BWiFF will be presenting its 15th festival at the Classic Cinemas Elk Grove XQ, located in the northwest suburbs of Chicago, from April 27-May 6, 2025.

Every year, the festival exhibits over 30 films from around the globe that compete for a variety of awards that range in genre, production, performance, and audience categories. Each film selected for exhibition and competition is screened in one theater over the course of the festival. Judges experience each film for the first time along with the audience. During the festival's week-long run, filmmakers are encouraged to attend and participate in QandA's moderated by a festival judge and any potential filmmaker panels. Each accepted filmmaker will receive two (2) festival passes.

Blue Whiskey Independent Film Festival continues to build a reputation for exhibiting rare and compelling independent films while bridging the gap between the film-goer and the filmmaker.

Schedule of Events:

2:00 pm - 4:30 pm: Eugene O'Neill's The First Man

Eugene O'Neill's The First Man
Feature Narrative
Director: Hardeep Giani
Country of Origin: United Kingdom
Language: English

BWiFF 2025 Beyond Presentation

World renowned anthropologist Curtis is consumed by grief over his young daughters' deaths. He finds solace in immersing himself in preparations for his upcoming expedition to Asia, where he aims to unravel the mystery of "The First Man." However, he must confront an undercurrent of family conflict as he battles against his relatives' unsettling suspicions that his wife Martha is carrying his best friend Bigelow's child.