Film festivals / Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center (also Rogers City and Harrisville)
Thunder Bay International Film Festival
A January festival of ocean and Great Lakes films in Alpena, run by NOAA's Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary. More than 50 films, a gala and a student shorts competition; the 15th edition runs January 20–24, 2027.
Thunder Bay International Film Festival · Photo from the venue’s official website
Quick facts
- Resident companies
- Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary (NOAA) · Friends of Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary
01 / Now showing
Now showing
Announced lineup
What the venue announced on its own site when we last checked (2026-09-26). Click through for exact times and tickets.
02 / The story of this place
Make time for these
The Thunder Bay International Film Festival is organized by NOAA's Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary in Alpena, which protects nearly 100 historic shipwrecks in Lake Huron. Every January it brings ocean and Great Lakes films: more than 50 of them over one weekend, in three locations. There's a Great Lakes Gala, social and educational events and a student shorts competition. The 14th edition in January 2026 opened in Rogers City and Harrisville before moving to the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center in Alpena. The 15th festival is set for January 20–24, 2027.
- January 20–24, 2027, in Alpena
- 50+ ocean and Great Lakes films
- Student shorts competition
Plan your visit
The main venue is the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center in Alpena. Tickets go on sale in December; for questions, reach the festival coordinator at (989) 884-6212.
Cinemas nearby
Back to cinemas ↗Multiplexes / Alpena
Sanctuary Cinema
A three-screen luxury cinema in downtown Alpena, named for the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary and its shipwrecks. Recliners, reserved seats and Dolby sound in a former J.C. Penney store.
Drive-ins / Honor
Cherry Bowl Drive-In Theatre
A 1950s-themed drive-in in Honor, deep in Northwest Michigan's cherry country, since 1953. Always a double feature, vintage cartoons on 35mm, and sound from the original tube-amp speaker posts.
Historic movie palaces / Elk Rapids
Elk Rapids Cinema
A well-preserved Art Deco single-screen house in Elk Rapids since 1940. The ceiling is covered by what the owners call the world's largest black-light mural, and Monday nights bring free classics.