles for the Oscars, Emmys, Netflix, and more. In addition to his film work, he is an avid reader and advocate for film criticism, citing Emily St. James and Film Crit Hulk as foundational influences. Regarding SFS, he's excited to help foster communication and collaboration in the Seattle film community, and to contribute to the next generation of Seattle filmmaking.

  • Kalee Quiñones

    She/They

    Favorite Movie: Boogie Nights (1997) Favorite Director: Paul Thomas Anderson

    Kalee is a freelance editor and script supervisor, and volunteers at the Grand Illusion Cinema as a projectionist and assistant programmer. She's worked in post-production as a junior editor for the Daytime Emmy Award Winning web series, Red Bird, as well as created YouTube content for brands like REI, GitHub, Lee Jeans, Google, and Bungie. She's also taught her unique editing techniques to classes at SIFF and Northwest Film Forum. In 2022, she produced, directed and edited a music video for watts 103rd by Stres and she is currently in pre-production for a short, experimental dramedy film she wrote called Naked Wolf. When it comes to SFS, she's most excited about bringing filmmakers together and continuing to make filmmaking more accessible to the Seattle community.

  • Tommy Meisel

    He/Him

    Favorite Movie: Faces (1968)

    Favorite Director: John Cassavetes

    Tommy Meisel was interested in movies from a very young age. He has written, edited, and directed several narrative and documentary short films. His latest narrative project, “When The Man Comes Around”, screened at film festivals throughout the country where it was nominated for several awards including best director. Tommy also enjoys making non-narrative documentaries on Super 8 and 16mm film and would like to do it more often. Outside of film he likes sailing, a light rain, the Pasta Da Vinci from Cheesecake Factory, playing the piano, and old maps.

  • Harlie Sullivan

    She/Her

    Harlie Sullivan is a Tennessee born actor based in Tacoma, Washington. At 20, she studied Dance and Musical Theater at AMDA In Los Angeles. She recently starred as the lead in When the Man Comes Around and hopes to continue being a part of telling more trans stories through film and theater.

  • Shelby Smout

    She/Her

    Favorite Films: Back to the Future (1985) + Paris, Texas (1984)

    Shelby Smout is a film worker who was born and raised in this great, green state of Washington. After receiving her MFA in filmmaking and producing at Seattle Film Institute, she produced the award-winning spooky shorts EMIKO (2017) and A Purple Vision (2019), both directed by Justin Robert Vinall, and the drama Way Out of Here (2018) directed by Alexander Sylvester. Shelby has written and directed shorts like the science fiction piece, Planet Somewhere (2016), and a lil drama called Old Blue Eyes Ain't Nothin' (2018). Swipe Right for Emotional Baggage (2021) is her most recent directorial adventure. She freelanced in the local film industry until 2021, and she now works full-time at SIFF. For Shelby, an important facet of film is community. Her fondness for the medium wouldn't be as fervent as it is without the cineastes she met along the way. Because of this, joining the programming team is extra thrilling, allowing her to introduce the community—and herself—to local and new filmmakers.

  • Champ Ensminger

    He/Him

    Champ Ensminger is a Thai American filmmaker born in Chiang Mai and raised in Spokane, Washington. He has since pursued opportunities in filmmaking and digital storytelling in Seattle, Brooklyn, back in Chiang Mai, and back in Seattle. He has had the privilege of working with some amazing creative teams both stateside and abroad, and he intends to do so for a long time. His personal filmmaking practice explores narrative and abstract storytelling with music, as well as exploring his interests in culture and heritage through documentary. He makes up for all the time in the edit by cycling in Seattle’s glorious summer, or singing “Kiss From A Rose” at karaoke for the other 11 months of the year.