Subtropic Film Festival spotlights the Everglades at Norton

River of Grass, directed by Sasha Wortzel, will be shown Nov. 8. [Photo by River of Grass]

Art and film will merge in a celebration of South Florida’s independent voices as the Subtropic Film Festival returns to West Palm Beach. The festival launches with a red-carpet premiere at the Norton Museum of Art on Friday, Nov. 7, at 7 p.m., as part of the museum’s Art After Dark series.

The opening night will shine a spotlight on the Everglades, blending art and environmental awareness through film and visual works. The featured documentary, The Python Hunt, directed by South Florida filmmaker Xander Robin, follows python hunters in the dark of the Everglades, revealing the region’s beauty and ecological challenges through real-life encounters.

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“Uniting cinema and visual art for these films elevates our understanding of this vital, fragile ecosystem,” says Ghislain d’Humières, Kenneth C. Griffin Director and CEO of the Norton Museum of Art. “We are happy to welcome the Subtropic team back to the Norton for this annual festival.”

Festival Director Noelia Solange Rabino says the event is both a creative showcase and a statement about South Florida’s distinctive arts landscape. “I think of our local film scene the way a lot of people might think of our Everglades,” Rabino says. “A lot of people see it as a harsh environment, but once you’re fully immersed, you start to understand how diverse and incredibly unique it is.”

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The festival continues through Sunday, Nov. 9, with a robust schedule of screenings, workshops, and discussions. On Saturday, Nov. 8, the Norton will host a screening and filmmaker conversation featuring River of Grass, directed by Sasha Wortzel. The film offers a poetic and immersive journey through the Everglades, blending archival footage and dreamlike imagery to reflect on the region’s environmental and cultural significance.

Simultaneously on Saturday, festival programming expands to Afflux Studios at G-Star Studios in Palm Springs—Palm Beach County’s largest working soundstage. There, attendees can dive into the creative process through hands-on workshops and analog film demonstrations. Participants will have the chance to shoot and process their own footage on film, gaining practical experience in analog cinema.

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On Sunday, Afflux Studios will host a lineup of screenings and programs highlighting South Florida’s emerging voices. South Florida PBS will present Flip The Script, a showcase of high school filmmakers, while Edson Jean’s Know Me will explore identity, resilience, and belonging through a powerful, homegrown South Florida story.

The Subtropic Film Festival continues to position West Palm Beach as a hub for independent filmmaking and collaboration. “We’re not just trying to build a film community,” said Rabino. “Our local filmmakers are already doing an excellent job of that. We’re trying to bridge existing film communities—bring Miami folks up here and introduce Palm Beach County filmmakers to the scene in Miami.”

Founded to support emerging filmmakers across South Florida, the Subtropic Film Festival has hosted 18 public events, screened more than 120 short films, and welcomed 3,500 attendees in the past year.

For tickets, updates, and full programming, visit linktr.ee/SubtropicFF or follow @subtropicff on Instagram.