Best Of2025

Less than a year ago, Garin Pirnia and Ann Driscoll founded Leontine Cinema, a repertory series dedicated to screening monthly films directed by women, hosted at the Esquire, the Woodward Theater and the Contemporary Arts Center. Since August, it’s built up a reputation for high-quality screenings and well-researched, thoughtful discussions. They've even gotten participation from some of the directors of the featured films they've screened, including a full-length interview with Karyn Kusama (Yellowjackets, The Invitation), video shout-outs by Nancy Savoca (Dogfight) and Sofia Coppola (The Bling Ring), a live Q&A with Adult Best Friends filmmaker Delaney Buffett (Jimmy Buffet’s daughter), and a type-written statement from Desperately Seeking Susan director Susan Seidelman. They show no signs of stopping in their quest to spread the love for underseen and underappreciated gems by women directors, who remain woefully underrepresented in the film industry. instagram.com/leontine_cinema.

Arts & Culture

Image: Arts & Culture
Here are the 2025 Best Of Cincinnati® Reader and Staff Pick winners for Arts & Culture.
  1. 21c Museum Hotel
  2. Art Academy of Cincinnati
  3. Clifton Cultural Arts Center
  1. Cincinnati Art Museum
  2. Contemporary Arts Center
  3. Taft Museum of Art
  1. “Cincinnati Toy Heritage”
  2. “Love Wins”
  3. “Fiona and Bibi at the Cincinnati Zoo”
  4. “Martha, the Last Passenger Pigeon”
  5. Charley Harper's “Beguiled by the Wild”
  6. “Ezzard Charles: The Cincinnati Cobra”
  7. “Democracy!”
  8. “Homecoming (Blue Birds)”
  9. “Dream Big and Fly High”
  10. CROWN Trail Mural
  1. Panegyri
  2. CincItalia
  3. St. Cecilia Family Festival
  1. Reds Opening Day Rally on the Square
  2. Ice Rink on Fountain Square
  3. Art on Vine
  1. BLINK
  2. Cincinnati Art Museum
  3. Findlay Market
  4. The Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County
  5. Jungle Jim's International Market
  6. Smale Riverfront Park
  7. Washington Park
  8. Tunes & Blooms at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden
  9. Contemporary Arts Center
  10. FotoFocus
  1. A Pig-ment of Your Imagination at REC, Cincinnati Art Museum
  2. The Culture: Hip Hop and Contemporary Art in the 21st Century, Cincinnati Art Museum
  3. NUDE: Exploring the Uncovered Human Form, Manifest Gallery
  1. Dent Schoolhouse
  2. Kings Island Halloween Haunt
  3. The USS Nightmare
  1. Festival of Lights at the Cincinnati Zoo
  2. WinterFest at Kings Island
  3. Cincinnati Nature Center’s Light in the Forest
  1. Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden (@cincinnatizoo)
  2. Midwestern Lesbian (@midwestern.lesbian)
  3. Longbottom Bird Ranch (@longbottombirdranch)
  1. Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden
  2. The Children's Museum at the Cincinnati Museum Center
  3. Longbottom Bird Ranch
  4. Kings Island
  5. Newport Aquarium
  6. Cincinnati Art Museum
  7. Great Parks of Hamilton County
  8. Cincinnati Parks
  9. Smale Riverfront Park
  10. Behringer-Crawford Museum
  1. Bob Herzog
  2. Eileen Earnest
  3. Mark Borison
  1. Pam Kravetz
  2. Kiwi the Duck
  3. Anthony “Tank” Mansfield
  4. Joshua Stout
  5. Technique2012
  6. Gee Horton
  7. James Billiter
  8. Leah Noumoff
  9. Kevin Necessary
  10. Cedric Michael Cox
  1. Emily Henry
  2. Curtis Sittenfeld
  3. Michael Sawan (softmaxplus)
  1. Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra
  2. Cincinnati Pops
  3. MUSE Cincinnati's Women’s Choir
  1. Kelly Collette
  2. Sweett Biscut
  3. Mark Borison
  1. Cincinnati Ballet
  2. DANCEFIX
  3. Cin City Burlesque
  1. Four by Three (Chase Crawford)
  2. Cincy Stories
  3. Virtual Cocktail TIE
  4. Mark Borison TIE
  1. Improv Cincinnati
  2. Alphas Comedy
  3. Two Sketchy Dames