“This film festival, and the voices that rise from it, cultivate awareness and connection, and inspire individuals and communities to reflect and build bridges to create positive change.”
– 2025 ACT Festival Attendee
Celebrating Success
ACT’s tenth anniversary in 2025 was a milestone year, highlighting artistic excellence and community dialogue around human rights. The festival achieved record-breaking attendance and the highest seat occupancy in program history. ACT served over 3,300 participants at screenings, events, and educational programs. Ticket and pass sales surged in both volume and revenue, and several films sold out. Nearly 100 donors contributed generously to support the program.
Throughout the program year, ACT presented over 30 films featuring timely, truthful, and compelling stories from around the world. Nine filmmakers or participants attended in person, with four joining via livestream for impactful discussions. Panels also featured subject-matter experts, artists, and academics. Expanding beyond film, ACT hosted three musical performances, a live poetry reading, a photography exhibition, and several social gatherings—all centered on human rights.
Navigating Uncertainty
Amid economic uncertainty and a shifting political landscape, ACT remains committed to uniting film and human rights to foster community-building. Like many arts organizations, ACT faces reduced funding and increased competition for resources. Support continues to come from a range of individuals, partners, and agencies both on and off campus. While individual giving and earned revenue exceeded budget goals, declines in corporate and foundation support offset these gains. Additionally, budget constraints at both the State of Colorado and Colorado State University led to reduced on-campus support.
ACT’s home department, Communication Studies, covers any annual operating deficit and will continue to underwrite the program this year to ensure continuity. However, the long-term goal remains to reduce this reliance and strengthen the program’s sustainability.
Planning for FY26
ACT is preparing for a significantly reduced FY26 budget by identifying strategic cost savings and alternative funding sources to sustain its mission and impact. In the interim, operations are being streamlined and in-kind support maximized to reduce expenses. These efforts aim to strengthen the organization’s long-term financial stability. The FY26 budget will be finalized this summer.
Despite the challenges ahead, ACT remains focused on mission-critical programming—presenting films and stories that illuminate the consequences of ignoring human rights. The program reaffirms its commitment to accessibility, maintaining free or pay-what-you-can ticketing and designing events that welcome all. ACT also continues to value and compensate the courageous filmmakers and artists who risk persecution to expose injustice.
We are not resting on our laurels, instead we are shifting into high gear.
