Woodstock Film Festival

Named by MovieMaker Magazine one of its Top 50 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee, the Woodstock Film Festival is the landmark film festival of Upstate New York and an Academy Award®–qualifying festival for Short Narrative, Short Documentary, and Short Animation. Now entering its 27th year, WFF has grown from a passionate dream into one of the country’s top indie film festivals.

The 27th Annual Woodstock Film Festival returns October 14–18, 2026, presenting five days of dynamic, thought-provoking, and unforgettable independent cinema across the Hudson Valley, just two hours north of New York City. Beyond screenings, WFF features intimate panels, engaging Q&As, live musical performances, and extensive filmmaker participation—more than 90% of directors attend each year.

Set amid the fall colors and creative energy of Woodstock, Saugerties, and Kingston, the festival offers an exceptional environment for networking with high-caliber filmmakers, artists, and industry leaders. In 2025, WFF welcomed over 9,000 attendees, issued more than 13,000 tickets and 980 passes, and showcased 40 narrative features, 27 documentaries, and 131 short films, awarding more than $13,000 in cash prizes.

In keeping with Woodstock’s legacy rooted in art, music, activism, and creative experimentation—submitted films may also be considered for our Woodstock Legacy programming. If your film explores themes of art or artists (in any medium), music or music videos, experimental work, activism, or environmentalism, please note this in your application for special consideration.

We welcome films across all genres and subjects and look forward to discovering your work!

Enhance Your Screening: If your film offers opportunities to create a special event around its screening, we’d love to hear about it! For example:
– A musician or performer featured in your film who could attend or perform.
– A filmmaker, artist, or subject of your film who could participate in a Q&A or panel.
– Any unique activity, discussion, or audience engagement related to your film that could complement your screening.

Please include these ideas in your cover letter or application. Let us know who or what can attend to make your screening even more memorable—together we can help create a standout festival experience!.

“With heavy-hitting Fall titles as well as a strongly curated selection of American independent discoveries, the Woodstock Film Festival, which is a destination for so many New York film professionals, is inviting, intimate and impactful — a real tonic on the festival circuit.”
– Scott Macaulay, Editor in Chief, Filmmaker Magazine

“Woodstock is my absolute favorite festival because it has everything; a beautiful and relaxing setting, a wonderful artistic community, and a powerfully curated selection of the finest-crafted films. It’s a love fest for film lovers.”
– Roger Ross Williams, Academy Award-winning Filmmaker

“The Woodstock Film Festival is a haven for those who love independent and challenging cinema. The spirit of the Namesake of the festival is in the very fiber of the festival itself - freewheeling, experimental, searching and visionary.”
– Julie Taymor, Director

Submit your film to the Woodstock Film Festival, and take part in what Ethan Hawke calls “a festival that isn't trying to sell you anything, but simply and beautifully celebrating the art & craft of filmmaking.”