MORGANABLE LIFE & CULTURE / FESTIVALS
Alternativa Film Festival has opened submissions for its 2027 edition, which will take place in Africa for the first time.
Akure —
Alternativa Film Festival has opened submissions for its 2027 edition, which will take place in Africa for the first time. The organisers announced the call on October 29, inviting filmmakers from Africa, Asia and Latin America.
The festival will offer $120,000 across seven awards. It also aims to help selected filmmakers reach wider audiences and connect with film industry professionals.
The fourth edition is scheduled for late 2027. However, the organisers have not announced the host country, city or exact dates.
They expect to name the host country by December 31, 2026, and reveal the city and dates by February 28, 2027. These announcements will help filmmakers prepare.
Submissions opened on October 29, 2026, and will close on March 1, 2027. Entry is free. The festival accepts feature films from Africa, Asia and Latin America.
Short film submissions, however, are open only to African filmmakers. This rule reflects the continent’s position as the main focus of the 2027 edition.
The organisers welcome fiction, documentary, animation and hybrid films across all genres. Each film must have been completed after January 1, 2026.
Feature films must run for at least 40 minutes, while short films must be under 40 minutes.
Applicants must meet the festival’s regional eligibility rules. The official website provides the list of eligible countries and submission requirements.
The $120,000 prize fund will be shared across seven awards. Three awards are reserved for African filmmakers.
They include the $20,000 Focus Award for a feature film and two Short Film Awards worth $10,000 each.
African filmmakers can also compete for the other awards, which are open to eligible films from all three regions.
The awards recognise films that combine strong storytelling with the potential to create positive social change.
The festival focuses on cinema that explores important issues and encourages audiences to think about the world.
Therefore, it aims to offer more than artistic recognition. It also wants to support filmmakers whose work can start conversations and connect communities.
Directors of films selected for the competition will be invited to attend the festival and awards ceremony. The organisers will cover their travel and accommodation costs.
This support will help selected filmmakers present their work, meet industry professionals and build new relationships.
It may also make participation easier for independent creators with limited resources.
Alternativa is a global initiative founded and supported by inDrive. It promotes filmmakers from the Global South and works to help their stories reach wider audiences.
The initiative says these regions account for a large share of the world’s population but remain under-represented in international cinema.
Its work focuses on improving visibility and creating more opportunities for films from these markets.
The festival has moved between regions since it began. Its first edition took place in Almaty, Kazakhstan, in 2023. It moved to Yogyakarta, Indonesia, in 2024, and then to Medellín, Colombia, in 2026.
The move to Africa continues this approach. It will also bring the event closer to filmmakers and audiences in a region that has often struggled to gain equal access to global film platforms.
The Medellín edition showed the festival’s growing reach. It received 1,831 submissions from 55 countries and attracted 11,000 attendees.
It also welcomed 107 international guests and worked with more than 60 partners.
These figures made the 2026 event the festival’s largest edition so far. Organisers hope to build on that response in Africa.
The 2027 programme will include public screenings, discussions and other activities. These events will explore the social issues raised by selected films.
The festival will also host Industry Days, a free professional programme connecting filmmakers, producers, industry experts and social impact leaders from across the Global South.
Alternativa’s work also extends beyond its annual festival. Earlier in 2026, it launched Alternativa Distribution, a non-profit label designed to help films from the Global South reach international audiences.
The initiative aims to support filmmakers and local film industries through a model that shares value with the people who create the work.
Alternativa Distribution offers upfront minimum guarantees for non-theatrical rights. It also covers subtitling and dubbing costs and shares revenue after recovering direct distribution expenses.
The model aims to reduce barriers that can prevent films from reaching viewers outside their home markets.
Films selected for the 2027 festival may also be considered for the distribution catalogue, but festival selection does not guarantee a distribution deal.
Arsen Tomsky, founder and chief executive officer of inDrive, said the initiative was created to challenge unequal access to international audiences.
He said strong filmmaking could come from any region, but creators did not always have the same opportunities to show their work worldwide. Alternativa Distribution, he explained, aims to address that gap.
Liza Surganova, head of Alternativa, said the organisation wanted the African edition to build on the progress of earlier festivals.
She highlighted the continent’s range of cultures and film perspectives. She added that the new edition would create stronger connections across the Global South. The organisers have invited filmmakers from all eligible regions to submit their work.
The festival’s expansion comes as African filmmakers seek wider access to international markets, funding and distribution networks.
Hosting the event in Africa could draw attention to local stories and connect creators with partners from other regions.
However, its impact will depend on the final location, programme and opportunities available after the festival.
With its African edition, Alternativa is bringing its focus on impact-driven cinema to a new region.
The $120,000 prize fund offers an incentive, while screenings, professional meetings and distribution support could provide further value.
Eligible filmmakers now have the opportunity to prepare entries and share their stories with wider audiences.
