Robert J. Morgalo’s Children of a Fatherless Child and Martin “Marty” McGowan’s Left Unsaid are drawing enthusiastic audiences ahead of the November festival.
Tickets are still available to purchase on ReadingfilmFEST.org
Reading, PA (The Hollywood Times) 10/6/26 – ReadingFilmFEST returns November 6–8, 2026, and excitement is already building as local filmmakers are seeing an enthusiastic response from audiences, including sold-out screenings.
As a proud media partner of ReadingFilmFEST, The Hollywood Times is looking forward to highlighting several of the filmmakers and stories featured during this year’s festival.
Two filmmakers generating particular excitement are Robert J. Morgalo, director and screenwriter of Children of a Fatherless Child, and Martin “Marty” McGowan, director of Left Unsaid. Both filmmakers have sold-out events, an encouraging sign of the community support surrounding this year’s festival.
McGowan’s Left Unsaid is part of ReadingFilmFEST’s Made in Reading programming and will screen Sunday, November 8 at 12:30 p.m. at GoggleWorks Center for the Arts.
The feature-length film, with a running time of approximately 92 minutes, represents exactly the type of locally connected filmmaking that makes ReadingFilmFEST such an important showcase, giving filmmakers an opportunity to share their work with the community that helped inspire and support them.
For McGowan, having a hometown audience turn out so strongly for Left Unsaid makes the screening especially meaningful. Film festivals are ultimately about more than screenings; they are about bringing filmmakers and audiences together and creating conversations that continue long after the credits roll.
Also featured at this year’s festival is Robert J. Morgalo’s Children of a Fatherless Child, a faith-based feature film written and directed by Morgalo.
The film has a particularly wide geographic scope. It was filmed in Reading, Pennsylvania; Miami, Florida; Havana, Cuba; and Asturias, Spain, giving the production both a local connection to ReadingFilmFEST and an international dimension.
Morgalo’s dual role as both director and screenwriter makes the project especially personal, and the film’s faith-based foundation gives audiences another distinct perspective among the diverse stories being showcased at the festival.
Children of a Fatherless Child has also received an enthusiastic response, with its event selling out as ReadingFilmFEST approaches.
That kind of audience support is a wonderful reminder of why regional film festivals matter. They provide independent filmmakers with a platform while giving moviegoers an opportunity to discover stories they might not otherwise have the chance to experience on the big screen.
ReadingFilmFEST continues to build that connection between filmmakers, audiences and the greater Reading community, while welcoming filmmakers and stories that reach far beyond the region.
The Hollywood Times looks forward to speaking with Morgalo and McGowan about their respective films, their filmmaking journeys and what it means to share their work with an audience at ReadingFilmFEST.
With sold-out events already being reported, ReadingFilmFEST 2026 is shaping up to be another memorable weekend celebrating independent film and the people who make it possible.
ReadingFilmFEST takes place November 6–8, 2026.
The Hollywood Times is proud to serve as a media partner for ReadingFilmFEST and to help shine a spotlight on the filmmakers who make the festival possible.
By The Hollywood Times team
