The "I’m Migrant Film Festival" is a month-long programme of screenings and events taking place at Genesis Cinema in the heart of London, UK. After a vibrant first season, IMFF is returning to Genesis Cinema and we are thrilled to launch a new open call for the next festival throughout February 2026.

Curated by Iraqi filmmaker, photographer and writer Yamam Nabeel, the "I’m Migrant Film Festival" brings together both emerging and established filmmakers from across the Arab World, creating a platform for cross-cultural and intergeneration conversation through film.

Screenings span feature presentations and curated programmes of short film, including national and international premieres, with all events accompanied by panels and talks from acclaimed filmmakers, actors and producers. The inaugural festival featured over 40 films from SWANA Region directors including:

- THE TEACHER - dir. Farah Nabulsi
- LEAVING BAGHDAD - dir. Koutaiba Al Janabi
- HANGING GARDENS - dir. Ahmed Yassin Aldaradji
- GOODBYE JULIA - dir. Mohamed Kordofani

The "I'm Migrant Film Festival" aims to share global stories through film, platforming voices that may otherwise be silenced, and building a dialogue that transcends cultural, religious, and geographical differences.

We invite submissions from filmmakers of South-West Asian and North African heritage, both living in the region and the global diaspora. Submissions can be either shorts or feature-length, fiction or non-fiction, with an emphasis on powerful storytelling.

"It was an absolute honour to have our short Tabbouleh & Pie screen at the inaugural edition of I’m Migrant Film Festival. The festival provided us with the opportunity of having our first UK cinema screening. Our co-star, Ahlam Arab, was delighted with the reception and interaction with audience members and the festival team at the Genesis Cinema."
- Ja'far Abd al-Hamid, dir. 'Tabbouleh & Pie', a short screened during the 2025 programme.

Deadlines for receipt of online submission forms and film screeners:

- Early Bird – Sunday 27 July 2025
- Standard – Sunday 31 August 2025
- Late Entry – Sunday 28 September 2025

Please fill in all required fields in the online submission form if you wish to submit your film for consideration for IMFF 2026. Please note films will not be considered without completion of the online form and confirmation of successful payment.

Please read through the Rules and Terms before submitting.

Awards & Prizes

There are three prizes available this season. These are:

- Award for Best Short
- Award for Best Feature
- People's Choice Award

The Award for Best Short and Award for Best Feature will both be decided by the Judges prior during the selection process. The People's Choice Award will be decided by anonymous audience votes throughout the festival.

For the 2026 festival, Laurels will also be awarded for all selected films.

Rules & Terms

1. The I'm Migrant Film Festival is presented by Art Forward Ltd.
2. The I'm Migrant Film Festival is an annual event based at the Genesis Cinema. It runs throughout the month of February each year.
3. Programming decisions are made at the discretion of the Festival Directors and the Judging Panel.
4. Submission of a film represents agreement with the rules and terms below.

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ELIGIBILITY

IMFF accepts shorts and feature-length films on any topic, and in any genre, with a focus on strong storytelling. The only requirement is that the filmmaker identifies as being from the SWANA (South-West Asia and North Africa) Region or part of the diaspora.

We are pleased to receive films which have not been screened before, but do not require premier status. Films can have been completed at any time. You are welcome to submit more than one film in either category.

The submitter must legally own the work or have permission to submit it.

All films in a language other than English must be subtitled in English, unless dialogue or commentary is unnecessary for comprehension and appreciation. During the selection process, the Festival reserves the right to download the films submitted via online links for its offline viewing. These downloads will be exclusively for internal use by the Festival team for selection purposes.

Unfortunately, we are unable to support analogue film formats at this time.

If you are unsure about your eligibility, please get in contact with us prior to submitting your film.

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FEES

Submission fees go directly to the operational cost of organising and hosting the festival. All fees paid are non-refundable.

Fee structure: Early bird / Standard / Late

We acknowledge that fees can be a barrier to entering open calls. We encourage anyone receiving state benefits, refugees, and under 25s to select the 'Student' option for lower submission fees.

As we are only in our second year of operation, we are unfortunately unable to offer artist fees for selected films this season.

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SELECTION PROCESS

Each film will be viewed by at least two pre-selectors, and if shortlisted will be viewed by the judging panel for final selection.

Notification of selection decisions: In the event of your short or feature film being officially selected, you will be notified by invitation. At that point an Official Selection form will be sent for your completion, to confirm the invitation has been accepted, and to gather all the information necessary for the presentation and marketing of the film in the Festival. You will hear from us by Monday 15 December 2025 at the latest, normally by email. If your contact details change during this period please let us know so that we may update our records.

You can no longer withdraw your short or feature film after accepting the selection.

If your film is selected for screening, we will require you to send a DCP file (via digital transfer or delivered on a USB hard drive) a minimum on one month prior to the screening date. It is the responsibility of filmmakers to provide their film in the correct format by the specified deadline. Specific guidance on file requirements will be provided to filmmakers on acceptance. Missing this deadline will mean that your film will be withdrawn.

Feature films screening in the Festival must not be screened elsewhere publicly in London during the Festival window without prior agreement with the Festival Directors.

Art Forward will provide selected filmmakers with personalised promotional material and social media assets for their screening event. By participating in IMFF, the filmmaker agrees to participate in promotional activities across their own network as far as possible, such as making and sharing social media posts.

Please be aware that due to licensing requirements at the venue, Genesis Cinema, we are only able to admit people aged over 18 to screening events.

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ENQUIRIES

For any general queries about submissions, please contact: acn@artforward.media. Please do not send email film submissions to this address, you must complete the online submission form.

We deeply appreciate the time and effort which goes into an application, but unfortunately cannot provide individual feedback on unsuccessful entries currently.

Thank you for your interest in submitting to I'm Migrant Film Festival, good luck!