Hege Wik and Odin appear in “FOLKTALES” by Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady, an official selection of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Lars Erlend Tubaas Øymo.
By Lucy Spicer
School may be out for the kids, but part of growing up is realizing it’s never too late to learn something new. We’re here to help this July, with four Sundance Institute–supported documentaries set to reach wider audiences this month (plus two fiction titles for those of us who also want a laugh or a fright).
Featuring documentaries from the 2024 and 2025 Sundance Film Festivals, this month’s new releases include a look at a traditional folk high school in Arctic Norway, a chronicle of Colombian activist Francia Márquez’s presidential campaign, a portrait of members of the Church of Satan, and a film following trans activist and lawyer Chase Strangio as he prepares to argue in front of the Supreme Court. On the fiction front, audiences ready to giggle and cringe in turn can head to theaters for a rom-com about a romantic weekend gone wrong or a body horror feature where a codependent couple get dangerously close.
Igualada: Refusing to Know Your Place — “Igualada: a derogatory term (based on class, race, and sex) used to designate someone who acts as if they deserve rights and privileges that supposedly don’t correspond to them.” In director Juan Mejía Botero’s documentary, Black Colombian activist Francia Márquez reappropriates this malicious term as part of a historic campaign when she runs for president of Colombia in 2022. With exclusive access behind the scenes of Márquez’s campaign, Botero gathers insights into a courageous individual determined to preserve environmental rights and end social inequality. Supported by Sundance Institute’s Documentary Film Program, Botero’s film premiered in the World Cinema Documentary Competition at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. Airing on PBS “POV” July 7.
Realm of Satan — After editing a half dozen films that screened at the Sundance Film Festival over the years, Scott Cummings made his feature directorial debut at the Festival in 2024 with Realm of Satan, a singular documentary that observes members of the Church of Satan in situations both mundane and extraordinary. Using single-shot takes and almost no dialogue, Cummings presents a unique cinematic portrait of a seldom approached community. Coming to select theaters July 17.
Heightened Scrutiny — After premiering his film Disclosure at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, director Sam Feder returned to the Festival in 2025 with Heightened Scrutiny, a documentary following attorney and activist Chase Strangio as he prepares to argue for trans rights in front of the Supreme Court in December 2024 in the case of United States v. Skrmetti. Feder’s urgent and thoroughly researched film also does a deep dive into the relationship between media bias on trans issues and subsequent legislative decisions affecting the trans community. Coming to select theaters July 18.
FOLKTALES — Directors Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady shine a light on traditional folk high school education in their documentary FOLKTALES, which premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. Focusing on the Pasvik Folk High School in Norway, Ewing and Grady’s film follows three teenagers as they learn survival skills, bond with sled dogs, and attempt to separate themselves from modern-day distractions like social media as they navigate their remote Arctic environment. Coming to select theaters July 25.
Oh, Hi! — In writer-director Sophie Brooks’ off-kilter rom-com, Iris (Molly Gordon) and Isaac (Logan Lerman) are enjoying a romantic getaway in upstate New York when the pair makes an awkward discovery: They’re not at all on the same page regarding their relationship status. Determined to show Isaac how great they could be as a couple, Iris resorts to unorthodox — perhaps unethical? — methods to hold his attention. Co-starring Geraldine Viswanathan and John Reynolds as Iris’ hilariously devoted friends, Oh, Hi! premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. Coming to select theaters July 25.
Together — Codependence gets ugly in writer-director Michael Shanks’ feature debut Together, starring real-life married couple Alison Brie and Dave Franco. When Millie (Brie) and Tim (Franco) move to a remote town in the forest after Millie gets a new job, the pair’s strained relationship gets tested in increasingly horrifying ways as the couple find that their unhealthy emotional attachment begins manifesting itself physically. Together premiered in the Midnight section at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. Coming to theaters July 30.
The 2025 Sundance Film Festival Short Film Tour is underway! Traveling to all corners of the United States and beyond in the following months, the 100-minute program features seven short films selected from the 2025 Festival, including two Festival Award–winning titles. Check here for dates and venues; see below for dates in July.
- Taos, New Mexico, July 2–22, Taos Center for the Arts
- Atlanta, Georgia, July 4, Plaza Theatre
- Williamstown, Massachusetts, July 4, Images Cinema
- Mesilla, New Mexico, July 4–10, Fountain Theatre – Mesilla Valley Film Society
- New York, New York, July 4–10, IFC Center
- San Luis Obispo, California, July 4–10, Palm Theatre
- Hanover, New Hampshire, July 12, Hopkins Center for the Arts
- Riverside, California, July 12–13, 19–20, Culver Cinema – UCR Arts
- Durham, North Carolina, July 18–31, Carolina Theatre
- Baltimore, Maryland, July 24–27, Parkway Theatre
