izmir International Women Directors Festival Opens Calls for Its 10th Year: #WeDontGiveUp
One of the international meeting points for creative courage, feminist storytelling, and cinematic solidarity, the İzmir International Women Directors Festival has officially begun preparations for its 10th edition.
The 10th edition of the festival will take place in İzmir between March 26–31, 2027. The slogan of this milestone year has been announced as #WeDontGiveUp.
Founded with the aim of increasing the visibility of women in cinema, the festival has, over the past nine years, evolved into an international platform bringing together directors, producers, screenwriters, film professionals, and audiences from around the world in İzmir.
The 9th edition, held in 2026 under the theme “Through the Lens of Conscience,” received 675 film submissions from 88 countries. A total of 69 selected films were screened across 9 competition categories. The festival featured 27 world premieres and 30 Turkish premieres, presented 15 awards, and hosted 78 national and international guests.
In its 10th year, the festival will continue to create space for powerful narratives, women-centered stories, underrepresented voices, and new cinematic collaborations.
The festival is open to productions with at least one woman director. The Feminist Perspective category is exempt from this requirement.
In addition to film screenings, the festival program will include workshops, panels, masterclasses, and creative industry gatherings. This year, the İzmir International Women Directors Festival Project Development Awards for national productions will also be launched. These awards aim to support projects in development and contribute to the creation of new women-centered narratives from Türkiye.
Applications will open on May 15, 2026.
Final submission deadline: January 31, 2027.
Applications will be made through FilmFreeway: https://filmfreeway.com/iwffturkey
#WeDontGiveUp
The 9th International Women Filmmakers Festival Awards Found Their Owners in İzmir!
Organized by the Women Filmmakers Association between April 24–29 this year, with the support of the İzmir Metropolitan Municipality and the European Union Sivil Düşün Program, the awards of the International Women Filmmakers Festival were presented to their winners at a ceremony held at the Adnan Saygun Cultural Center. The evening was hosted by Sıla Topçam.
In the International “Golden Reel” Feature Film Competition, Emine Emel Balcı’s film “Buradayım, İyiyim” (I’m Here, I’m Fine) won the Best Feature Film Award, while the Biket İlhan Best Director Award, given in honor of director Biket İlhan, was presented to Alexe Landgren and Karen Helene Haugaard, the directors of the film “Lykee Post Partum.” Hatice Aşkın’s film “Adresi Olmayan Ev” (House with No Address) received the Special Jury Award.
In the “Short is Sweet” national category, Deniz Koloş’s film “Ölüm Bizi Ayırana Dek” (Until Death Do Us Part) was selected as the Best Film by the jury, while the Special Jury Award went to Sevgi Esman’s film “Mutlu Ayaklar” (Happy Feet). In the international category, Myriam Garcia Marienstras’s film “An Excess Baggage” was chosen as the Best Film, while “The Good Woman,” directed by Masha Mollenhauer, received the Special Jury Award.
In the “Camera Eye” National Documentary Competition, Mehtap Şamiloğlu’s “Adı Kadın” (Her Name is Woman) won the Best Documentary Award. The Special Jury Award was presented to Nazan Haydari, Özden Cankaya, and Cem Hakverdi for their documentary “Biz Radyoyu Çok Sevdik” (We Loved the Radio So Much). In the “Camera Eye” International category, the Best Film went to “Kickoff” by Roser Corella and Stefano Obino, while the Special Jury Award was given to Raquel Larrosa’s film “Dissonance.”
The Best International Animation Film Award went to Taryn Stickrath-Hutt and Dan Lund’s film “The Finger Wife,” while the Animation Special Jury Award was given to Laura Tofarides’ “Brain Space.” The Best International Experimental Film Award was presented to Pavlina Marvin’s “An Afternoon With-Niki-Revekka,” and the Special Jury Award went to Maryam Shapoorian’s “Ça Reste Entre Nous.”
One of the new sections of the festival this year was Feminist Perspective. The Feminist Perspective Best Film Award went to Farzam Tabibi’s “Portrait,” while the Feminist Perspective Special Jury Award was given to Kameliya P. Petrova’s “Mother Of Rose.” The Audience Award was won by Emine Yıldırım’s film “Gündüz Apollon Gece Athena” (Apollo by Day, Athena by Night). This year, the festival presented the Support for the Arts Award to Ceren Yazıcıoğlu, the General Coordinator of Programs for the Adana Film Festival.