Orcas Island Film Festival Presents:
Films on Film – The 2026 Classic Film Series
Jan. 11 – Feb. 8
Sundays at 4:00pm
Free admission
The following is directly from Orcas Center’s website:
The Orcas Island Film Festival is thrilled to announce the 2026 edition of its beloved Classic Film Series, this year themed “Films on Film”—a curated exploration of movies that turn the camera on themselves. From silent-era masterpieces to biting Hollywood satire, surrealist introspection, documentary treasure hunting, and behind-the-scenes chaos, this series celebrates the art of filmmaking by showcasing films about the making of films.
For as long as cinema has existed, filmmakers have been irresistibly drawn to examining their own craft. Audiences have always been fascinated by the worlds behind the lens—how stories are imagined, shaped, produced, and sometimes barely survived. This year’s series invites viewers to step into that meta-cinematic world and experience how film history has reflected on its own evolution.
Hosted by longtime film scholar and storyteller Michael Edward Yeaman, each screening includes a brief introductory overview and a post-film discussion, offering deeper insight into the filmmaking process and the cultural moments that shaped these iconic works.
This program is free to the public, generously underwritten by David Dotlich and Doug Elwood. Attendees are welcome to bring their own food and drinks.
2026 Classic Film Series Lineup: ‘Films on Film’
January 11 – The Cameraman (1929)
Widely regarded as one of the greatest silent comedies ever made, Buster Keaton stars as a hapless cameraman determined to break into the newsreel business. A warm, witty, and brilliantly choreographed look at filmmaking’s early days.
January 18 – The Player (1992)
Robert Altman delivers a razor-sharp, darkly comedic indictment of Hollywood itself. This star- studded classic skewers studio politics, ego, ambition, and the absurdity of the movie machine.
January 25 – 81⁄2 (1963)
Federico Fellini’s dreamlike masterpiece follows filmmaker Guido Anselmi (Marcello Mastroianni) through a surreal creative crisis. A cornerstone of world cinema and a dazzling meditation on the artistic mind.
February 1 – Dawson City: Frozen Time (2016)
A mesmerizing documentary chronicling the discovery of hundreds of lost silent films buried for decades in the Yukon permafrost. A haunting portrait of cinema’s fragility and resilience.
February 8 – The Stunt Man (1980)
Peter O’Toole commands the screen as a mercurial film director whose chaotic production blurs the lines between performance and reality. A thrilling, eccentric gem about the madness of moviemaking.
