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Academy Award® Winner Siân Heder’s BEING HEUMANN to Close AFI FEST 2026 Presented by Canva
AFI announced that Apple Original Films’ BEING HEUMANN will close the 40th edition of AFI FEST presented by Canva on Sunday, October 25. The biographical drama is directed, produced and co-written by Academy Award® winner Siân Heder (CODA, AFI DWW+ Class of 2005) and is an adaptation of Judith Heumann’s memoir, “Being Heumann: An Unrepentant Memoir of a Disability Rights Activist.” Led by star Ruth Madeley, and also starring Academy Award® nominee Mark Ruffalo, the cast also includes Dylan O’Brien, Madeline Delp, Rob Delaney, Ray Fisher, Michael Patrick Thornton, Antwan Tolliver, Daniel Durant, Jon Beavers, Roberta Colindrez and Russell Harvard. The film is produced by David Permut for Permut Presentations and Kevin Walsh for The Walsh Company under his overall deal with Apple. Heumann’s managers John W. Beach and Kevin Cleary of Gravity Squared Entertainment also serve as producers. Rebekah Taussig serves as co-writer alongside Heder. Executive producers include Judy Heumann, “Being Heumann” co-author Kristen Joiner, Diana Pokorny, Ann Molin and Jim Lebrecht.
“At a time in history when audiences are in search of humanity – along comes BEING HEUMANN,” said Bob Gazzale, AFI President & CEO. “And that it is directed and co-written by a shining star from AFI’s Directing Workshop for Women is cause for even greater celebration!”
“It means a great deal to me to return to AFI, where I first found my voice as a filmmaker,” said Siân Heder. “The school and the festival are very meaningful to me, so this feels like a full circle moment. This film gave me the opportunity to tell the wild story of the 504 protest and its leader Judy Heumann, a woman whose work changed the lives of millions and whose fight continues today. I hope audiences and fellow filmmakers get to fall in love with Judy as I did and perhaps even carry the mantle of her fight.”
ABOUT THE FILM
They wouldn’t take Judy Heumann’s phone calls, so she took their building. In 1977, a young disabled woman (Ruth Madeley) and a scrappy coalition of outsiders decide they’ve had enough. What begins as one impulsive act becomes the longest occupation of a federal building in American history, as hundreds spontaneously seize government offices and refuse to leave until the bureaucrat in their way (Mark Ruffalo) takes action. Bringing rebellion in all its forms to the hallowed halls, a movement’s accidental leaders struggle to find their path forward where none has ever been paved for them. Directed by Academy Award® winner Siân Heder and based on true events, BEING HEUMANN is the revolutionary, irreverent and deeply human story of the least likely people trying to pull off the impossible and change the lives of millions. BEING HEUMANN opens in theatres on November 6.
The full festival lineup will be unveiled on September 29. Individual tickets will be available for purchase on October 3.
As previously announced, the 40th edition of the Institute’s annual film festival will take place October 21–25 at the TCL Chinese Theatres in the heart of Hollywood and will open with the U.S. premiere of WILDWOOD. The festival will feature a curated selection of Red Carpet Premieres, Special Screenings, World Cinema, Documentaries and Short Films.
AFI FEST is recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as a qualifying festival for the Live Action, Animated and Documentary Short Film categories for the annual Academy Awards®. AFI FEST is also a qualifying festival for consideration for the British Short Film categories of both the BAFTA Film Awards and the British Independent Film Awards (BIFA).
AFI is a nonprofit, donor-powered organization. Join AFI’s Premiere Circle to support the American Film Institute and enjoy access to exclusive one-of-a-kind opportunities at AFI events, including AFI FEST. To learn more, email [email protected].
Canva, the all-in-one visual communication and collaboration platform, returns as the exclusive Presenting Sponsor of AFI FEST 2026. Built to empower everyone across the entertainment industry, from screenwriters and directors to producers, production teams and studios, Canva helps bring ideas from early concept to screen. Entertainment professionals use Canva to pitch projects and secure buy-in, develop storyboards and mood boards, plan productions, collaborate with cast and crew, create marketing campaigns and promotional assets, and build presentations that bring creative visions to life.
Canva will be integrated throughout AFI FEST including hosting industry networking events and hands-on training workshops for filmmakers, while powering the festival’s digital and printed materials. Entertainment professionals can explore resources to pitch projects, plan shoots and bring creative visions to life at canva.com/entertainment.
To learn more about AFI FEST, visit FEST.AFI.com.
