The Black Europe Film Festival of Minneapolis / Saint Paul (BEFF MSP) is a celebration of Black diasporic cinema, with a particular focus on films by directors connected to Europe and its broader historical, cultural, and political contexts. BEFF MSP will hold its third edition in Minnesota in late February 2027.

Rooted in principles of community collaboration and anti-racist cultural work, the festival showcases documentaries, narrative films, and shorts by some of the most innovative and compelling Afro-descendant filmmakers working in and on Europe. It offers a vital platform for artists to present their work, engage audiences, and build networks of support across the global Black diaspora and the international film community.

Attentive both to the enduring legacies of racism, colonialism, and displacement and to the vibrancy, creativity, and worldmaking practices of Black life, the festival highlights films that confront difficult histories while imagining new possibilities beyond the limits imposed by whiteness.

BEFF MSP seeks to amplify complex, non-stereotypical visions of Black Europe and Black European lives, challenging the racialized regimes of visibility that continue to marginalize and devalue Black people around the world.

The festival also aims to foster dialogue, learning, and exchange through masterclasses, filmmaker conversations, production workshops, lectures, and residencies. In doing so, it creates a space for Black joy, critical reflection, and meaningful engagement with diverse audiences, communities, and young people.

Awards & Prizes

Each year, we offer three awards:

Best Documentary

Best Fiction Film

Special Jury Prize

Additionally, selected filmmakers will be invited to Minnesota to present and discuss their work during the festival.

Rules & Terms


Submission Deadline: September 6, 2026

The Black Europe Film Festival accepts features fictions and documentaries written, directed, or produced by artists who identify as Afro-descendant or Black.

We are especially interested in films that:

* shed light on Black European lives and experiences
* showcase the richness and diversity of Black cultures in Europe
* highlight underrepresented dimensions of Black presence in Europe
* engage with the history and ongoing legacies of European colonialism in Africa, the Caribbean, and South America

To be eligible, films must:

* have been completed within the last five years
* not be available on VOD
* not have screened previously in Minneapolis or Saint Paul

All non-English-language films must be submitted in their original language with English subtitles.

The applicant must hold all necessary rights to the film and to all related submission materials.

By submitting, the applicant grants the festival, its organizers, and sponsors the right to use stills, trailers, and other promotional materials from the film for festival publicity, including on the festival website and social media channels, with credit to the submitter and/or director.

The Black Europe Film Festival will communicate only with the official submitter of the film.

For questions, please contact beffmsp@gmail.com