Documentary Film Festivals
Looking for a festival to screen your documentary? We've compiled a list of domestic and international film festivals that feature documentaries in their lineup, and highlighted the ones with the most clout.
| Festival | Typical Date | Location |
|---|---|---|
| AFI Docs* | June | Washington, DC and Silver Spring, MD, United States |
| Ambulante* | March - May | Various, Mexico |
| Berlinale* | February | Berlin, Germany |
| Cannes* | May | Cannes, France |
| CPH:DOX* | March | Copenhagen, Denmark |
| Doc Fortnight: MoMA's International Festival of Nonfiction Film and Media* | February | New York, NY, United States |
| DOK Leipzig* | October - November | Leipzig, Germany |
| Edinburgh International Film Festival* | June - July | Edinburgh, UK |
| Full Frame Documentary Film Festival* | April | Durham, NC, United States |
| Hot Docs* | April - May | Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA)* | November | Amsterdam, Netherlands |
| Jihlava International Documentary Film Festival* | October | Jihlava, Czech Republic |
| Karlovy Vary International Film Festival* | June - July | Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic |
| Locarno Film Festival* | August | Locarno, Switzerland |
| New Directors/New Films* | March | New York, NY, United States |
| New York Film Festival (NYFF)* | September - October | New York, NY, United States |
| Montréal International Documentary Festival (RIDM)* | November | Montreal, Quebec, Canada |
| Sheffield Doc/Fest* | June | Sheffield, UK |
| Sundance Film Festival* | January | Park City, UT, United States |
| SXSW Film Festival* | March | Austin, TX, United States |
| Thessaloniki International Film Festival* | November | Thessaloniki, Greece |
| Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF)* | September | Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Tribeca Film Festival* | April | New York, NY, United States |
| True/False* | February | Columbia, MO, United States |
| Venice International Film Festival* | August - September | Venice, Italy |
| Visions du Réel * | April | Nyon, Switzerland |
| !f Istanbul International Independent Film Festival | February - March | Istanbul, Turkey |
| Adelaide Film Festival | October | Adelaide, Australia |
| Adventure Film Festival | Various | Various, Various |
| Aesthetica Short Film Festival | November | York, UK |
| AFI Fest | November | Hollywood, CA, United States |
| American Documentary Film Festival | March - April | Palm Springs, CA, United States |
| Antenna Documentary Film Festival | October | Sydney, Australia |
| Antigonish International Film festival | October | Antigonish, NS, Canada |
| Art of Brooklyn Film Festival | June | Brooklyn, NY, United States |
| Ashland Independent Film Festival | April | Ashland, OR, United States |
| Asian American International Film Festival | July - August | New York, NY, United States |
| Aspen Filmfest | September | Aspen, CO, United States |
| Astra Film Festival | October | Sibiu, Romania |
| Athena Film Festival | February | New York, NY, United States |
| Atlanta DocuFest | September | Atlanta, GA, United States |
| Atlanta Film Festival | March - April | Atlanta, GA, United States |
| Atlantic Film Festival | September | Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada |
| Austin Film Festival | October - November | Austin, TX, United States |
| Beloit International Film Festival | February - March | Beloit, WI, United States |
| Beldocs | May | Belgrade, Serbia |
| BFI London Film Festival | October | London, UK |
| Big Muddy Film Festival | February | Carbondale, IL, United States |
| Big Sky Documentary Film Festival | February | Missoula, MT, United States |
| Boulder International Film Festival | February | Boulder, CO, United States |
| Brooklyn Film Festival | June | Brooklyn, NY, United States |
| Buffalo International Film Festival | October | Buffalo, NY, United States |
| Busan International Film Festival | October | Busan, South Korea |
| CAAMFest | March | San Francisco, CA, United States |
| Camden International Film Festival | September | Camden, ME, United States |
| Catalina Film Festival | September | Santa Catalina Island, CA, United States |
| Chagrin Documentary Film Fest | October | Chagrin Falls, OH, United States |
| Charleston International Film Festival | November | Charleston, SC, United States |
| Chesapeake Film Festival | October | Easton, MD, United States |
| Chicago International Film Festival | October | Chicago, IL, United States |
| Chicago Underground Film Festival | June | Chicago, IL, United States |
| ChileDoc | May | Santiago, Chile |
| Cine Pobre Film Festival | June | Various, Various |
| Cinema at the Edge Festival | April | Santa Monica, United States |
| Cinéma du Réel | March | Paris, France |
| Cinequest Film Festival | February - March | San Jose, CA, United States |
| Cleveland International Film Festival | March - April | Cleveland, OH, United States |
| Collinsville Film Festival | March - April | Collinsville, CT, United States |
| CRONOGRAF Festival | May | Kishinev, Moldova |
| Cucalorus Film Festival | November | Wilmington, NC, United States |
| Dallas International Film Festival | March - April | Dallas, TX, United States |
| DC Independent Film Festival | February | Washington DC, United States |
| Denton Black Film Festival | January | Denton, TX, United States |
| Denver Film Festival | November | Denver, CO, United States |
| DMZ International Documentary Film Festival | September | Goyang, South Korea |
| Docaviv | May | Tel Aviv, Israel |
| DOCLANDS | May | San Rafael, CA, United States |
| DOC NYC | November | New York, NY, United States |
| Doclisboa | October | Lisbon, Portugal |
| DocPoint | January | Helsinki, Finland |
| Docs Against Gravity | May | Various, Poland |
| DocsBarcelona | May | Barcelona, Spain |
| DocsMX | October | Mexico City, Mexico |
| DocumentaMadrid | May | Madrid, Spain |
| Documentary Edge Festival | May - June | Auckland, New Zealand |
| DocUtah | September | St. George, UT, United States |
| DOK.fest München | May | Munich, Germany |
| DOKU.ARTS | October | Berlin, Germany |
| DokuFest | August | Prizren, Kosovo |
| Dortmund | Cologne International Women's Film Festival | April | Dortmund/Cologne, Germany |
| Double Exposure: Investigative Film Festival | October | Washington, DC, United States |
| DOXA Documentary Film Festival | May | Vancouver, BC, Canada |
| Dublin Doc Fest | November | Dublin, Ireland |
| Durban International Film Festival | July | Durban, South Africa |
| É Tudo Verdade - Festival Internacional de Documentários | April | São Paulo, Brazil |
| Eastern Oregon Film Festival | October | La Grande, OR, United States |
| EBS International Documentary Film Festival | August | Seoul, South Korea |
| Ekotopfilm | October | Bratislava, Slovakia |
| Encounters South African International Documentary Festival | June | Cape Town and Johannesburg, South Africa |
| ETNOFILm Festival | April | Rovinj, Croatia |
| FEST - New Directors New Films Festival | June | Espinho, Portugal |
| Festival Dei Popoli | October | Florence, Italy |
| Festival do Filme Documentário e Etnográfico | November | Belo Horizonte, Brasil |
| Festival Internacional de Cine de Cartagena de Indias | February -March | Cartagena, Colombia |
| Festival Internacional de Cine de Guadalajara | March | Guadalajara, Mexico |
| Festival Internacional de Cine Documental "Encuentros del Otro Cine" | May | Quito, Ecuador |
| Festival Internacional de Cine y Comunicación de los Pueblos Indígenas | October | Temuco, Chile |
| Festival International de Films de Femmes | March | Créteil, France |
| Festival Internacional do Filme Documentário e Experimental | April | Goiânia, Brazil |
| FIDMarseille - Marseille International Film Festival | July | Marseille, France |
| First Hermetic International Film Festival | March | Venice, Italy |
| Flahertiana | September | Perm, Russia |
| Frameline | June | San Francisco, CA, United States |
| Freedom Film Fest | September | Selangor, Malaysia |
| Fresh Coast Film Festival | October | Marquette, Michigan |
| FRONTDOC | November | Aosta, Italy |
| Frozen River Film Festival | February | Winona, MN, United States |
| Fusion Film Festival | April | New York, NY, United States |
| Geneva International Film Festival | November | Geneva, Switzerland |
| GlobalDocs Film Festival | October | Boston, MA, United States |
| Göteborg Film Festival | January - February | Göteborg, Sweden |
| Göttingen International Ethnographic Film Festival | May | Paulinerkirche, Germany |
| Guangzhou International Documentary Film Festival | December | Guangzhou, China |
| Guth Gafa International Documentary Festival | August | Kells, County Meath, Ireland |
| Hamptons International Film Festival | October | East Hampton, NY, United States |
| Harlem International Film Festival | May | New York, NY, United States |
| Hollywood Film Festival | October | Los Angeles, CA, United States |
| Homer Documentary Film Festival | September | Homer, AK, United States |
| Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival | October | Hot Springs, AR, United States |
| Human Rights Watch Film Festival | Various | Various, Canada, UK, USA |
| Imagine This Women's International Film Festival | November | Brooklyn, NY, United States |
| Independent Film Festival Boston | April - May | Boston, MA, United States |
| International Uranium Film Festival | Various | Various, Various |
| International Wildlife Film Festival | April | Missoula, MT, United States |
| In The Palace International Short Film Festival | December | Sofia, Bulgaria |
| Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival | September | Jackson, WY, United States |
| Kansas City FilmFest | April | Kansas City, MO, United States |
| Krakow Film Festival | May - June | Krakow, Poland |
| LA Film Festival | September | Los Angeles, CA, United States |
| London International Documentary Festival | November | London, UK |
| Margaret Mead Film Festival | October | New York, NY, United States |
| Martha's Vineyard Film Festival | March | Chilmark, MA, United States |
| Maryland Film Festival | May | Baltimore, MD, United States |
| Maryland International Film Festival | April | Hagerstown, MD, United States |
| Maui Film Festival | June | Maui, HI, United States |
| Mendocino Film Festival | June | Mendocino, CA, United States |
| Miami International Film Festival | March | Miami, FL, United States |
| Milano Film Festival | September - October | Milan, Italy |
| Mill Valley Film Festival | October | San Rafael, CA, United States |
| Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival | April | Minneapolis, MN, United States |
| Montclair Film Festival | April - May | Montclair, NJ, United States |
| Morelia International Film Festival | October | Morelia, Mexico |
| Moscow International Film Festival | April | Moscow, Russia |
| Muestra Internacional Documental de Bogotá | October | Bogotá, Colombia |
| Mumbai Film Festival | October | Mumbai, India |
| Mustard Seed Film Festival | August | Philadelphia, PA, United States |
| Nantucket Film Festival | June | Nantucket, MA, United States |
| Nashville Film Festival | May | Nashville, TN, United States |
| New Media Film Festival | June | Los Angeles, CA, United States |
| New Orleans Film Festival | October | New Orleans, LA, United States |
| New Urbanism Film Festival | October | Los Angeles, CA, United States |
| New York WILD Film Festival | February | New York, NY, United States |
| Newburyport Documentary Film Festival | September | Newburyport, MA, United States |
| Newport Beach Film Festival | April | Newport Beach, CA, United States |
| Nordisk Panorama | September | Malmö, Sweden |
| Norwich Film Festival | November | Norwich, United Kindom |
| NYC Independent Film Festival | May | New York, NY, United States |
| Omaha Film Festival | March | Omaha, NE, United States |
| One World International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival | March | Prague, Czech Republic |
| One World Romania: International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival | March | Bucharest, Romania |
| Open City Documentary Festival | September | London, UK |
| Other Israel Film Festival | November | New York, NY, United States |
| Oxford Film Festival | February | Oxford, MS, United States |
| Palm Springs International Film Festival | January | Palm Springs, CA, United States |
| PLURAL+ International Youth Video Festival | December | New York, NY, United States |
| Poppy Jasper International Film Festival | April | Morgan Hill and Gilroy, CA, United States |
| Portland Film Festival | October | Portland, OR, United States |
| Portland International Film Festival | February | Portland, OR, United States |
| Porto/Post/Doc | December | Porto, Portugal |
| Provincetown International Film Festival | June | Provincetown, MA, United States |
| qFLIX Philadelphia | March | Philadelphia, PA, United States |
| QDoc Film Festival | May | Portland, OR, United States |
| Queens World Film Festival | March | New York, NY, United States |
| Red Rock Film Festival | November | Cedar City/St. George, UT, United States |
| Reel Indie Film Fest | November | Toronto, Canada |
| Rhode Island International Film Festival | August | Providence, RI, United States |
| RiverRun International Film Festival | April | Winston-Salem, NC, United States |
| Roger Ebert's Film Festival (Ebertfest) | April | Champaign, IL, United States |
| Royal Anthropological Institute Film Festival | March - April | Bristol, UK |
| Salem Film Fest | March | Salem, MA, United States |
| San Diego Film Festival | October | San Diego, CA, United States |
| San Francisco Green Film Festival | September | San Francisco, CA, United States |
| San Francisco International Film Festival | April | San Francisco, CA, United States |
| San Francisco Jewish Film Festival | July - August | Various, United States |
| San Luis Obispo International Film Festival | March | San Luis Obispo, CA, United States |
| San Pedro International Film Festival | October | San Pedro, CA, United States |
| Santiago Festival Internacional de Cine | August | Santiago, Chile |
| Santa Fe Film Festival | February | Santa Fe, NM, United States |
| Sarasota Film Festival | April | Sarasota, FL, United States |
| Savannah Film Festival | October - November | Savannah, GA, United States |
| Seattle International Film Festival | May - June | Seattle, WA, United States |
| Sebastopol Documentary Film Festival | March | Sebastopol, CA, United States |
| Sedona International Film Festival | February - March | Sedona, AZ, United States |
| SF DocFest | June | San Francisco, CA, United States |
| SiciliAmbiente Documentary Film Festival | July | Sicily, Italy |
| Sidewalk Film Festival | August | Birmingham, AL, United States |
| Slamdance Film Festival | January | Park City, UT, United States |
| Sleepwalkers International Short Film Festival | November | Tallinn, Estonia |
| Soho International Film Festival | June | New York, NY, United States |
| South Dakota Film Festival | September | Aberdeen, SD, United States |
| St. Louis International Film Festival | November | St. Louis, MO, United States |
| Tacoma Film Festival | October | Tacoma, WA, United States |
| Taiwan International Documentary Festival | May | Taipei, Taiwan |
| Tallgrass Film Festival | October | Wichita, KS, United States |
| Tasmanian Eco Film Festival | November | Hobart, Australia |
| Telluride Mountainfilm | May | Telluride, CO, United States |
| Telluride Film Festival | September | Telluride, CO, United States |
| Thin Line Fest | April | Denton, TX, United States |
| Timehri Film Festival | May - June | Georgetown, Guyana |
| Torino Film Festival | November | Turin, Italy |
| Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival | November | Toronto, Canada |
| Traverse City Film Festival | July - August | Traverse City, MI, United States |
| Trento Film Festival | April - May | Trento, Italy |
| Trinidad and Tobago Film Festival | September | Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago |
| TRT Documentary Awards - Instanbul | May | Istanbul, Turkey |
| United Nations Association Film Festival | October | Stanford, CA, United States |
| ViBGYOR International Film Festival | April | Thrissur, India |
| Warsaw Film Festival | October | Warszawa, Poland |
| Wasatch Mountain Film Festival | April | Park City, UT, United States |
| Wildlife Conservation Film Festival | October | New York, NY, United States |
| WILLiFest | September | New York, NY, United States |
| Winter Film Awards | February - March | New York, NY, United States |
| Wisconsin Film Festival | April | Madison, WI, United States |
| Women's Voices Now Digital Film Festival | March | Los Angeles, CA, United States |
| Woodstock Film Festival | October | Woodstock, NY, United States |
| Worldfest Houston International Film Festival | April | Houston, TX, United States |
| Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival | October | Yamagata, Japan |
| Zagrebdox International Documentary Film Festival | February - March | Zagreb, Croatia |
| Zinebi - Bilbao International Festival of Documentary and Short Film | November | Bilbao, Spain |
* = Top Tier
If you have an addition, update or correction, please email filmmakers[at]pov.org and let us know! Last Updated: 1/29/2018