Green Montenegro International Film Fest

Green Montenegro IFF (GMIFF) is the only environmental film festival in Montenegro, regularly held since 2015. It has become recognized as the center of the country’s ecological identity and a unique platform for filmmakers from Montenegro, the region, and around the world.

The 12th edition of the festival will take place from August 1 to 3, 2026, in one of the most beautiful natural areas in Europe (UNESCO World Heritage List, 1980), at Durmitor National Park, right next to the Black Lake in the municipality of Žabljak, under the starry sky, in a fragrant pine forest, with wireless headphones on a large LED screen.
Audiences will enjoy a curated selection of international films in this truly unique Open-air Cinema experience at GMIFF, set amidst breathtaking natural surroundings.

GMIFF is the only festival in Montenegro that has permission from the Environmental Protection Agency to hold its activities in the country’s national parks, due to its responsible approach to the environment and its low carbon footprint.

At the 10th anniversary edition, we introduced a new feature in Montenegro—wireless headphones—so the audience could enjoy high-quality audiovisual production while preserving the delicate and valuable biodiversity of Durmitor National Park. This initiative demonstrated that it is possible to protect the natural environment from noise, light, and other forms of pollution.

The festival is educational, non-commercial, and competitive, divided into four categories:

ECOLOGY,
ECOLOGY OF THE SOUL,
PROMO-TOURISM FILMS,
STUDENT FILMS.

During the three-day festival, documentary and feature films from Montenegro, the region, Europe, and worldwide will be showcased, addressing current topics in the fields of ecology, environmental protection, and sustainable development in the "Ecology" category. Films dealing with the "pollution of the human soul"—which disregards the environment, particularly the natural surroundings—will be presented in the "Ecology of the Soul" category. Each year, this category features a significantly higher-quality selection of the latest feature films from the region and beyond (more details in the festival catalog and program at www.greenmontenegro.me). Additionally, in the third festival category, "Promo-Tourism Films," films promoting preserved natural areas and ecological values, as well as tourist gems across the region, Europe, and the world, will be featured. The fourth category, "Student Films," was created to provide opportunities and support to young Montenegrin filmmakers in their first professional steps, showcasing the latest student-authored films.

Film screenings are held at two locations: by the Black Lake (main venue) and at the Žabljak Culture Center. The festival’s production estimates that approximately 1,500 viewers watch the films over the course of the three-day event.

The originality and significance of GMIFF lie in the fact that it is the only environmental film festival in the country, one of only four in the Balkans, among 18 in Europe, and recognized as one of the top 31 green festivals in the world within the global "Green Film Network," based in Innsbruck, Austria.

The festival is organized by the NGO Center for Multimedia Production and DOO Cezam Production (www.cezam.me). It enjoys continuous and vital support from the relevant ministries of ecology and culture, the Film Center of Montenegro, the Municipality of Žabljak, and other important partners and friends of the festival.

The festival brings back into focus issues such as excessive resource exploitation, extreme wealth accumulation, and the scarcity of drinking water, particularly through dystopian films that warn of increasingly realistic scenarios if we do not take responsibility.

During the three days of the festival, the capital of Montenegro, Podgorica, will illuminate the largest "Millennium" bridge in the country in green, in collaboration with the Green Montenegro IFF, to raise awareness about the need for greater responsibility and knowledge regarding environmental protection, both in urban and natural settings.

In addition to film screenings, conferences, concerts in the urban part of the town, silent parties, rafting tours, hiking, cycling tours, outdoor lectures, masterclasses, kayaking on the lake, performances, dances, lake shore clean-ups, organic food promotion (slow food concept), and more will be held—activities that have characterized the festival in previous years, further enhancing the tourist and cultural offer of one of Montenegro’s and the world’s natural gems—Durmitor.

The Green Montenegro IFF concept has been presented on three continents: Europe, Asia, and America, including at the Life After Oil Festival 2022 in Sardinia, Italy; the Yangcheon Autumn Culture Festival 2023 in Seoul, South Korea; and the Environmental Film Festival in the Nation's Capital (DCEFF) in Washington, D.C., USA in 2024.

As part of the festival, 1,000 trees have been planted in Durmitor National Park, in areas affected by wildfires in previous years, in cooperation with the Forest Management Authority and the Žabljak Tourism Organization.

GMIFF has a strong collaboration with the Ministry of Education, through which film screenings are held in primary and secondary schools across Montenegro — highlighting the educational nature of the festival. Approximately 15,000 to 20,000 children and teenagers from primary and secondary schools nationwide have watched films from the Green Montenegro IFF. This collaboration will continue in 2025.

Film, in its essence, is a critical expression of reality, society, nature, and the environment in which we live. Screening mainstream and independent films from Montenegro, the region, and beyond, at various locations (both open-air and indoor) guarantees a unique festival atmosphere in the town, sparking creative energy and synergy among festival visitors, international guests, nature lovers, young filmmakers from Montenegro and beyond, festival organizers, producers, and volunteers (30-50 individuals), ecological activists, representatives of state and local institutions, organizations, and individuals involved in film, outdoor activities, environmental protection, and policy.

Throughout the festival's eleven years, the regular main media sponsor has been the public service Radio and Television of Montenegro, alongside numerous other media outlets in the country and region.

As organizers, and every year, we plan to send a message and an urgent call from Montenegro about the importance of reflection and taking concrete actions toward sustainable development, green economy, and green culture, thereby expanding ecological awareness among citizens both in Montenegro and beyond.