Sidewalk members get first look at 2026 festival lineup

Sidewalk Film Center + Cinema will give members an early look at the 28th Annual Sidewalk Film Festival lineup with its members-only 28th Annual SFF Sneak Peek Special Edition on July 13 at 7:30 p.m. in Birmingham. The preview is built as a festival-facing night for loyal supporters, with the programming team and staff on hand to help attendees start putting together a personal must-see list.

The event will serve up trailers from the 2026 festival lineup, along with complimentary beverages and popcorn, turning the screening into part preview, part social mixer. Happy Hour will begin at 5 p.m., giving members a longer runway before the main event and making the night feel more like the start of festival season than a routine screening.

Admission will be free, but the listing says the event is only open to members and strongly recommends reservations. Seating will be first come, first served, which makes the RSVP call especially important for anyone who wants a shot at the room before the crowd fills it.

The timing matters because the Sneak Peek arrives ahead of the general public announcement on July 17. Sidewalk is using the membership event as a practical reward and a buzz-builder at the same time, letting members get ahead of the broader announcement cycle while the festival team starts shaping the conversation around what 2026 will bring.

For Birmingham filmgoers, that is the real value of the night. The Sneak Peek is not just a perk tucked into the membership calendar, it is the first visible step in how Sidewalk rolls out its biggest festival each year, with members, programmers, and staff helping set the tone before the wider audience sees a frame.