The Woodstock Film Festival will begin its 27th edition with a screening of “American Zoo,” a documentary that examines the complicated history of the Catskill Game Farm.

The Hudson Valley premiere will be held at 7 p.m. on Oct. 13 at the Community Theater, 373 Main St. in Catskill. A conversation with director Tim Travers Hawkins and special guests will follow the screening.

Noah Eckstein, founding editor-in-chief of The Overlook, will moderate the discussion. The Overlook, which reported earlier this summer on the history explored in the documentary, is serving as a community presenter for the event.

The festival itself will run Oct. 14–18, with screenings and events in Woodstock, Saugerties, Rosendale, and Kingston. Festival organizers plan to release the full lineup in mid-September.

“American Zoo” traces the Catskill Game Farm from its founding in 1933 by German immigrant Roland Lindemann through his 1959 hiring of German zoologist Heinz Heck as its director.

The privately owned zoo became a popular tourist destination before closing in 2006 after 73 years. Filmmakers discovered thousands of archival documents and reels of home movies among its ruins, revealing a more complicated history than the childhood memories held by generations of visitors.

The documentary combines that archival material with interviews with people who lived and worked at the Game Farm, as well as historical experts. It had its world premiere at the Tribeca Festival this year.

Hawkins is an Emmy-nominated documentary filmmaker whose work frequently examines power, justice, and institutional accountability. His debut feature, “XY Chelsea,” premiered at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival and received two Documentary Emmy Award nominations. His other work includes “Persona” for HBO Max and “Capturing the Killer Nurse” for Netflix.

Tickets for the kickoff screening are available through the Woodstock Film Festival’s website.

Hudson Valley Resident Discounts

The festival is also offering discounted tickets and passes exclusively to Hudson Valley residents for the first time.

Residents of Ulster, Dutchess, Columbia, Greene, and Orange counties can choose among a pair of screening tickets at 25% off, a six-ticket package discounted by $20, or a full festival pass discounted by $200. Eligibility will be verified by ZIP code during checkout.

The two-ticket package also includes discounts of 10% to 15% at participating restaurants. The full pass provides admission to screenings, panels, parties, the Maverick Awards Ceremony, and several major festival events.

“The Hudson Valley has been our home since our inception back in 2000, shaping our identity and inspiring our journey, and the community here has been an essential part of our path forward throughout it all,” Woodstock Film Festival co-founder and Executive Director Meira Blaustein said.

“Every fall our neighbors welcome filmmakers and audiences from around the world, fill our theaters and restaurants, and help create the energy that makes this Festival so special,” she said. “We wanted to find a meaningful way to make the Festival more accessible to the people who live here and give our local community even more opportunities to experience it together, making ours, theirs too.”

Poster and Festival Zine

The festival also released its 2026 poster, featuring original work by Woodstock artist Eliza McKenna. The image focuses on the human creative process as artificial intelligence increasingly influences artistic production.

McKenna, a Woodstock native, works in photography, writing, and experimental materials. Her work explores grief, memory, and consciousness.

The festival is also partnering with Good Neighbor, a Kingston-based arts and culture publication, on a limited-edition zine combining a festival guide with recommendations for places to eat, drink, shop, and visit throughout the region.

The zine will debut during a launch event from 6 to 8 p.m. on Oct. 8 at Unicorn Bar, 224 Foxhall Ave. in Kingston. The event is free, but reservations are required. Copies will cost $12 and will be sold at select festival events, the festival box office, and participating businesses while supplies last.

Festival organizers said the full program will include more films made in the Hudson Valley than any previous edition, along with narrative films, documentaries, shorts, panels, musical performances, filmmaker question-and-answer sessions, and other events.