Nicholas Snow welcomes two special guests for a preview of Cinema Diverse 2026!
Cinema Diverse Executive Director Michael Carroll Green takes us inside the 19th annual Cinema Diverse: The Palm Springs LGBTQ+ Film Festival, returning to the Palm Springs Cultural Center September 17–20 and September 24–27.
Comedian Mina Hartong also joins Nicholas to celebrate her debut stand-up concert film, Miss Personality, filmed before sold-out audiences at Revolution Stage Yen in Palm Springs. Mina discusses bringing the show to the screen, its worldwide streaming premiere across digital and streaming platforms beginning September 15, and its World Premiere presentation at Cinema Diverse on Friday, September 25 at 2:15 PM.
This year’s festival offers more than 50 feature films and nearly 100 shorts during eight days of LGBTQ+ cinema, including documentaries, narratives, comedies, dramas, filmmaker appearances, Q&As, special events and numerous premieres.
Opening Night — September 17 at 7:00 PM
Mineshaft: The Cruising Murders, from Emmy-winning filmmaker Jeffrey Schwarz, revisits William Friedkin’s controversial film Cruising, the real-life murder case connected to its inspiration, the queer-community protests surrounding its production and its complicated place in LGBTQ+ history. A Q&A and reception follow.
Miss Personality — September 25 at 2:15 PM
Award-winning comedian Mina Hartong draws upon her Connecticut upbringing, Dutch heritage, life as a lesbian and years as a public-school teacher for a special filled with razor-sharp wit, heartfelt storytelling and hard-earned laughter.
Directed by Lisa Ginsburg and created with an entirely women and LGBTQIA+ production team, it is the first comedy special filmed in Palm Springs.
Other festival highlights include Punkie, featuring comedian and former Saturday Night Live cast member Punkie Johnson; Mickey & Richard, featuring legendary model and Palm Springs resident Mickey Squires; Surviving Voices: AIDS Caregivers; Julian; and Barefoot Boy.
World Premieres include Learn the Words, Bitch!, celebrating Los Angeles drag and lip-sync culture; The Queerdos; Pole Are Opposites; and Karen Williams: I Had to Laugh, chronicling the career of the groundbreaking Black lesbian comedian.
Closing Night — September 27 at 7:00 PM
Cinema Diverse concludes with the West Coast Premiere of Love Loaded, a sultry mystery set inside a glamorous 1958 Los Angeles nightclub, where romance, rivalry, betrayal and murder collide.
Individual screening tickets, Six Pack passes and All Access festival passes are available now.
Full schedule, tickets and passes: www.CinemaDiverse.org
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