Festivals

Mark your calendars for our annual tentpole festivals! Please note that all festival dates, especially those many months in the future, are subject to change.

New York Jewish Film Festival (January 11-24, 2017)
The preeminent showcase for groundbreaking films exploring the diversity of the Jewish experience around the world, co-presented by the Jewish Museum.

Neighboring Scenes (January 26-31, 2017)
A showcase of contemporary Latin American cinema, this selective slate of premieres highlights impressive recent works from across the region, and exhibits the vast breadth of styles, techniques, and approaches employed by Latin American filmmakers today.

Dance on Camera Festival (February 3-7, 2017)
Dance on Camera Festival honors ballet and contemporary dance personalities through documentaries and narrative films, while also demonstrating dance’s capacity to change lives and contribute to well-being.

Film Comment Selects (February 17-23, 2017)
Film Comment magazine’s crucial and eclectic festival brings you a handpicked lineup of the coming-soon and the never-coming-back, the rare and the rediscovered, the unclassifiable and the underrated, the sacred and the profane, the cute and the creepy, the tough and the tender, the naked and the dead—you get the idea.

Rendez-Vous with French Cinema (March 1-12, 2017)
North America’s leading showcase for the best in French film, co-presented with Unifrance Films, attests to the sheer variety and vitality of contemporary French filmmaking.

New Directors/New Films (March 15-26, 2017)
New Directors/New Films introduces New York audiences to the work of emerging filmmakers from around the world. Co-presented with the Museum of Modern Art, this renowned festival has uncovered talents like Pedro Almódovar, Darren Aronofsky, Nicole Holofcener, Spike Lee, Kelly Reichardt, and Steven Spielberg.

Art of the Real (April 20-May 2, 2017)
Our annual nonfiction showcase is founded on the most expansive possible view of documentary film. The second edition features new work from around the world and in a variety of genres alongside retrospective and thematic selections, including a tribute to the great French director Agnès Varda and a spotlight on the art and history of reenactment. Art of the Real is a platform for filmmakers and artists who have given us a wider view of nonfiction cinema and at the same time brought the form full circle, pointing to its early, boundary-pushing days.

New York African Film Festival (May 3-9, 2017)
The New York African Film Festival is a showcase of works that speak to the realities of Africa and the Diaspora. Through the exhibition of works by filmmakers and other visual and performing artists, as well as presentations by critics, scholars and master chefs, festivalgoers will witness the reinvention of Africa through the movement of its people across the globe.

Open Roads: New Italian Cinema (June 1-7, 2017)
One of our most popular annual programs, Open Roads has served as the leading North American showcase of contemporary Italian cinema for the past 14 years.

Human Rights Watch Film Festival (June 9-17, 2017)
The Human Rights Watch Film Festival brings human rights abuses to life through storytelling in a way that challenges each individual to empathize and demand justice for all.

New York Asian Film Festival (June 30-July 13, 2017)
A two-week orgy of popular Asian cinema, this is the film festival that The New York Times calls “one of the city’s most valuable events.”

Scary Movies (July 14-20, 2017)
Moving to summer for the first time this year, Scary Movies brings a deadly dosage of hair-raising premieres and classics.

55th New York Film Festival (September 28*-October 15, 2017)
Since 1963, the New York Film Festival has brought new and important cinematic works from around the world to Lincoln Center. In addition to the Main Slate official selections, the festival includes newly restored classics, special events, filmmaker talks, panel discussions, an Avant-Garde showcase, and much more. The New York Film Festival highlights the best in world cinema, featuring top films from celebrated filmmakers as well as fresh new talent. *Please note: This year’s edition of NYFF opens on a Thursday.