The Nara International Film Festival (NIFF) is a biennial international film festival held in Nara, one of Japan’s most historically significant cities. Founded in 2010, the festival is dedicated to discovering and supporting emerging filmmakers from around the world. The festival’s Executive Director is Naomi Kawase, an internationally acclaimed filmmaker and Cannes Award winner.

NIFF presents two competitive sections:
・NARAtive International Competition
・NARA-wave Student Film Competition (for student filmmakers only)

One selected award winner from the competition programs will be granted the opportunity to direct an original film shot in Nara, Japan as part of the NARAtive filmmaking project.

In addition to competition screenings, NIFF offers a diverse program of film screenings and interactive events that bring together filmmakers, guests, and local audiences. The festival is known for its intimate atmosphere and strong engagement with the local community.

Celebrating cultural diversity and new cinematic voices, the Nara International Film Festival provides a unique platform for emerging talent, set among Nara’s UNESCO World Heritage sites.

Awards & Prizes

<<Japanese follows after English 日本語は英語につづいて参照>>

★International Competition Award
1. The Golden SHIKA Award (the first prize award)
2. The Audience Award (the most voted from the audience)

One of the winners from our two competition programmes (except the Best Actor Award) will be granted the privilege of making the next NARAtive 2026 film.

*NARAtive is a project to make an original film in Nara, funded by NIFF.
Previous NARAtive projects are:
“Inori” by Pedro Gonzalez-Rubio from Mexico (2012), “A Midsummer’s Fantasia” by Jang Kun-jae from South Korea (2014), "The Wolves of the East" by Carlos M. Quintela from Cuba (2016),"The Nikados' Fall" by the Iranian director, Ida Panahandeh (2018), "Tracing Her Shadow (2021)" by Pengfei from China, "Beyond the Fog (2023)" by Daichi Murase from Japan, "Transit in Framingo (2025/cinema release 2026)" by Yuki Horiuchi.
The latest 2026 NARAtive film project will be directed by the 2024 NIFF winner Joshua Trigg from UK in 2026 summer.

★Student Competition: NARA-wave Award
1. The Golden KOJIKA Award (the first prize award)
2. The Audience Award (the most voted from the audience)

Competition for student films, videos, and moving-image arts. Some participating works also participate in the Cannes Film Festival’s student competition and works nominated by NARA-wave receive acclaim from other film festivals overseas. Works of excellence receive the Golden KOJIKA Award. Award-winners have the opportunity to submit a proposal for the NARAtive project, and if it is accepted, they will be chosen as the film director of the next NARAtive project.

【インターナショナルコンペティション部門受賞内容】
１．ゴールデンSHIKA賞（最高賞）
２．観客賞（観客から最も多く選ばれた賞）

インターナショナルコンペティションの受賞者は（俳優賞受賞者を除く）、他コンペティション部門（学生部門）の受賞者と共にNARAtive映画製作プロジェクトへの企画提案の権利が与えられます。（NARAtive詳細はこちら：https://narative.jp）

【学生映画部門　NARA-wave 受賞内容】
「NARA-wave (ナラウェイブ) 」は、学生が手掛けた映画・映像作品を対象にしたコンペティション。参加作品が「カンヌ映画祭」の学生部門にも参加するなど、「NARAwave」にノミネートされる作品は、 海外の映画祭からも評価されています。最高賞は「ゴールデンKOJIKA賞」。受賞者には「NARAtive」の企画案を出す権利が与えられ、採用されれば次回「NARAtive」の映画監督に選ばれることになります。

Rules & Terms

<< Japanese follows English / 日本語は英語の後に記載 >>

★ International Competition – Eligibility
1. The director’s **first or second feature film
2. Minimum running time of 70 minutes
3. Completed after September 1, 2024
4. Must be Japan premiere to present at NIFF2026, including festival screenings

Regulations:
1. There are no restrictions on subject matter or genre.
2. Films in languages other than Japanese must include English subtitles if the dialogue is not in English.
3. Directors of selected films are required to attend the festival.

* For the directors who live outside of Japan, NIFF will provide accommodation and one round-trip Economy Class airline ticket (one director per film).

★ Student Competition – Eligibility
1. Must be an original video work created by student(s).
* The work must have been completed in January 2024 or later, and at the time of completion, the director or main filmmaker must have been a student.
* A “student” is defined as a university student, graduate student, vocational school student, or an equivalent status.
2. One submission per director.

※ No restriction on running time
※ No restriction on theme. Submissions should reflect the unique perspective of the director or filmmaker.

**NOTE:**
Only selected films will be notified of the selection results.
If you do not receive any notification by the designated notification date, please understand that your film was not selected.

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インターナショナルコンペティション
応募締め切り・応募費用：
* Earlybird Deadline：2026年1月31日まで　30米ドル
* Regular Deadline：2026年3月20日まで　40米ドル
* Late Deadline：2026年4月29日まで　50米ドル

※応募費のお支払いは、FilmFreeway申込時のクレジットカード決済のみとなります。

★参加条件
1. 監督の第1作目または第2作目であること
2. 70分以上の作品であること
3. 監督1名につき1作品まで
4. 2024年9月1日以降に完成した作品であること
5. ジャパンプレミア作品であること （※他の映画祭や自主上映を除く）
6. 英語以外の言語による作品は、英語字幕が付いていること
7. 映画の**主題およびジャンルに制限はありません
8. 選出された監督は、なら国際映画祭開催期間中の滞在が必須です

※海外から参加する監督には、宿泊施設および往復エコノミークラス航空券1枚（監督1名分）を提供します。
※日本国内から参加する場合は、宿泊施設および交通費を提供します。

**注意**
選出された作品のみに、通知予定日（Notification Date）までにご連絡いたします。
通知予定日までに当映画祭より連絡がない場合は、不選考としてご理解ください。

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  • Joshua Trigg

    The most incredible festival I have ever been a part of. I am so grateful and honoured to be involved. Nara is a stunning and beautiful place. Thank you so much for everything and what an amazing and friendly team. ❤️

    September 2024
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