Humboldt International Film Festival

Be a part of film festival history! Welcome to the internationally recognized longest running student-led film festival in the world.

What began as a way to show their own films, two Cal Poly Humboldt students here in the beautiful redwoods on the coast of northern California began the festival way back in 1967.

For 60 years, the students of Cal Poly Humboldt have been inviting independent filmmakers (working in traditional and experimental modes) to enter their short films for the event.

Students enrolled in our unique film festival course are trained and certified to pre-screen and judge the wide variety of domestic and international submissions. The finalists in each category are screened in April at the historic Minor Theatre in Arcata, California for guest industry judges (such as Frank Capra, Walter Murch, Marcia Lucas, Alexander Payne, Alima Lee, and Philip Thompson) as well as community film enthusiasts. Winners are announced and awarded at the Best of Fest by the judges at the fun and exciting final night.

HIFF is proud to promote the art of film, not only as a means of entertainment but also as a vehicle for self-expression and a stimulus for dialogue about social, political, and cultural issues. The Cal Poly Humboldt community as a whole invites and embraces the voices and stories of diversity and inclusion. It's a venue where the hidden faces and stilled voices can be seen and heard.