2026 Reel Work Labor Film Festival

2026 Reel Work Labor Film Festival
https://reelwork.org/schedule.htm
• 2026 FILM & CULTURAL EVENTS•

Free Admission at All Reel Work Events
Voluntary donations gladly accepted

Wednesday, April 22, 2026 • 7 PM
HYBRID EVENT: SEIU 521 Union Hall, 517 Mission St, Santa Cruz
or Register for Zoom at bit.ly/RW26Apr22
Understanding Gaza Series

TO BE ANNOUNCED

Sunday, April 26, 2026 • 5 PM
HYBRID EVENT: SEIU 521 Union Hall, 517 Mission St, Santa Cruz
or Register for Zoom at bit.ly/RW26Apr26
Hard Times History

A Hobo in the Great Depression
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(Pauline Greenlick, 2025, 74 min, USA)
Based on the book Boarding the Westbound, the film presents Joseph F. Szalanski's travels as a hobo focusing on his two journals during the Great Depression in 1932.
Speaker: Filmmaker Pauline Greenlick will join virtually to present her film and join the Q&A.

Wednesday, April 29, 2026 • 7 PM
Del Mar Theater, 1124 Pacific Ave, Santa Cruz
Groundswell in Organizing

Baristas vs. Billionaires
Baristas.jpg
Photo credit: Bob Judson

(Mark Mori, 2025, 72 min, USA)
The movement of Starbucks workers to form a union. The film follows the fight of a handful of baristas for living wages and decent working conditions as they lead Starbucks Workers United (SWU) in strikes and protests against billionaire CEO Howard Schultz’s scorched earth union-busting campaign, during which he has illegally fired more than 200 union organizers. But Schultz’s attempt to crush the union quickly backfires resulting in a single store’s pro-union vote in Buffalo, NY, mushrooming to 600+ union stores and 12,000 union workers.
Panel: Rank-and-file workers involved in local workplace unionization campaigns.
Watch the trailer for Baristas vs. Billionaires on the film’s website.

Friday, May 1, 2026 • 7 PM
HYBRID EVENT: SEIU Union Hall, 517 Mission St, Santa Cruz
or Register for Zoom at bit.ly/RW26May1
Socialism On The Rise

The Mamdani Effect
Mamdani.jpg
Photo credit: INF0RMEDIMAGES under Creative Commons license

The evening will feature a series of videos that document the building and achievement of the campaign to elect a socialist muslim immigrant to lead the largest city in the U.S. whose extraordinarily diverse population includes many socialists, mulims, and immigrants.
Panel: First-hand reports from people who witnessed the Mamdani campaign and election. There are a lot of New Yorkers in Santa Cruz. If you have a Mamdani story to tell, we'll invite you to join the panel.

Saturday, May 2, 2026 • 7 PM
HYBRID EVENT: SEIU Union Hall, 517 Mission St, Santa Cruz
or Register for Zoom at bit.ly/RW26May2
Women Taking the Lead

Iron Ladies
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(Daniel Draper, 2025, 106 min, UK)
Celebrating the integral role of women during the 1984/85 Miners’ Strike and the lasting impact of their actions on the landscape of political activism.
Speaker: Filmmaker Daniel Draper will join virtually.
Watch the trailer for Iron Ladies on YouTube.

Sunday, May 3, 2026 • 5 PM
HYBRID EVENT: SEIU Union Hall, 517 Mission St, Santa Cruz
or Register for Zoom at bit.ly/RW26May3
International Perspectives

Built On Hope
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(Kathryn Elise Kovalenko, 2025, 36 min, India)
Three migrant mothers live and work at a brick factory in Haryana, India, with their families, and work to build a better future for their children.

Robota Sweden
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(Patrik Öberg, 2026, 15 min, Sweden)
In the dark side of the Swedish construction industry, Ukrainian Serhii is fighting side by side with a radical union to get his unpaid wages.

Teb Chaw (Land)
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(Joua Lee Grande, 2025, 11 min, USA)
Hmong refugee farmers from Laos who settled in Minnesota.
Speakers: Filmmakers are invited to present their films and join Q&A.

Wednesday, May 6, 2026 • 7 PM
HYBRID EVENT: SEIU 521 Union Hall, 517 Mission St, Santa Cruz
or Register for Zoom at bit.ly/RW26May6
American Socialism

The Big Scary “S” Word
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(Yael Bridge, 2020, 82 min, USA)
“Socialism is as American as apple pie” says Cornell West. With inequality growing, a climate catastrophe looming, and right-wing extremism ascending around the world, many in the U.S. are wondering whether capitalism is to blame. This documentary delves into the rich history of the American socialist movement and journeys with the people striving to build a socialist future today.
Speaker: Paul Ortiz, labor historian, co-founder of Reel Work.
Watch the trailer for The Big Scary “S” Word on YouTube.

Saturday, May 9, 2026 • 7 PM
SEIU 521 Union Hall, 517 Mission St, Santa Cruz
Power of Unions

Who Moves America
Moves.jpg
Photo credit: Erick Stoll

(Yael Bridge, 2026, 87 min, USA)
UPS Teamsters build solidarity among 340,000 workers as a strike deadline approaches. A work stoppage of this scale would have sent shock waves through the U.S. and global economy. The film follows a new California driver, a 1997 strike veteran in New York, and a part-time Kentucky warehouse worker as they organize and picket.
Speakers: Local labor leaders and organizers.
Watch the trailer for Who Moves America on Vimeo.

Sunday, May 10, 2026 • 7 PM
HYBRID EVENT: SEIU 521 Union Hall, 517 Mission St, Santa Cruz
or Register for Zoom at bit.ly/RW26May10
Bittersweet Shorts

How They Built a Movement
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(Oddett Garza, 2025, 9 min, USA)
A young activist sits down with renowned civil rights attorney Jim Harrington, founder of the Texas Civil Rights Project and Texas attorney to César Chávez, to learn the enduring lessons of grassroots organizing.

They Called It The Butcher Shop: The Fleck Strike In Images
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(Lauren Stoles, 2025, 15 min, Canada)
In 1978, in Huron Park, Ontario, the women of Fleck Manufacturing walked off of the job and into the history books.
Watch the trailer for They Called It The Butcher Shop on YouTube.

The Market
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(Oanh-Nhi Nguyen, 2025, 12 min, USA)
The journey to the Southeast Asian Market in south Philadelphia’s FDR Park, founded by refugees who carved out their own space of nourishment and belonging.


Supply Chain Solidarity: Lessons from the Lithium Frontlines
Lithium.jpg
Photo credit: Tom Laffay

(Tom Laffay & Emmett Hopkins, 2025, 27 min, USA)
Follows workers and organizers, representing different parts of the transportation supply chain on a journey across Nevada to learn first-hand about the impacts of lithium mining for electric vehicle batteries.
Watch the trailer for Supply Chain Solidarity on the film’s website.

Speakers: Filmmakers Oddett Garza, Lauren Stoyles, Oanh-Nhi Nguyen, Emmett Hopkins.

Monday, May 11, 2026 • 6:30 PM
Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church, 2402 Cabrillo College Dr, Soquel
Singing for Justice

We Were There
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(Bev Grant, 2010, 5 min, USA)
A powerful celebration of women in labor history and the anthem of Bev Grant’s theater piece of the same name.

Bev Grant: A Lifetime of Liberation
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(Agitator Index, 2025, 39 min, USA)
A documentary about the photographer, activist, and songwriter Bev Grant, discussing in her own words her involvement in the Women’s Liberation movement, her work as a photographer for the underground press, and her life as a songwriter.
Speaker: Bev Grant will join us virtually from Brooklyn NY to talk about her life and the making of the film.
Performance by the Santa Cruz Peace Chorale, directed by Aileen Vance.
Watch the trailer for A Lifetime of Liberation on Instagram.

Saturday, May 16, 2026 • 7 PM
HYBRID EVENT: SEIU 521 Union Hall, 517 Mission St, Santa Cruz
or Register for Zoom at bit.ly/RW26May16
Venezuela Then & Now

The Bolivarian Revolution: Enter the Oil Workers!
OilWorkers.jpg
Photo credit: Global Women’s Strike

(Bolivarian Circle of Global Women’s Strike, 1994, 34 min, Venezuela)
Oil workers saved Venezuela’s oil industry from a CIA lockout. This historical documentary provides a backdrop to discussion of the country's social and economic conditions in recent years in relation to U.S. imperialism.
Speaker: David Paul, international medical aid voluteer.