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Accessibility

October 9-17, 2026

The Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival is dedicated to continually improving our efforts to ensure disabled and non-disabled audiences and participants have access to event amenities. We are still growing and learning in this area, so we welcome and encourage all feedback and suggestions from our patrons. The following explains the services provided this year.

If you rely on accommodations to take part in our events, please feel free to reach out to us to inquire in advance. Festival staff are happy to provide needed assistance as much as we can.

For access requests and any accessibility-related questions you can:

  • Email us at accessibility@hsdfi.org with the subject line “ACCESSIBILITY REQUEST”
  • Call us at 501-538-0452. If you are leaving us a message, please be sure to describe your inquiry and best contact information in the voicemail.
  • Fill out the ACCESSIBILITY REQUEST form below and someone will accommodate you.

ACCESSIBILITY AT THE ARLINGTON

The Arlington Resort Hotel & Spa is our main venue, hosting all Festival screenings (except Opening and Closing Night).

  • PARKING: ADA parking is available in valet and on some side streets. The valet entrance is off of Central Ave, and valet services are $30/day. If using side street parking, please have your valid ADA tags clearly displayed to avoid parking fees or citations.
  • ENTRANCES: The front entrance of The Arlington is accessible via a ramp on the end of the veranda on Fountain Street. The other accessible entrance is through the valet, off of Central Ave. Even if guests do not park in the valet, they can drop off at valet if needed.
  • BATHROOMS: Accessible bathrooms are located on the lobby level near the bar and on the 2nd floor near the event spaces.
  • ELEVATORS: Cinemas 1 and 2, as well as our Box Office and Merch/Concession Stand, are located on the 2nd floor of the Arlington. Elevators can be accessed through the lobby.
  • THEATER SEATING: Please reach out to accessibility@hsdfi.org if you would like to reserve wheelchair seating, and to request companion seating.

ACCESSIBILITY AT OAKLAWN

The Opening and Closing Night Galas will be held at Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort.

  • PARKING: ADA parking is available in their parking lot.
  • ENTRANCES: The front entrance is accessible. The side entrance/portico has a ramp to access the main area or casino.
  • BATHROOMS: Accessible bathrooms are located on the first floor of the Event Center.
  • THEATER SEATING: Please reach out to accessibility@hsdfi.org if you would like to reserve wheelchair seating, and to request companion seating.

For assistance, please check in with HSDFF staff when you arrive. Persons with disabilities may arrive early to be seated (if you have a ticket).

ACCESSIBILITY AT OUR OTHER VENUES

For assistance, please check in with HSDFF staff when you arrive at the venue. Persons with disabilities may arrive at a venue and/or enter a venue early if needed, either to be seated (if you have a ticket) or to wait in a seat inside.

  • MTN Valley Visitors Center: Side entrance and bathrooms are wheelchair accessible. Street parking is available.
  • Lofts at The Creek: Wheelchair-accessible parking is available in the first-floor parking garage. Accessible routes connect parking areas to first-floor guest rooms and common areas
  • Copper Penny Pub: Wheelchair-accessible entrances and restrooms. Street parking available.
  • ESQ Realty Group: Front entrance and bathrooms are wheelchair accessible. Street parking is available.
  • Deluca's: Front entrance and bathrooms are wheelchair accessible. Street parking is available.
  • Superior Bathhouse Brewery: Front entrance and bathrooms are wheelchair accessible, but the upstairs and basement are not. Street parking is available.
  • The Waters Hotel: Front entrance and bathrooms are accessible; elevator access to the rooftop. Valet, street parking, and nearby garage are available.

SCREENING ACCESSIBILITY

CaptiView and hearing-assist devices that amplify all content are available on request, based on availability. In order to request an accessibility device for the screening you are attending, please submit the Access Request Form at least 72 hours before the screening in order to reserve a device in advance. You may also ask the Theater Ops Coordinator at the venue at least 20 minutes prior to start time to check out a device.

Closed-caption and hearing-assist devices that amplify all content are available by request, based on availability. To reserve an accessibility device in advance, please email accessibility@hsdfi.org. You may also visit our Box Office at least 15 minutes prior to start time to check out a device.

SERVICE ANIMALS

Service animals that serve people with disabilities are permitted in event spaces. This does not include emotional support animals, therapy animals, or companion animals. The service animal must be under the control of its handler, otherwise it will not be allowed within the event.

The following screenings have closed captions available:

Features

  • 14thDirected by Ava DuVernay
  • CeremonyDirected by Banchi Hanuse
  • Cornbread MafiaDirected by Evan Mascagni & Drew Morris
  • Edward Said: Between WorldsDirected by Maiken Baird
  • Give Me the Ball!Directed by Liz Garbus and Elizabeth Wolff
  • Jean-Michel BasquiatDirected by Quinn Whitney Wilson, Viridiana Lieberman
  • My NDADirected by Juliane Dressner, Miriam Shor
  • One In A MillionDirected by Itab Azzam and Jack MacInnes
  • The Oldest Person in the WorldDirected by Sam Green
  • To Hold a MountainDirected by Biljana Tutorov & Petar Glomazić
  • Union TownDirected by Barbara Kopple
  • Wild InsideDirected by Penny Lane

Shorts

  • A DerailmentDirected by Nathan Truesdell
  • Between Here and HomeDirected by Nathan Willis
  • Black SoilDirected by Nicholas Weissman, Caitlin Ochs
  • Free FishDirected by Bisan Owda
  • FREE JOAN LITTLEDirected by yoruba richen
  • I Think About BirdsDirected by Johanna Gustin
  • La Tierra del Valor (The Home of the Brave)Directed by Cristina Costantini
  • ListenDirected by Malakye Tsosie
  • Maurice and MarvinDirected by David Friend
  • Maybe TomorrowDirected by Waad Al-Kateab, Wafa Mustafa
  • Meet Me On The MountainDirected by Justin Blake Crum
  • Memories of a WindowDirected by Amin Pakparvar, Mehraneh Salimian
  • Mon TaxiDirected by Meriem Sakrouhi
  • Oh WhaleDirected by Winslow Crane-Murdoch
  • One Last OrderDirected by Lauren Defilippo, Sam Soko
  • Panther PatDirected by Ashley Brandon
  • Some Kind of RefugeDirected by Alexandra Kern
  • STILL STANDINGDirected by Victor Tadashi Suarez and Livia Albeck-Ripka
  • Tampons & Taxes: Or How To Play The Ole Boys Club And WinDirected by Emily Harrold
  • The Butterfly LabDirected by Sean Grasso
  • The Floor RemembersDirected by Jayme Kaye Gershen
  • The TunersDirected by Pawel Chorzepa
  • Town CrierDirected by Grace Lee

You can read more about our films with audio description in our film guide here.

The most updated information on individual screening accessibility options is listed here and in the online film guide, listed on each film’s page. Please note that availability of closed and open captions and audio description are dependent on what is submitted to the festival.

QUESTIONS?

For more information about festival accessibility or to request accommodations, please email us at accessibility@hsdfi.org or call us at 501-538-0452.

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Annalee Drain

FESTIVAL PRODUCER

Annalee Drain is the Festival Producer of the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival, stepping into the role this year after three years with the festival in other departments.

She holds a BFA in Digital Filmmaking from the University of Central Arkansas. Annalee also serves as Programming Manager for the Persistence of Vision Film Festival, a role she has held for three years.

Based in Northwest Arkansas, she works full time as a freelance Camera Assistant on feature films and television, and recently made her debut as Director of Photography on the documentary feature Dirty Girl (Post-Production).

Deb Fuller

OFFICE MANAGER / MARKETING ASSISTANT / FILMMAKER FORUM CO-PRODUCER

Deb Fuller is a native Houstonian who has called Arkansas home for more than seven years. She has immersed herself in the Inception to Projection filmmaking program in Hot Springs over the past five years.

She has written and directed two short narratives, two documentary shorts, and participated in the production of numerous other projects. Her filmmaking centers on meaningful storytelling, often highlighting people, histories, and issues that deserve greater visibility.

This creative work deepens her connection to the community and amplifies voices that might otherwise go unheard.

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Erin Williams-Weir

SENIOR PROGRAMMER

Erin Williams-Weir is a festival programmer, producer, and award-winning filmmaker from Canada. She programs documentary features for the Chilliwack Independent Film Festival and has worked across international sales, acquisitions, and documentary production.

Her debut documentary, NEVER GET BUSTED!, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and went on to receive multiple awards on the festival circuit, including the PBS Human Spirit Award.

Sean Volk

SENIOR PROGRAMMER

Sean Volk is a film programmer and arts advocate based in Fargo, ND. He is a Senior Programmer at the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival.

Additionally, Sean serves as a Lead Programmer at Mountainfilm and he is the Narrative Feature Programmer at the Woods Hole Film Festival. He has previously programmed for the Big Sky Documentary Film Festival and the Nashville Film Festival.

Sean received his MA in Film Studies from Western University in London, Ontario in 2015; his scholarship explored representations of monstrosity in the films of Guillermo del Toro.

Colleen Thurston

SENIOR PROGRAMMER

Colleen Thurston is a documentary filmmaker and curator from Tulsa, Oklahoma.

With two decades experience in the festival world, Colleen has worked for festivals nationwide and specializes in non-fiction and Indigenous storytelling.

In addition to her work with HSDFF, she is the Project Producer for Native Lens, and a programmer for MountainFilm and the Tacoma Film Festival. Her first feature documentary Drowned Land screened at Hot Springs 2025, and is broadcasting on PBS in 2026.

Kyle Therral Wilson

COMMUNICATIONS, MARKETING & SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER

Kyle Therral Wilson is an Arkansas-native, Los Angeles-based consultant specializing in copywriting, digital marketing, publicity, and creative writing.

He has extensive experience in the publishing industry, most notably at Disney Publishing Worldwide, where he built email marketing campaigns and wrote interactive scripts for classic Disney characters.

Kyle also writes and produces for stage and screen; his short film SFH was an official selection at the 2024 Cinema Diverse Film Festival in Palm Springs, California.

Annie Gerber

PROGRAMMING MANAGER

Oversees daily operations and logistics including venue management, sponsor communications, transportation and housing.

Annie Gerber is a native Arkansan who has a Bachelor of Fine arts in music from Ouachita Baptist University but later switched her main focus to film and photography. Annie spent several years working as a Teaching Assistant at the prestigious photography program at the School of Cinematic and Performing Arts in both New York and Los Angeles. For the past 5 years she has maintained her position as the Director of Operations for the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival.

Ken Jacobson

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Ken oversees all aspects of the festival including fundraising and sponsor relations, program development, management of staff and volunteers, budgeting, and producing the festival each fall.

Ken Jacobson was most recently Senior Programmer, Documentary Films at the Sonoma International Film Festival. He has served as Documentary Film Programmer at the Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival (since 2017) and at the DocLands Documentary Film Festival (since 2019). He is also co-creator/co-host (with Michael Merrill) of the podcast “Top-Docs: Award-Winning Documentary Filmmakers” with presenting sponsor Netflix.

Previously, Jacobson was a senior member of the programming team at the American Film Institute (2018-2021) and Director of Educational Programs and Strategic Partnerships at the International Documentary Association (2013 – 2016). From 2008- 2013, he was Documentary Programmer and Programming/Education Outreach Coordinator at the Palm Springs International Film Festival. He has served on numerous festival juries and as a grant reviewer for the NEA, NEH, Sundance Institute, and IDA Enterprise Fund.