Lights, Camera, Pottstown! Oct 3rd-Oct 5th! 3rd Annual Film Festival! at Rivet: Canteen & Assembly – Pottstown, PA

Join us for the 3rd Annual Pottstown Film Festival and experience the magic of cinema right in the heart of Pottstown, PA!

When: Friday, Oct 3 (6PM) – Sunday, Oct 5 (1PM)
Where: Rivet: Canteen & Assembly, 238 E High St, Pottstown, PA

What’s Included:

• Red Carpet, Opening Night Cocktail Hour & Special Screening
• 3 Days of Films: Student Showcase, Short Films (Comedy, Drama, Documentary), and Features
• Filmmaker Q&As, Industry Panels & Networking Opportunities
• After-Parties, VIP Access, and Closing Awards Ceremony
• Stay for the Philadelphia Eagles vs. Denver Broncos on the big screen after Sunday’s finale!

️ Tickets available for Friday Only, Saturday, Sunday, or All-Access Passes.

Founder Kyle Klaus (actor/producer, FBI, Blacklist, Homeland) brings Hollywood back to his hometown, building a platform for filmmakers and celebrating community through the power of film.

✨ Don’t miss this unforgettable weekend of storytelling, creativity, and celebration. Buy tickets now and be part of Pottstown’s red-carpet moment!

What to Expect:

Prepare for an action-packed lineup of events, including a red carpet, photographers, step & repeat, filmmakers’ Q&A sessions, networking opportunities, VIP access, after-parties and more! Whether you’re a seasoned filmmaker, aspiring actor, or simply a lover of cinema, this festival offers something for everyone.

Kyle Klaus’s (founder) Mission:

Kyle is the founder/festival director. He is a multi-talented actor/producer/writer/entrepreneur and Pottstown native. He worked on notable roles in popular TV series like FBI, Blacklist, Homeland, and The Last O.G to name a few. Kyle is bringing his passion for film back to his hometown.

His dedication to his hometown shines through in his mission statement. By bringing a taste of Hollywood and New York City’s entertainment industry to Pottstown, he aims to inspire the next generation of storytellers and contribute to the town’s cultural resurgence. Through the power of film, and art Kyle seeks to foster a vibrant community where dreams can flourish and new possibilities can be imagined.

Don’t miss your chance! Join us at the Pottstown Film Festival for an unforgettable celebration of creativity, talent, magic of the silver screen and a chance to dream BIG! See you there!

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

DAY 1

FRIDAY FESTIVAL OPENING: SPECIAL SCREENING

10/3

6:00PM – 7:00PM Doors Open / Cocktail Hour

7:00PM – 7:15PM Opening Remarks: Kyle Klaus

7:15PM – 9:00PM Special Screening Opening Film: Stake Land

9:00PM – 10:00PM After-party at Rivet Canteen

DAY 2

SAT STUDENT FILM SHOWCASE

10/4

10:00AM – 10:30AM Doors Open / Bagel Breakfast

10:30AM – 11:45AM

Cell Buddies

Hivemind

Ubiquitous

My Next Guest

Anchors Astray

Perfect Wall

Itch

Within Our Reflections

11:45AM – 12:00PM Filmmaker Q&A

12:00PM – 12:30PM Industry Panel

SHORT FILMS: COMEDY

1:00PM – 2:30PM

Napoleonic Code

MUNCH

Arson

Follycle

Cheugy

A Quart of Salt

Emma’s Dilemmas

Filmmaker Q&A

2:30PM – 3:00PM Filmmaker Q&A

DAY 2 (continued)

SAT FEATURE DOCUMENTARY

10/4

3:30PM – 5:15PM RIDGE ARMY

SHORT FILMS: DRAMA

6:00PM – 7:40PM

A Good Day Will Come

Hearts of Stone

Party People

Cowboy Boots

She Was, She Is, She Never Will Be

7:40PM – 8:00PM Filmmaker Q&A

FEATURE FILM

8:15PM – 10:00PM F*CKTOYS

10:00PM – 11:00PM. After-party at Rivet Canteen

DAY 3

SUN SHORT FILMS: DOCUMENTARY

10/5

10:00AM – 10:30AM. Doors Open / Bagel Breakfast

10:30AM – 12:00PM

The Dying Business

Trouble

A Matter of Time

Meeting My Birth Mom for the First Time

12:00PM – 12:30PM Filmmaker Q&A

FESTIVAL CLOSING

12:30PM – 1:00PM. Awards Ceremony

1:00PM – 4:00PM Eagles Game / After-party at Rivet Canteen

FILM SYNOPSES

FRIDAY 10/3: FESTIVAL OPENING – SPECIAL SCREENING

Stake Land (1 hr 38 mins)

Director: Jim Mickle (Pottstown Area Native)

In a world of vampires, an expert vampire hunter and his young protégé

travel toward sanctuary.

*TALENT ATTENDING

SATURDAY 10/4: STUDENT FILM SHOWCASE

Cell Buddies (5 mins)

Directors: Melle Windig, Hidde Alberts, Miguel Reyes, Jurgen de Smit,

Arjen van der Plas

Sam, a grumpy raccoon is stuck sharing a cell with Bob, a sweet but dim

manatee. Sam hatches an escape plan. In their chaotic jailbreak Sam’s

hardened edges soften as Bob’s loyalty shines.

Hivemind (3 mins)

Director: Joey Tangradi

A girl explores a strange game after her friends mysteriously stop talking to

her.

Ubiquitous (20 mins)

Director: Grace Drury

An up-and-coming filmmaker, suffering from Borderline Personality Disorder,

spirals into obsession in order to win best picture.

My Next Guest (12 mins)

Director: Lucas Hydock

An awkward high schooler named Jimmy pretends to be a talk show host to

socialize with people. Can he maintain his persona after asking out Chloe, the

captain of the volleyball team?

Anchors Astray (3 mins)

Director: Marley Yambor

A young sailor and his companion become stranded on an island and must

work together to escape.

Perfect Wall (13 mins)

Director: Sea-Hoon Jeon

Symmetrical stiffness Perfectionism artist Oh Ju-bom’s perfect daily life

begins to distort.

Itch (8 mins)

Director: Georgia Wiggins

An experimental short film focused on the daily struggles of trichotillomania,

an irresistible urge to pull out body hair.

Within Our Reflections (6 mins)

Director: V. Harshini Buddhiraju

A newlywed couple feel the static as they move into a new house together.

SATURDAY 10/4: SHORT FILMS – COMEDY

Napoleonic Code (15 mins)

Director: Michael Cusumano

When a New Yorker reunites with her estranged brother to settle their

father’s Louisiana Estate, they’re confronted with secrets, old and new.

MUNCH (18 mins)

Director: Bill Duane

Dale Munch was your average postal worker, until a strange new passion for

eating the mail took hold of his life and began a spiral that would change his

family forever.

Arson (10 mins)

Director: Erin Broussard

An aging boy band decides to sell their souls for fame and fortune.

Unfortunately, not reading the fine print could prove disastrous.

Follycle (13 mins)

Director: Deanna Dewey

Fifty came and went for Devlin, an insecure gay man with thinning hair. Devlin

decides that if one Follycle hair replacement pill is helpful, six will be even

better.

Cheugy (10 mins)

Director: AJ Campli

In the wake of an unexpected loss, a millennial couple, Marcus & Julia,

grapple with the pressures of societal expectations.

A Quart of Salt (7 mins)

Director: BJ Barretta

Gwen is pulling out all the stops for a romantic dinner to save her crumbling

marriage but her smart home assistant, NEXA, has other plans.

Emma’s Dilemmas (17 mins)

Director: Anya Migdal

When Emma’s romantic escapades leave her broke and heartbroken, she

discovers the path to finding herself just might just run through her meddling

mother’s wisdom.

*TALENT ATTENDING

SATURDAY 10/4: FEATURE DOCUMENTARY

Ridge Army (1 hr 43 mins)

Director: Shawn Wixted

Skateboarding is more than just tricks—it’s a way of life, a

culture built on resilience, creativity, and community. Ridge Army

is a raw documentary that captures the spirit of a group of

Baltimore skateboarders who transformed an abandoned lot

into a nationally recognized skateboarding destination.

SATURDAY 10/4: SHORT FILMS – DRAMA

A Good Day Will Come (30 mins)

Director: Amir Zargara

Arash is a professional wrestler with dreams of representing his country and

winning gold medals. The country is in turmoil and its people are suffering.

Arash must decide between using his platform to stand up to tyranny, or put

his head down and remain silent.

Hearts of Stone (30 mins)

Director: Tom Van Avermaet

Paula, a lonely street artist, entertains people as a living statue. She longs

with an impossible love for Agatha, a stone sculpture next to which she can

be found every day. One day, she finds her stone companion replaced by an

abstract, modern sculpture.

*TALENT ATTENDING

Party People (13 mins)

Director: Brian Hartley

Kate, a woman riddled with social anxiety, fears the worst ahead of a surprise

party with a group of people she doesn’t know

Cowboy Boots (13 mins)

Director: Eric K Delehoy

Jack, a gay cowboy from Nebraska, finds anything but the promised land he

envisioned when he visits a San Francisco gay club for the first time.

She Was, She Is, She Never Will Be (12 mins)

Director: Sonya LaTorre

High Schoolers Tylynn and Adam have been BFFs since before they could

even say “BFF”, but Adam has been keeping a secret: he’s in love with her.

When he finds out that Tylynn is dating his best friend, Adam is fed up,

triggering an explosive confrontation.

SATURDAY 10/4: FEATURE FILM

F*CKTOYS (1 hr 46 mins)

Director: Annapurna Sriram

A fever dream that reimagines the Major Arcana of the Tarot through the

story of AP: a struggling pollyanna seeking salvation from a curse. AP is

promised by multiple psychics that for a cool $1000 -and the sacrifice of a

baby lamb- it can be lifted. She makes money the only way she knows how:

scootering her way deeper into the night, and into the uncouth underbelly of

Trashtown.

SUNDAY 10/5: SHORT FILMS – DOCUMENTARY

The Dying Business (21 mins)

Director: Joe Duca

A quirky Italian-American family attempts to innovate their third-generation

funeral home in Johnstown, Pennsylvania.

Trouble (23 mins)

Director: Owen Townsend

Earl “Trouble” Small, a professional MMA fighter, trains for a championship

belt while dealing with the challenges of being a coach and athlete.

A Matter of Time (26 mins)

Director: Brendan Brandt

Burney is 94 years old and doesn’t want to leave his condo. Sandy is 81 and

feeling isolated. Aging is tough, and these two seniors in St. Louis have some

hard decisions to make.

Meeting My Birth Mom for the First Time (15 mins)

Directors: Brad MacCabe, Siobhan Smith

This is the emotional story of Oppo’s search to find and reconnect with his

biological mother after being adopted at birth and many years of unknowns.

ABOUT THE POTTSTOWN FILM FESTIVAL

The Pottstown Film Festival is an annual event that celebrates the art of filmmaking in

Pottstown, PA and the surrounding communities. This festival provides a platform for

local and independent filmmakers from across the world to showcase their work, connect

with the community, and inspire future generations of storytellers.

The Pottstown Film Festival was founded in 2023 by Kyle Klaus, who is a multi-talented

actor, producer, writer, and entrepreneur based in NYC. Kyle created the festival to bring

his passion for cinema and filmmaking back to his hometown of Pottstown, inspire the

next generation of storytellers, and contribute to the town’s cultural resurgence.