Via Rutkowski 
Hoboken’s first-ever documentary film festival has arrived and is happening soon on November 15th, 2025. The festival created by two local filmmakers is bringing a new wave of storytelling to the Mile Square and welcomes creators of all kinds to participate. The submission deadline is quickly approaching on November 1st, so keep reading to learn more about how to enter, what to expect, and the story behind the filmmaking magic.
About The Hoboken Docs Film Festival
The Hoboken Docs Film Festival team describes Hoboken as “a city of firsts” as it announces its first-ever celebration of documentary filmmaking that honors Hoboken’s camera-worthy setting, community, and character.
The team is seeking emerging voices who are ready to make their mark through powerful storytelling that knows how to move an audience. With authentic perspectives, judges will seek creators who show them something new and fearless that doesn’t shy away from difficult truths within the Hoboken community. Whether “intimate portraits or sweeping social examinations,” each film will be carefully reviewed as Hoboken’s next wave of filmmakers are discovered. The festival will take place on November 15th, 2025, from 5PM to 10PM at Antique Loft at Riverview, located at 33 Newark Street. All are welcome, and tickets can be bought here.
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The Hoboken Docs Film Festival is open to all emerging documentary filmmakers who are ready to showcase their voices. The team is seeking honest, compelling documentaries that capture “the human experience in all its complexity,” revealing truth, sparking conversations, and ultimately reminding viewers of our deeply connected shared humanity.
All submissions must be documentary films of any genre or style. Creators can film from a variety of perspectives, such as historical, observational, personal, experimental, or any other non-fiction approach that suits their vision. Each film can run for a maximum of 15 minutes and cannot contain AI-generated content. For a closer look at all rules, requirements, and terms, click here.
The final submission deadline for creators is November 1st, 2025. Then, on November 10th, all winners will be notified before the main event on November 15th. All participants have a chance to win one of three prizes. First place takes home $5,000 cash, second place is $2,000 cash, and third place receives a $500 B&H Photo gift card.
Behind The Scenes
Behind all of the creative magic that is the Hoboken Docs Film Festival are two locals, Founder, Parker Foster + Co-Partner, Joe Castelo. Parker is a film director based right here in Hoboken who primarily directs commercials, documentaries, and films. He also runs a community-based filmmaker group called Filmmaker Friday that runs out of both New York City and Chicago. The group exists to bring filmmakers and creatives together each month to connect, grow, and continue to learn. Parker and his team host mixers, panel discussions, and screenings, to name a few. Last year, when he moved to the Mile Square, he knew it was an opportunity to expand the community he had already built in NYC to the streets of Hoboken. Originally from Dallas, Parker has lived all over other major U.S. cities, including Chicago, LA, NYC, and now Hoboken. Parker expressed his love for our little city, telling HG, “Hoboken feels like this underdog city in the shadow of NYC, and I love feeling like I have found this hidden oasis. Living here has inspired my creativity a lot.”
Parker shared that the filmmaker journey can be lonely, adding that the only other filmmaker he knew in Hoboken was a friend and co-partner, Joe Castelo, who owns a co-working space, Sweven. Parker had spent some time working out of Sweven when he finally connected with Joe and told him about his dreams to build a filmmaking community here in Hoboken. Serendipitously, Joe had been envisioning the same thing. The two met for a meeting and came up with the idea of the Hoboken Doc Film Festival, which will be the first of many more to come.
Joe is a master-entrepreneur whose creative mind is also behind The Station, Antique Bar and Bakery, and more. When Parker told us about Joe’s accomplishments, he warmly added, “Dude does everything, but what I love most about him is his heart. He’s an award-winning writer/director and really is the reason this festival is happening. He’s the push I needed to make this happen. He’s really one of a kind.” Parker is beyond grateful to be collaborating with Joe to bring Hoboken’s first film festival to life.
Since this endeavor was rooted in passion and dreams of community and creativity, team HG asked Parker what the creation of the Hoboken Docs Film Festival meant to him. He told us with heart: “For me, it’s simply to show the beautiful documentaries that are made every year and to share those with the community. We have a lot of films being shot here, but filmmakers don’t make up a lot of the city like Brooklyn does. I wanted to change that by bringing the NYC crowd over the Hudson and showing them how beautiful this place is while also showcasing some incredible filmmakers. Hopefully, this will inspire those to come visit and even move here.”
Parker added that he would love for locals of all kinds to come to the festival, not just filmmakers and creatives. Sharing, “Documentary is a beautiful medium because it’s a reflection of real life and real stories. Something we all have and can all share. I think now more than ever we need more empathy and love in this world, and how wonderful it is that we can celebrate these amazing filmmakers and their stories. I feel like a lot of people will leave this festival feeling very inspired.”
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