FilmOut San Diego will be presenting the 26th Annual FILMOUT SAN DIEGO LGBTQ FILM FESTIVAL August 20-23, 2026.

We are one of the longest-running film festivals in Southern California and the only LGBTQ film festival in the San Diego area. Our festival is well-respected in the film community and often have World and U.S. premieres. People from around the world attend the festival as we offer filmmakers Q&A sessions after most films. Interviews with filmmakers and talent are uploaded to social media platforms for maximum exposure. We also have a fantastic Opening Night gala and Closing Night reception each year.

This year our annual San Diego LGBTQ Film Festival will be a four-day event that includes international, documentary, short and feature films shown in two different locations. As always, we strive to show the newest LGBTQ-themed film selections available.

FilmOut San Diego annually affirms the ongoing integrity and boundless imagination of our community and the artists who tell our stories. We believe our work is part of an ongoing effort to build a vibrant, affirming and sustainable LGBTQ community in San Diego County. We hope you will join us and submit your project!

Awards & Prizes

We are IMDB accredited.

• Best Narrative Feature
• Best (First) Narrative Feature
• Best International Feature
• Best Documentary
• Best U.S. Short
• Best International Short
• Best Overall Short
• Best Male Short
• Best Female Short
• Best Direction
• Best (First) Direction
• Best Actor in a Feature Film
• Best Actress in a Feature Film
• Best Actor in a Supporting Role
• Best Actress in a Supporting Role
• Best Screenplay
• Best Cinematography
• Best Soundtrack
• Best Ensemble

...plus additional Festival Awards and Special Programming Awards including:

• Freedom Award
• Outstanding Emerging Talent
• Outstanding Artistic Achievement

The mission of FilmOut San Diego is to enlighten, educate, and entertain San Diego, California and its outlying communities through the exhibition of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered and queer-themed films. As well as cult-themed films that we screen every other month during the year. FilmOut San Diego seeks to recognize, promote, celebrate and support the important diverse artistic contributions LGBTQ filmmakers make to our community.

Rules & Terms

• FilmOut San Diego is a lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) film festival. All submissions must be relevant to that community or your entry will be disqualified. Please do not submit any films without clear LGBTQ content.
• Film screeners are only accepted digitally through FilmFreeway.
• There are screening fees required to submit to FilmOut San Diego paid through FilmFreeway.
• Our submission period is from February 1, 2026 – April 30, 2026.
• If you are unable to submit via FilmFreeway, please contact michael@filmoutsandiego.com
• There will be no refunds once a project has been submitted.
• If your film is selected to the festival, you will be notified by June 6th, 2025 and expected to provide your film (format to be determined by Program Director) as soon as you are selected.
• Films that are available to the public via streaming, VOD, or have played in San Diego (theatrically or featured at another San Diego film festival prior to our festival dates) are not eligible.
• Additional materials will be requested once your film has been selected: jpegs, synopsis, posters, film clips, etc. We request all items (including films) be transmitted via Dropbox.

All selected entries do hereby grant FilmOut San Diego the right to use footage, stills, and/or titles and information from the film for promotional purposes to include, but not limited to, cable, TV, Internet, radio and print sources.
29 Reviews
Overall Rating
Quality
Value
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Networking
  • Ben Baur

    FilmOut San Diego is truly one of the best film festivals I’ve ever been part of. The programming is thoughtful, diverse, and consistently inspiring. Every block offers something unique. What makes FilmOut stand out, though, is the community. The staff and volunteers treat filmmakers with so much care, and the audiences are warm, engaged, and excited about queer stories.

    September 2025
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  • Jonathan Hammond

    The programming here is excellent. Honor to have played this fest.

    August 2025
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  • Aaron Immediato

    This was an amazing experience attending FilmOut, and I'm so honored to have my short film "The Last Story on Earth" included with so many outstanding films. Michael and all the staff and volunteers were incredibly welcoming and devoted to the films and filmmakers they presented. The audiences were huge at all the screenings, and the Q&A's were run very well and offered great audience interaction and feedback.

    August 2025
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  • Garrett Abdo

    Michael and the entire team work tirelessly and make this event one of the best festivals around. It was an honor to be this years "Festival Spotlight Feature" and the cast and crew were treated like royalty. Thank you SO much for this incredible World Premiere of "Exit Interviews"

    August 2025
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  • Ahuatl Amaro

    Our team had an incredible time at the 25th annual FilmOut festival in San Diego! We are thankful for the around the clock help, support and hospitality from Kaleb, Michael and the entire FilmOut team. Congratulations on a truly memorable festival.

    August 2025
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