The Melbourne Queer Film Festival is the oldest, largest and most successful queer film festival in Australia. Our main festival screens over 100 sessions of LGBTQIA+ films over 11 days running through November.

The 2023 Melbourne Queer Film Festival will run from Nov 9 – Nov 19.

Awards & Prizes

MQFF supports local and international filmmaking talent through our various Jury and audience choice awards. This includes the City of Melbourne Award for Best Australian Short which automatically qualifies the recipient for our nomination in the Iris Prize - the largest prize for a LGBTIQA+ short film in the world.

MQFF supports emerging local queer filmmakers through its Pitch, Pleez! competition. The $10,000 prize offers Australian LGBTIQA+ filmmakers the opportunity to create original content by assisting with the completion of a short film.

Rules & Terms

Films submitted for the annual Melbourne Queer Film Festival should be of interest to the LGBTQIA+ community (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning, intersex, asexual).

Short films submitted, if selected, may be programmed at the festival's discretion as part of MQFF's streaming on-demand offering, MQFF+, as well as in one or more of its in-cinema shorts programs. MQFF+ will only be accessible to Australian audiences.
10 Reviews
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  • Jan Dunn

    MQFF is a great and welcoming festival and it was fantastic to have the world premiere of our short doc "Private View" at ACMI to a great crowd.

    December 2022
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  • Caroline Layt

    I was very happy my documentary Is this Queensland in the 20s? was a Finalist at your Festival for March and hoping to be considered to be screened at your next festival in October.

    March 2021
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  • Jessica Smith

    So honoured to be a part of MQFF. It was wonderful to be back in cinemas and to have the opportunity to speak in front of the Comedy Shorts program audience. This is such a wonderful festival with a great program each year. Excellent communication and inclusion for filmmakers.

    March 2021
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  • Gisela Chicolino

    We were finalists but not selected. so we keep trying because we love the festival programation.

    March 2021
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  • siobhan fahey

    Thank you for hosting our Australia (almost world) Premiere and our first time in front of a live audience. It is actually unbelievable that this is a mainly volunteer run festival. Completely helpful, responsive and fun. Wish we could have been there to see the Melbourne Dykes on Bikes arrive. Hope to have a feedback email, phone call to understand the P & I interest. Beyond that, great fun, and recommended.

    March 2021
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