Film Festivals 2026: Dates, Submissions, and Smaller Fests
The main confirmed date for film festivals 2026 so far is the BFI London Film Festival, which runs October 7 to 18, 2026. The 83rd Venice Film Festival has posted its public screening schedule, and the New York Film Festival has its dates and showtimes listed online. If you want to attend London, users say now is a good time to book accommodation and travel. For filmmakers planning submissions, the advice is to research festivals carefully and apply only to ones that match your film's style and your career goals. Users warn against mass applying to random festivals. Attending in person is worth it for the networking and the chance to meet other filmmakers, though festivals on their own rarely guarantee a career breakthrough. Several smaller festivals get strong recommendations from users. The Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival in Vermont stands out for kind, communicative staff and a homestay program. Tallgrass in Wichita, Kansas is called outstanding, and the Portland Festival of Cinema, Animation, and Technology screens films on an IMAX screen and hosts nice filmmaker events, including a brunch at a technological art gallery.
