July 16-17, 2026
In collaboration with the Sedona International Film Festival, the Sedona Sport Film Festival will be held at the Mary D. Fisher and Alice Gill-Sheldon Theatres (2030 W. State Route 89A, Sedona, AZ 86336) on July 16-17, 2026.
A complement of feature length and short films will be screened.
Each of the four sessions on July 16 and the two sessions on July 17 will conclude with a panel discussion of the films from the perspective of sport psychology. A discount admission ticket for the full slate of films will be available.
Each film is $10 admission or an ALL-FILMS PASS is $50.
Click the BUY TICKETS link under each film below to order individual tickets.
Strong As They Are Fragile
Thursday, July 16 at 10:00 a.m.
“Strong As They Are Fragile” deals with the taboo subject of mental health in high-level sport. Athletes share with us their weaknesses, their ailments, their burnouts and sometimes their depression but above all their reconstruction. The film showcases the resilience and promotes mental well-being among elite athletes in sports. It’s a compelling story of strength and redemption, featuring testimonies from champions such as Jeremy Flores, Perrine Laffont, Camille Lacourt, Ysaora Thibus, and Valentin Porte.
A discussion of the film from the perspective of sport psychology will follow.
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Next Goal Wins
Thursday, July 16 at 1:00 p.m.
“Next Goal Wins” features a stellar ensemble cast, including Michael Fassbender, Oscar Kightley, David Fane, Will Arnett and Elisabeth Moss. “Next Goal Wins” follows the infamously terrible American Samoa soccer team, known for a brutal 2001 FIFA match they lost 31-0. With the 2014 World Cup Qualifiers approaching, the team hires down-on-his-luck, maverick coach Thomas Rongen (Michael Fassbender) hoping he will turn the world’s worst soccer team around in this humorous and heartfelt underdog story.
A discussion of the film from the perspective of sport psychology will follow.
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Into the Canyon
Thursday, July 16 at 4:00 p.m.
In 2016 filmmaker/photographer Pete McBride and writer Kevin Fedarko set out on a 750-mile journey on foot through the entire length of the Grand Canyon. From the outset, the challenge was far more than they bargained for. More people have stood on the moon than have completed a continuous through hike of the Canyon. McBride and Fedarko took a sectional approach, achieving a feat that many adventurers have taken decades to complete. Others have lost their lives trying. But their quest was more than just an endurance test – it was also a way to draw attention to the unprecedented threats facing one of our most revered landscapes.
Throughout their passage, McBride and Fedarko encountered an astonishingly diverse and powerful landscape, rich in history, that is now facing perhaps the gravest crisis in the 100-year history of the Grand Canyon National Park. The threat is made stark when they encounter an organization of Navajo women fighting a billion-dollar proposed tram project to be built on sacred ground.
Directed by Pete McBride and produced by the award-winning team at Insignia Films, “Into the Canyon” is a story of extreme physical hardship that stretches the bonds of friendship and a meditation on the timeless beauty of this sacred place. It is an urgent warning about the environmental dangers that are placing one of America’s greatest monuments in peril and a cautionary tale for our complex relationship with the natural world.
A discussion of the film from a psychological perspective will follow.
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Blind AF
Thursday, July 16 at 7:00 p.m.
“Blind AF” won the top award — Audience Choice Best of Fest Documentary — at the 2025 Sedona International Film Festival.
An unflinching, emotionally raw story of courage, transcendence and the healing power of self-belief, “Blind AF” tells the journey of a blind female Paralympic champion and multiple world-record holder, Shawn Cheshire as she becomes the first blind person to ride a single, non-tandem bike across the United States — 3600 miles in 60 straight days — while confronting painful truths about her past that she spent a lifetime trying to outrun. Driven as much by the determination to live independently as by the restlessness and vulnerability borne of her complex PTSD, Shawn forges a brave – and often dangerous – path through fear that stands as a powerful testament to the human spirit, and an encouragement for all of us to live our most authentic lives, whatever the risks.
While working as a paramedic in 2009, Shawn Cheshire, a 36-year-old Army veteran and single mother of two, suffered a brain injury that left her suddenly and completely without sight. Spiraling into a debilitating suicidal depression, Shawn sought treatment at a VA hospital where, through a combination of adaptive sports and treatment for complex PTSD, she chooses to live in a new reality. Despite her lack of training, within three years Shawn was competing at the 2016 Paralympic games in Rio and would go on to become a 13-time paracycling US National Champion and a multiple world-record holder of extreme adventures. But her biggest challenge was still ahead. “Blind AF” is at once a thrilling epic of athletic achievement and a transformative portrait of emotional resilience and bravery.
Meet the film’s subject, Shawn Cheshire, in person for a live Q&A discussion. Filmmaker Gina LeVay will join the Q&A via Zoom.
A discussion of the film from a psychological perspective will follow.
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Granny’s Got Game
Friday, July 17 at 9:00 a.m.
Six fiercely competitive women in their seventies battle physical limitations and skepticism to compete for another national senior games basketball championship. “Granny’s Got Game” is a documentary film about a senior women’s basketball team in North Carolina. These six women in their seventies battle physical limitations and social stigma to keep doing what they love. They started playing 6-on-6 basketball in the 1950s but stopped after high school as there were no opportunities to keep playing in those pre-Title IX days. Now they must learn a new, physical style of play while overcoming the skepticism of their peers. The team has had great success together over the last two decades, winning a multitude of medals in senior games tournaments across the country.
Just like so many younger sports teams, this one includes a bossy captain, a guard who never runs the plays correctly, a tentative post-player, and a benchwarmer who wants to play more than anyone. As teammates and friends, they support each other off the court through the difficulties that accompany aging, such as breast cancer and widowhood. These women are more than a team…they are a family. The film follows them for a yearlong season culminating in a nearly disastrous trip to the National Senior Games Championship in Houston, Texas.
Preceded by:
“Strong Grandma”
Directed by Cecilia Brown and Winslow Crane-Murdoch
“Strong Grandma” follows Catherine Kuehn — a 95-year old competitive deadlifter — into what she believes will be her final weightlifting competition. Kuehn got into weightlifting when she was 80 years old because she had osteopenia, and was surprised to find she had a knack for it. She began competing at 85 and has won every event she has entered, simply because there’s no one else in her age to compete against.
A discussion of the films from the perspective of sport psychology will follow.
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Sport Shorts
Friday, July 17 at 11:30 a.m.
Flow
Directed by Andy McCandlish
Flow features The Trailrippers — a mountain biking family from the Dyfi Valley in Mid Wales who are making their mark on the British and international riding scenes. Mountain biking means everything to Nathan and Ruben and this short film tells their family story with the help of their Mum, Ina. Together, they tell us how they first got into riding and then racing and the benefits and challenges that neurodivergence brings to their riding and how riding bikes helps them regulate their lives.
Go Dani Go
Directed by Chelsea Patricia Ramirez
When the biggest soccer tryout of her life lands on the same day she must help her mother pick fruits in the fields, a spunky young athlete has to choose between chasing her dreams or staying stuck in the strawberry fields.
DANI (11) dreams of playing soccer but spends her summer days working in strawberry fields with her family. When a premier soccer tryout lands on the same day she must help her family reach a strict strawberry quota, she plans a daring escape to make the tryouts and be back before her mother knows she’s gone. Though many obstacles challenge her, Dani breaks free and almost makes it to the try-outs. However, when the field foreman begins yelling at Dani’s mother, Dani gives up on making it to the tryouts to defend her mother. In the end, her mother’s understanding and promise reignite hope. As the sun sets, they play soccer together as a family, their love prevailing.
Meet the filmmakers who will be here in person: Chelsea Patricia Ramirez (Director), David Willner (Writer), Trey Sutton (Producer) and Justine Beed (Producer).
Ultimate Citizens
Directed by Francine Strickwerda
“Ultimate Citizens” is the story of Jamshid Khajavi, an extraordinary 65-year-old Iranian American public school counselor who uses the sport of Ultimate Frisbee to help children heal. In an America where many families are quietly, barely getting by, Mr. Jamshid coaches an underdog team of kids on their way to compete in the world’s largest youth tournament. “Ultimate Citizens” is a celebration of resilience and belonging, and the third independent feature documentary from award-winning filmmaker Francine Strickwerda.
Invisible String
Directed by Wes Salonen
“Invisible String” is about two professional runners, teammates, and mothers: Paige Wood and Mercy Chelangat. Both runners for HOKA, Paige has competed at the professional marathon level for years, while Mercy is preparing for her 26.2-mile debut. It is a story of not only racing at the highest level but also navigating motherhood while doing so.
Jack Mullaney (Head Coach for HOKA NAZ Elite) and Wes Salonen (Director of film + Creative Director of NAZ Elite) will be attending the screening in person.
A discussion of the films from the perspective of sport psychology will follow.
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Each film is $10 admission or an ALL-FILMS PASS is $50.
Click the BUY TICKETS link under each film below to order individual tickets.