Latino & Native American Film Festival

Latino & Native American Film Festival (LANAFF)
Call for Film Submissions and Participation – 16th Edition

The Latino & Native American Film Festival (LANAFF) at Southern Connecticut State University proudly invites filmmakers, artists, scholars, and community members to participate in its 16th annual edition, … an ongoing celebration of cultural affirmation, artistic excellence, and transformative educational engagement.

LANAFF has evolved into more than just a film festival. It is a vital platform for the recruitment, retention, and empowerment of Latino and Native American students and faculty, while fostering inclusive storytelling, public dialogue, and intergenerational learning. Through film screenings, panel discussions, workshops, and community gatherings, the festival brings to light voices and perspectives historically marginalized in mainstream media.

Festival Theme
This year’s theme is:

“Our Stories, Our Voices: Resilience and Self-Determination” /
“Nuestras Historias, Nuestras Voces: Resiliencia y Autodeterminación”

We seek films that explore how Latino and Native American communities resist colonization, systemic injustices, and cultural erasure, … while asserting identity, reclaiming narrative, and envisioning transformative futures.

Why LANAFF?
LANAFF intentionally highlights the rich and intersecting traditions of Latino and Native American cultures. Rather than treating these identities as separate, the festival embraces their historical and cultural interconnection. Most Latin American peoples trace deep Indigenous roots, … from the Andes to the Caribbean, … and Indigenous North American nations, though diverse, share overlapping experiences of colonization, displacement, and cultural resurgence.

Our programming reflects this complexity and unity, offering space for interwoven stories of identity, survival, and collective vision. Each screening is an invitation to engage in cultural dialogue and reflection.

Festival Growth & Global Reach
LANAFF’s impact continues to grow:
• Film submissions rose by 6.7% last year (2,511 to 2,680).
• Virtual attendance expanded from 2,752 to 9,609 participants across 125+ countries.
• In-person attendance reached over 660 guests.

These numbers reflect a growing global interest in Indigenous and Latino voices, and the urgency of the stories we aim to share.

What We’re Looking For
We invite submissions in the following categories:
• Narrative Features & Shorts
• Documentaries
• Animated Films
• Experimental Works
• Student Films

All works should align with the festival’s mission to uplift voices from Latino, Indigenous, and allied communities, or address issues of resilience, justice, and cultural self-determination.

Special Categories
1. Tribute Films
LANAFF also features a curated “Tribute Films” section dedicated to cinematic works that portray the ordeals and injustices experienced by specific peoples or nations (e.g., Palestine, Ukraine). These films honor resilience, amplify silenced voices, and raise global awareness of humanitarian crises and collective responsibility.

2. Rainbow Coalition / NASO Films
This category highlights films that bring together people of diverse backgrounds, … across race, age, faith, profession, and political perspective, … in shared struggle and solidarity.

Why Submit?
By participating in LANAFF, your work contributes to a movement rooted in storytelling, healing, and transformation. Past festivals have included Q&A sessions with filmmakers, student-led panels, and vibrant discussions across academic and community spaces.

Your film may help educate future generations, challenge stereotypes, and inspire lasting change.

About Our Communities
Latino identity is richly diverse, … spanning Indigenous, African, European, and Asian ancestry, and encompassing a range of nationalities, faiths, and lived experiences. Latinos can be found across all sectors of society, … from agriculture to academia, activism to the arts.

Similarly, Native American communities are deeply rooted and multifaceted. The U.S. is home to 567 federally recognized tribes, while Latin America counts over 800 Indigenous nations. From the Taíno and Nahua to the Diné and Oglala Lakota, their wisdom, contributions, and resistance are central to our shared history and future.

Submit Your Film
Whether you are an emerging filmmaker or an established voice, we welcome your submissions. Selected films will be showcased in either our in-person or virtual programming, or both.

Join us in building a festival that celebrates not only cinematic excellence, but the resilience, creativity, and agency of historically marginalized communities. Together, we honor our stories. Together, we shape the future.