The Fort Myers Film Festival’s 16th annual festival will be held in the sunny, beautiful SW Florida region May 20-24, 2026 at the Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center, Big Arts, iMAG, Alliance for the Arts, Calusa Planetarium and other select venues with parties and dinners at select venues downtown. 

Watch last year’s video here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNAjv_COB7c&t=1s. To buy tickets go to www.sbdac.com. If you are looking for photos head to our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/fortmyersfilmfestival


The Fort Myers Film Festival is an intelligent independent filmmaker's preferred event to create, unite and showcase the finest artistic cinematic works. The Fort Myers Film Festival is known for world-class swagger and support of local filmmakers. The festival event offers ‘the most vibrant intellectual and edgy crowd to grace Lee County in decades.’ The event has featured hundreds of local filmmakers and is a must attend for cineasts who love indie film and film festivals living in Lee, Collier and Charlotte counties. That’s right, Fort Myers has a film festival now, so come out for the excitement! For more information go to www.fortmyersfilmfestival.com or join www.facebook.com/fortmyersfilmfestival for updates and events.

ABOUT THE FORT MYERS FILM FESTIVAL
Founded by Eric Raddatz, the Fort Myers Film Festival has earned its place as a respected platform for emerging and established filmmakers. It was recognized with the 2015 Chrysalis Award for Cultural Achievement by the Lee County Visitor and Convention Bureau and the Greater Fort Myers Chamber of Commerce.

SPONSORS & COMMUNITY SUPPORT
The Fort Myers Film Festival proudly supports:
Lee County Schools filmmakers, United Way, Raddatz Foundation, SalusCare, Lighthouse of Southwest Florida, Abuse Counseling and Treatment, Kimmie’s Recovery Zone, Uncommon Friends Foundation, Charity Pros, #KindLee, Family Initiative, and Golisano’s Children’s Hospital.

Generously sponsored by:
The Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center, Happenings Magazine, Luminary Hotel, Gulfshore Life Magazine, City of Fort Myers, Aux Delices Cafe, Downtown House of Pizza, Starbucks, Babcock Ranch, Pamela Templeton Unlimited, Captiva Spirits, IMAG, J. Bert Davis, Kearns Restaurant Group, Black Tie Tuxedoes, The Sanibel Captiva Trust Company, Notorious Productions, Martin Law Firm and the International Olympic Committee supported Fédération Internationale Cinéma Télévision Sportifs.


The Fort Myers Film Festival was awarded the prestigious 2015 Chrysalis Award for Cultural Achievement by the Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau and the Greater Fort Myers Chamber of Commerce Inc. at their annual Celebration of Business & Tourism Awards Luncheon and Trade Show at the Harborside Event Center in downtown Fort Myers.


For more information go to www.fortmyersfilmfestival.com or join www.facebook.com/fortmyersfilmfestival for updates and events.


www.fortmyersfilmfestival.com

TERMS AND CONDITIONS for filmmakers submitting to FMFF

1. I, the representative of the film being submitted (the "Film"),
acknowledge and agree as follows in connection with the film submitted for consideration for the Fort Myers Film Festival (the "Festival"):
2. I hereby represent and warrant to the Festival that (a) I am duly
authorized, on my own behalf and on behalf of all other persons or
entities who have any ownership rights in the Film, to exhibit this
Film at the Festival, (b) this exhibition will not violate any law or
any right or consent of any person or entity and (c) the Film is not
subject to litigation nor is it threatened by any litigation.
3. I further represent and warrant that, to the best of my knowledge,
the exhibition of the Film at the Festival will not violate or infringe
any copyright, patent, privacy right, publicity right, trademark,
service mark or any other personal or property right of any person or
entity and that my Film does not constitute a defamation of any person
or entity. I have paid and will pay in full all license fees, clearance
fees, and other obligations, of any kind, arising from the exhibition
of the Film in connection with the Festival.
4. If accepted, I acknowledge that the exploitation of the Film does
not create any confidential or fiduciary relationship between the
Festival and I. I understand that I will not receive any compensation
for such exploitation, although some prizes at the Festival may include
cash awards. I acknowledge that no obligation of any kind is assumed by or may be implied against the Festival because of the Festival's selection of the Film. I understand and acknowledge that the selection of my Film by the Festival does not in any way constitute an express or implied endorsement or approval by the Festival or any opinion expressed therein.
5. I agree to indemnify and hold harmless the Festival with any affiliate, subsidiary and parent entities and the officers, directors, employees, attorneys, creative advisers and
agents of each of the foregoing from and against any and all claims,
losses, or liabilities (including reasonable attorneys' fees) that may
be asserted against any of the foregoing or incurred by any of the
foregoing at any time in connection with the Film or the Festival's use
thereof, and/or arising from any breach or alleged breach of any
representation made by me to FMFF.
6. I represent that I am 18 years of age or older, or that if I am
younger than the legal age to enter into contracts in my state, I have
provided a written consent from my parent or legal guardian. I agree
that any controversy arising out of or in connection with my Film and
the Festival will be governed by the internal laws of the State of
Florida and conclusively determined by arbitration in the City of
Fort Myers in accordance with the rules of the American Arbitration
Association before a single arbitrator mutually agreed by the parties.
I hereby waive any and all rights and benefits which I might otherwise
have or be entitled to litigate any such dispute in court, including
without limitation a trial by jury.
7. If accepted, I hereby grant without reservations, to the Festival, and their related entities (a) the right to use footage, stills and/or titles or the film in its entirety and information from the Film for
promotional, public prescreening including T.G.I.M. indie show and Eric Raddatz Show, without recourse to the owner, producer,director, or any other party asserting ownership rights of the submitted film and (b) the right to issue and authorize publicity concerning the filmmakers and the Film and to use all associated names, likenesses and biographical information. I also agree to provide contact information for the director and producer(s) of the Film and grant the Festival the right to provide this information to film industry organizations sponsoring Festival events at its discretion.
8. If and when accepted I will not withdraw my submission for any purposes.
9. By clicking "I Agree" below, I constitute my full and complete
acceptance of the terms hereof. I acknowledge that no oral
representations of any kind have been made by the Festival.

Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Adrien Lhoste

    What a fantastic festival! Thank you for screening my short film Iridescence!

    June 2026
  • Melissa Davey

    I attended this film festival in May and it was a wonderful experience. Eric Raddatz and Leslie Cimino offer significant support to the filmmakers. The curation and selection of films was top notch. There were ample opportunities to meet with other filmmakers and the parties they gave were so much fun. They also had a seminar on film financing led by and expert that was excellent. This is in the top three festivals I have been to out of 27. I hope I get to experience it again.

    October 2025
  • Thank you Eric Raddatz and your entire team for screening our comedy film "Father Knows Best"!! Our cast and crew had a great time and appreciate your great boost to all of us!! Thank you for your support of the arts!

    August 2025
  • Pat Clark

    This was a fantastic festival to work with. Thanks for inviting Microverse to screen this year!

    July 2025
  • barbara peikert

    This festival is outstanding in many ways and will continue to inspire me. Thank you again for hosting and screening WavesWaterWall.

    June 2025