Blog: Film festivals

We screen the best documentaries from around the world at the Roxie Cinema, the oldest art house theater west of the Mississippi. Many of our titles end up with calendared runs at the Roxie later in the year. We get great press coverage in San Francisco, the second largest film market in the country, plus industry reviews.

San Francisco is a very receptive town for documentaries and our fest has built a passionate following over the past 24 years.

LAST YEAR'S PRESS COVERAGE: https://sfindie.com/press-coverage

SF DocFest is an annual festival devoted to documentary cinema. Since 2001, this event has brought the most weird and wonderful aspects of real life to the big screen.

"What makes the scrappy San Francisco Documentary Film Festival a treasure to SF Bay Area filmgoers is its willingness to take that extra step to show films a little more out there than bog standard documentaries." - Peter Wong, Broke Ass Stuart

“Docfest offers a zippy blend of politics, music, social issues and youth-oriented subcultures. The good news is that DocFest promotes documentaries as a vibrant, irreverent form of entertainment to a younger demographic, blasting the notion of educational films to smithereens. There’s no room for anything approximating — watch it, I’m about to blaspheme – the obsessively measured and utterly somnambulant musings of Ken Burns.” – Michael Fox, KQED

“Since its inception, DocFest (May 31-June 15 at the Roxie and the Vogue, with opening night at Alamo Drafthouse) has compiled a colorful scrapbook of genuine characters in contrast to the current events survey, educational seminar or social-issue forum that defines many documentary series… There are one or two people in Off the Charts you won’t soon forget, which could be said about nearly every film in DocFest. That’s one of the pleasures of scrapbooks.” – also Michael Fox, KQED

Michael Fox just loves DocFest, here's another:

"Welcome to SF DocFest, the beloved annual compendium of odd, unusual nonfiction films from every nook and corner of our bizarro country and beyond. Waving off the pedigreed, high-profile docs that premiere at Sundance, get theatrical releases (or these days, national virtual releases) and chart a course for the Academy Awards, SF DocFest’s programmers opt for poignant, intimate works that miss the mainstream by dint of their iconoclasm and/or lack of a marketing hook." -KQED

"This week brings the kickoff to the 20th edition of SF Docfest, the rapidly-becoming-venerable nonfiction showcase that nonetheless continues to put the fun in documentary cinema appreciation. While other such showcases tend to be soberly issue-themed, focusing on the environment, activism, or some such, Docfest pursues—though not exclusively—colorful human interest stories, musician profiles, and other subjects on which there will not be a class quiz afterward." - Dennis Harvey, 48Hills

Theme
Our theme is simple and it is just one word: INNOVATION

Motivation
We encourage filmmakers to come up with innovative concepts and tell unique stories that promote peace and prosperity in their countries.

Vision
Promote international solidarity and a myriad of opportunities for filmmakers, businesses and broadcasters through film.
 
Mission
Create a self sustainable film industry and a new world class breed of filmmakers.

Background History
The Ekurhuleni International Film Festival was formed as a result of Siyafunda Programme an initiative by Rhythm Cycle Trading Projects in partnership With Ekurhuleni’s Metropolitan Municipality: Department: SRAC: Performing Arts division .The purpose of the Programme is to empower the unemployed youth economically and provide them with vital filmmaking skills. Promote the local businesses in the film industry and promote Social cohesion and mainstream youth development. Promoting indigenous music and instruments and participation in the arts is one of the key roles of the Programme.

The Cinematography wing of the project initiated the Ekurhuleni International Film Festival through one of its partners Rhythm Cycle Projects a local Film & Television film production company. The purpose of the festival is to empower Emerging local and international filmmakers. This will provide filmmaking skills; create networking opportunities with local and international broadcasters. This will also promote the local businesses through the film industry and mainstream economic development across a myriad of sectors of the economy.
 

Introduce young aspirant filmmakers to wildlife filmmaking
Educate the people about the natural world and films
Create networking opportunities for local filmmakers, broadcasters and funders
Promote indigenous music
Enrichment of the arts
Promote culture and heritage
Boost tourism
Mainstream youth development
Attract broadcasters
Create jobs and economic opportunities

Aims & Objectives

1.To ensure that every government department has a progress report on video in preparation for the next financial year.

2.To educate people how our government operates and help them identify what, how they can contribute to boost our economy and get benefits.

3.To develop an advertising medium for SMMEs, Big companies, banks and Educational institutions to generate revenue for the project to empower participants while they are studying.

4.To create a local film industry that will alleviate poverty in rural areas by making films that will tell their stories and attract the international market.

5.To transfer filmmaking skills to the youth out of school and the unemployed.

6.Showcase South Africa’s storytelling talent and introduce a new generation of characters through film and TV productions .

7.To establish partnerships with other territories to implement Co-Production Treaties that RSA signed with other countries to grow our local film industry.

Programme
Registrations
Welcome and Official Opening
Exhibitions
Workshops
Seminars
Screenings
Adjudication
Networking Sessions
Fun walks
Wine tasting
Ekurhuleni International Film Awards

During the month of November, the Anfibia Festival turns Madrid into the capital for discovering new narratives and explores the creative potential of adaptation.

#AnfibiaFest is a space for connecting audiences with new creative universes and diverse and diverse origin formats.

The registration period for audiovisual works will be open from August 21 to September 18, 2025. Fiction or non-fiction audiovisual works, series, and animations adapted from any narrative format—such as novels, graphic novels, illustrated works, stage plays, video games, journalistic reports, digital content, or other narrative media—are eligible to participate.

The fourth edition of the Anfibia Festival will take place in November 2025 in Madrid.

The Arab Film Festival Zurich is organized every two years by the association IAFFZ . The next festival will take place from 02.02.2027 until 07.02.2027.

The focus is on films by Arab filmmakers that could not find their way to “commercial” cinema. The program includes short and full-length feature, documentary, animation and experimental films exploring social, cultural and political issues. Discussions with the invited filmmakers also offer the audience the opportunity to discuss films and topics further.

Please note that we can only accept movies from or about the Arab world. We define the Arab world in cultural terms. Unfortunately, we cannot accept movies from or about Iran or Turkey, except if they explicitly deal with issues related to the Arab world as defined above.

The Arab Film Festival Zurich is a place of encounters and dialogue between cultures. Through its internationally understandable language, film serves as a means of communication and understanding, and so the festival should make a contribution to a differentiated analysis of the Arab cultural area beyond media coverage.

The first edition of the festival in 2012 was well received by the audience and the media. Every two years, the Arab Film Festival Zurich presents a representative selection of outstanding current international films from various Arab countries.

The festival team consists of honorary board members of the association IAFFZ and the volunteers who share a great interest in film and in the Arab culture. The program is compiled by Aida Schläpfer Al-Hassani (filmmaker, president of the association IAFFZ and co-director of AFFZ) and Michel Bodmer (co-director of AFFZ).

Humor en Corto - Humor in Short

The XXIV edition of Arrigorriaga's humor short film festival, the oldest in Spain.

From December the 15th to the 20th, 2025, in Lonbo Aretoa, Arrigorriaga, Spain.

KINO PUNK 3X
Itinerant Punk and Antifascist Film Festival

Kino Punk 3X is an itinerant festival dedicated exclusively to the screening of short films of resistance. Focusing on fiction and documentary works, the festival promotes a curatorship centered on independent productions with a critical, anti-authoritarian, anti-capitalist, and antifascist perspective.

The festival consists of three public showcases throughout the year, followed by a final edition with an audience vote, where the Best Fiction Short and the Best Documentary Short are chosen.

All screenings are free of charge and open to the public. The film selection is carried out by the festival’s curatorial team.

2026 Calendar:
Showcase 1 – Invasion: March
Showcase 2 – Noise: July
Showcase 3 – Fury: November
Final Showcase – End of the Line: December

Kino Punk 3X is a space for rupture, provocation, and gathering. A festival for films that disturb, confront, and resist.

Our third edition is here, held on the occasion of the International Trans Day of Remembrance. We want to celebrate the audiovisual work of our community, and that’s why we want to see your short film :)

Cinemadiaspora is an international short film festival that celebrates the power of cinema to tell stories of migration, diaspora, and social impact. We aim to highlight human experiences that transcend borders, showcasing how migration shapes cultures, economies, and identities. The festival brings together filmmakers from around the world, fostering dialogue, inclusion, and diversity through the art of film.

A short film festival that will take you by surprise. Cross the green carpet... Win the Brame du Cerf! - Submit your short film of 15 minutes maximum. The theme "Metamorphoses", Propose fictions, documentaries, animations, the subject of which provides a look at all forms of initiatives and actions that everyone, as a citizen, or organization can undertake to contribute to make our societies more sustainable, in terms of the environment and also living together.

The Chevreuse Valley Film Festival is a short film competition organized by the ALC. The 2025 theme of films to be presented at the FFVC is “METAMORPHOSES”.

A selection of around 20 films will be publicly broadcast during a screening at the FFVC on October 18, 2025. The finalists will be able to win one of the following prizes: Screenplay Prize, Directing Prize, Animation Prize, Female Actor Prize, Best Actor Prize, Male Interpretation, Audience Prize, Jury Prize (“Brâme du Cerf”), Youth Prize.

A premier International Film Festival in Kathmandu Nepal. Nepal Human Rights International Film Festival is running since 2010. This year the 12th Nepal Human Rights International Film Festival will be organized from 4 to 8 December 2025. The theme of this years festival is Collective Rights.

Over 40 selected films from around the globe made on human rights issues will be screened during the festival. Some screenings will be followed by a discussion on the film with the filmmakers.

The films will be screened under the following sections:

- Competition section
There will be competition section for both Nepali and International films. Films produced during 2024-2025 will be eligible to participate in this section. The films need to be based on at least one aspect of human rights. They could be both fiction and documentaries. The films need to fulfill all the criteria set by the organizing committee to be eligible for competition.

- Special Screening
Special films that could not fulfill all the criteria of the competitive section but are important in raising the human rights issues will be screened in this section. This section will also cover such films, which may not want to compete under the other section. Films from partners of the NHRIFF, which are qualified for being selected for the festival but could not participate in the competitive section due to the conflict of interest, will also be screened under this section.

- Yesteryears Eyes
Classics from the yesteryears, which deal with human rights issues, will be screened under this section.

- Partners' Panorama
This section will screen the films produced by organizations, who are partners of the 13th Nepal Human Rights International Film Festival. These films will not be recognized as official entries to the festival. But the festival will only provide a platform for the partners to showcase their works.

IMPORTANT REMINDER
****THE FESTIVAL WILL BE PHYSICAL****
****WE DON'T PAY SCREENING FEE FOR THE SELECTED FILMS*****

In this first edition, under this new format, our goal is to create a space for the promotion and gathering of film projects produced in Nayarit, which will take place on October 23, 24, and 25. Some of the most outstanding short films from the state of Nayarit, as well as international productions, will be in competition and screened.

FROM LA RAMBLA TO THE WORLD

A celebration of talent and the future of cinema in the heart of Barcelona.

The heart of Barcelona as a stage and platform for cinematic talent. La Rambla in Barcelona is much more than an emblematic avenue. It is a living symbol of the city, an open walkway to the world where cultures, languages, artistic expressions, and emotions converge. But beyond its touristic role, La Rambla also becomes a great showcase of Barcelona’s identity and a privileged path to project local cinematic talent on an international scale.

DATE AND LOCATION

The 29th edition of the European Short Film Festival of Bordeaux will take place from March 26th to 27th 2026. The projection nights will take place at the UGC Ciné-Cité cinema in Bordeaux.

GOALS

The European Short Film Festival of Bordeaux aims to promote the short film format to the Région Aquitaine's audience. It facilitates the access to cinema for a large public, from all ages. It also supports the discovery of talented directors coming from all over Europe.,It’s a way for the filmmakers to be appreciated by a jury, no matter if they are mere enthusiasts or professionals.

19th Edition Ecozine Film Festival – International Socio-Environmental Film Festival of Zaragoza. April 2026. Organized by the Ecozine Cultural Association

ECOZINE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL – The International Socio-Environmental Film Festival, organized by the Ecozine Cultural Association, was founded in 2008 as a platform for social awareness and cultural promotion, advocating cinema as a tool for change.

Committed to showcasing and disseminating audiovisual productions with socio-environmental content.

Membrana is the Latin word for film, and we are incredibly excited to bring the Membrana Film Festival to you, and to dig deep into the roots of the magic that is filmmaking.

It will be held on August 2ndrd 2026 at the Cultplex Cinema in Manchester, England.

We are very ambitious, and our aim is to become a cornerstone of the local and global film festival calendar, bringing unique and original films to our audience.

The festival's organiser is a filmmaker, and understands the love, care, passion, dedication, and hard work that it takes to create your film, and to bring it to the big screen.

The festival will promote and celebrate the filmmaking process, and is looking for films that push boundaries, and that teach us about the world we live in.

We are looking for arthouse, independent films, we want to be surprised by your submissions, and we appreciate that we cannot build our festival without your films, and that we will set ourselves apart by the quality of films we receive and exhibit.

We welcome all genres, in any language, and enjoy to watch subtitled films that open us to new worlds, and take us to a land far far away.

We welcome shorts and features, across live action narrative, animation, and documentary, and we look forward to receiving and watching your films.

For the 2026 Membrana Film Festival, we have opened up a Script Competition, with separate categories for Short Films, and Feature Films - all genres are welcome, and we also have the option for you to receive written coverage on your work.

CALL FOR ENTRIES
SHORT FILMS, DOCUMENTARIES, AND FEATURE FILMS
International Purple WE CARE Film Festival
(wecarefilmfest14@gmail.com)
Deadline: 31 JANUARY 2026

Sub: Submit your film on disability issues - NO ENTRY FEE

Dear Sir/Madam,

The United Nations in India proudly announces its partnership with International Purple Fest at the WE CARE Film Festival to host the Purple International WE CARE Film Festival 2025 from 10 to 12 October 2025 in Goa, India.

For more than two decades, WE CARE Film Festival — a joint initiative of the Brotherhood, the UN Information Centre for India and Bhutan, and UNESCO — has been a global platform showcasing the aspirations, challenges, and achievements of persons with disabilities. This 21st edition builds on the legacy of advocacy and storytelling through cinema.

This festival was launched by key dignitaries including:

• Mr. Shombi Sharp, UN Resident Coordinator in India
• Dr. Mallika Nadda, President, Special Olympics Bharat & Chairperson, Asia Pacific Advisory Council
• Mr. Guruprasad Pawaskar, Goa Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities
• Mr. Satish Kapoor, Founding President, WE CARE Film Festival
___________________________________


SUBMIT YOUR FILMS

We invite filmmakers worldwide to submit their short films, documentaries, or feature films on disability issues, within the following duration categories:

• Up to 5 minutes
• Up to 30 minutes
• Up to 60 minutes
• Up to 120 minutes

Themes (based on RPD Act 2016, National Trust Act 1999, and UNCRPD):

1. Inclusive or special education practices

2. Educational journeys of persons with disabilities

3. Livelihood initiatives for/by persons with disabilities

4. Independent living models

5. Success stories of barrier-free environments

6. Musical videos featuring persons with disabilities

7. Triumph of sportspersons with disabilities

8. Showcasing extraordinary talents

9. Assistive technologies and AI impacting lives

10. Innovations in health, education, access, and entertainment

11. Awareness initiatives for disability issues

12. Rehabilitation models and stories

13. Sustainable development for disability welfare

14. Mental health and psychological well-being

15. Government schemes and their impact

__________________________________


PARTICIPATORY RATING PROCESS

A preview/Selection committee will select the final films to be screened. The last date for receiving the entries is 31 JANUARY 2026.

The organizers encourage all filmmakers (with or without any DISABILITY) to produce audio-visual content that complies with all accessibility standards and guidelines. To be considered for screening at the We Care International Film Festival, all films should contain captions and subtitles in English. Filmmakers are also requested to make films with audio descriptions.

For further information and complete guidelines, please refer to the enclosed WE CARE International Film Fest documents:

• Submission Requirements
• Entry Form
• Undertaking by the Filmmaker

The DarknessCon Film Festival started off as the Idaho Halloween & Horror film festival and is now operating in all locations that the DarknessCon Conventions run at different locations across the country.

FICC – International Cannabis Film Festival – Launches Its Call for Entries

The FICC was born out of the need to broaden cultural perspectives through a social and committed approach to the topic of cannabis, using audiovisual media as a powerful tool for social transformation—one that generates awareness, reflection, and behavioral change.

Since 2019, the International Cannabis Film Festival has brought the subject of cannabis to the forefront through cinema and culture, helping to break down prejudices surrounding its various uses, provide information, and contribute to the expansion of rights—without promoting consumption.

Welcome to the Ottumwa International Film Festival, a vibrant celebration of cinema held at the stunning Bridge View Center theater on March 21 and 22, 2025. Over the course of two days, we will showcase an eclectic mix of short and feature films from a diverse array of categories, promising to captivate audiences with a rich tapestry of storytelling.

Our festival is dedicated to highlighting the creativity and passion of filmmakers from around the globe. We take pride in curating a program that includes thought-provoking dramas, riveting documentaries, heartwarming comedies, and groundbreaking animated films. Each screening offers a unique glimpse into different cultures, perspectives, and artistic visions.

In addition to the screenings, we will host engaging Q&A sessions with filmmakers, providing an intimate platform for attendees to delve deeper into the creative processes behind the films.

To honor the outstanding achievements in filmmaking, we will present awards in various categories, including Best Feature Film, Best Short Film, Audience Choice, and more. These accolades celebrate the innovation, talent, and dedication that drive the art of cinema forward.

Join us at the Ottumwa International Film Festival for two unforgettable days of cinematic discovery and community. Whether you're a filmmaker, a film lover, or simply curious, we invite you to immerse yourself in the magic of the movies and the spirit of storytelling.

CinemaKing International Film Festival (CIFF) is a very prestigious international film festival in Bangladesh, where are highest countries were participated, 120 in a edition countries in 2021. Organized by MEGH Foundation, Event by DHAKA Festival.

CinemaKing International Film Festival was started in 31 May, 2018. Founded by an International Film Personality Mr. Monjurul Islam MEGH.

The call for entries for 6'th CinemaKing International Film Festival 2025 is now open!

The 5'th Edition of the CinemaKing International Film festival 2024 were competition 68 countries. The Festival was held on online 18th to 21st december 2024 and theatrical on 21st to 26th February, 2025.

The 4'th Edition of the CinemaKing International Film festival 2023 were competition 76 countries. The Festival was held on theatrical on 16th to 29nd February, 2024.

The 3rd Edition of the CinemaKing International Film festival 2022 were competition 83 countries. The Festival was held on theatrical on 19th to 22nd March, 2023.

The 2'nd Edition of the CinemaKing International Film festival 2021 were competition 120 countries with Bangladesh. The Festival was held on theatrical on 3rd to 6th January, 2022 at the 3 venues in "the International Mother Language Institute", "Bangladesh Silpakala Acdemy", "Shohoj Path School".

The1'st Edition of the CinemaKing International Film Festival 2020 were competition 54 countries. 177 film, The Festival was held on theatrical on 24th to 26th december, 2020.

Visit for more information on CIFF's website : www.cinemaking.org
If you have any question you can contact our facebook page: www.facebook.com/ciff.bd