The Korean Society for Visual Anthropology (KSVA) is excited to organize the 2026 Eighth Korea International Ethnographic Film Festival (KIEFF) to share with the larger audience many possibilities and meanings of ethnographic film. We are proud to announce the calls for ethnographic films for the "KIEFF Official Selection" and "KIEFF Student Filmmakers Selection."

For the KIEFF Official Selection, we are looking for ethnographic films that explore the theme of “Urban, Community, Diversity” in creative and innovative ways.
Amid rapid urbanization, increased migration and mobility, and the ubiquity of digital environments, cities are no longer traditional, singular stages of life. They have become arenas where diverse communities and identities, conflicts and solidarity, overlap.
This year's KIEFF seeks works that pose the following questions:
- How do cities reconfigure people's lives and relationships?
- How do communities within cities dissolve, reconfigure, or intertwine in entirely new ways?
- How do the diversity and differences found in cities compete, coexist, and negotiate within everyday life?

KIEFF views ethnographic film not merely as a tool for documentation or representation, but as a creative practice that critically reflects on the complexity of urban life and proposes new social imaginaries. We welcome the interest and submissions of ethnographic filmmakers worldwide.

All films submitted to the "Official Selection" and “Student Filmmakers Selection” in the 2026 festival must have been completed in the two years prior to the festival or in the festival year itself. For this year's festival, films should have been completed between 2024 and 2026.
For the KIEFF Student Filmmakers Selection, films on any topic will be considered, but special consideration will be given to films that focus on anthropological topics. All festival films go through a highly selective screening process.

Awards & Prizes

KIEFF is a non-competitive film festival, thus there are no awards or prizes offered.

Rules & Terms

QUALIFIED WORKS
- All films submitted to the festival must have been completed between 2024 and 2026.
- As an ethnographic film festival, KIEFF requires all submissions to demonstrate an "ethnographic sensibility" (as described above).
- The Student Filmmakers Selection is exclusively for films completed while the filmmaker was enrolled as a student at an educational institution.
- The selection committee prioritizes content and storytelling over technical production quality.
- While films on all topics are welcome, those focusing on anthropological themes receive special consideration.
- Films in languages other than English or Korean must include subtitles in either English or Korean.
- The festival accepts films and videos in all formats.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR SUBMITTING FILMS
- Submit all entries through our FilmFreeway platform at: https://filmfreeway.com/festival/KIEFF
- There is no entry fee for submissions to KIEFF.
- Complete the FilmFreeway submission form during the submission process.
- Submit all screeners online through FilmFreeway. You may either upload them directly to your FilmFreeway account or provide links to Vimeo or YouTube hosted files.
- For password-protected screeners, ensure the password remains valid for at least six months from submission or until the selection process ends. You must notify us of any password changes.
- If you encounter technical issues with FilmFreeway that their support team cannot resolve, please contact us at [contact.kieff@gmail.com] for assistance.

RULES AND TERMS
- *KIEFF does not pay screening fees.* By submitting your film via FilmFreeway, you acknowledge that the festival will not provide payment for presenting your work.
- The festival reserves the right not to select films if, in the judges’ opinion, the overall quality of submissions is insufficient.
- The winning student film will be screened during the main festival.
- Once a film is selected, its copyright holder grants KIEFF permission to promote the production on public television and online through short trailers of up to four minutes.
- If your film is selected, you must provide a press kit, including production stills, for use in festival promotions, publications, and social media.
- A copy of all selected films will be archived at the KIEFF office for internal, non-public, academic use only.
- All films must have English subtitles for non-English dialogue. Korean-speaking directors should provide both Korean and English subtitles, while KIEFF will supply Korean subtitles for films by non-Korean-speaking directors.
- To create the subtitled screening version, we require high-quality digital masters. As technology evolves, we will discuss the necessary format with directors upon selection.
- The festival reserves the right to modify these rules and regulations at any time without prior notice.
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  • Mery Stein

    Excellent film festival, will be there in 2026

    December 2025
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  • Mauro Bucci

    Great films, and organization. I didn’t have the chance to attend in person, but the communication with the festival team, and the program was superb.

    January 2025
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  • Dr. Meena Longjam

    Korean international ethnographic film festival was one of my most gratifying moment. As it’s my first ever platform where my film went to the cinema enthusiasts of Korea. Though I couldn’t attend in person i had my frens and folks went at cinematheque to watch my film “Andro Dreams”. And I was so honoured received a benevolent amount of screening fees from KIEFF 2023. May KIEFF brings more beautiful cinema in the coming years . Kham sa meeda 🙌🌟🥰

    January 2024
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