Overview
The Festival Internacional de Cine de Cartagena de Indias (FICCI) is Latin America's oldest film festival, founded in 1960. The 65th edition takes place April 14 to 19, 2026, in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia's Caribbean port city and UNESCO World Heritage Site. The festival is free and open to the public, with a social and cultural mission that frames cinema as a vehicle for human consciousness, democracy, and inclusive societies.
The 65th edition marks the return of official competition after a period without competitive sections. FICCI 65 offers 11 sections: 10 official and 1 Work in Progress. The festival awards USD 100,000 in total prize money. FICCI 65 maintains its status as an Academy Awards-qualifying festival for Iberoamerican short films and documentaries.
Submissions for FICCI 65 opened August 25, 2025, with a deadline of December 7, 2025 (extended from November 30). Submissions are handled exclusively through FestHome. The festival accepts feature films (over 60 minutes) and short films (under 60 minutes) in animation, fiction, documentary, and experimental genres. Films must have Colombia premiere status and must have been completed between 2025 and 2026.
Submission Details
Submissions for FICCI 65 are handled through FestHome:
| Category | Fee |
|---|---|
| Short Films (under 60 minutes) | USD 30 |
| Feature Films (over 60 minutes) | USD 60 |
Submission requirements:
- Submission window: August 25 to December 7, 2025 (extended from November 30)
- Platform: FestHome exclusively
- Eligibility: Films completed between 2025 and 2026
- Premiere status: Colombia premiere required
- Accepted genres: Animation, fiction, documentary, experimental
- Accepted formats: DCP, Apple ProRes 4444, Blu-ray, or H264 Full HD or superior
- Subtitling: Spanish films need English subtitles; English films need Spanish subtitles; other languages need both
- Notification date: March 17, 2026
- Exempt categories: Cortos Universitarios and Tierra Adentro are exempt from submission fees
Films must not have participated previously in FICCI. The festival also accepts projects in post-production for the Work in Progress section.
Key Sections
The 65th edition features 11 sections, 10 official and 1 Work in Progress:
Competitive Sections
- Colombia - Colombian features and shorts (fiction, documentary, essay, animation). Awards: Best Feature Film, Best Short Film, Audience Awards
- Iberoamerica - productions from Latin America, the Caribbean, Spain, and Portugal. Awards: Best Feature Film, Best Short Film
- Cine en los Barrios (Cinema in the Neighborhoods) - films brought to Cartagena and Bolivar communities, any nationality or genre. Awards: Best Feature and/or Best Short
- Cortos Universitarios (University Shorts) - for Colombian students at national and international universities. No submission fee.
- Tierra Adentro (Inland) - for films shot in Colombian territories with limited cinema infrastructure. No submission fee.
Non-Competitive Sections
- Internacional - films from outside Colombia and Iberoamerica
- (S)paces of Time - films exploring temporal and narrative possibilities without duration or format limitations
- De Indias - films shot in Cartagena or Bolivar, or by filmmakers established in the region
- Cine Afro - productions centered on Afro-descendant cultures
- Cine Indigena - films addressing Indigenous cultures and communities
Industry Section
- Work in Progress - Colombian and Iberoamerican projects in advanced editing, presented before sales agents, distributors, programmers, and jury members
Awards / Accreditation
FICCI 65 awards USD 100,000 in total prize money across the Colombia Section (Best Feature Film, Best Short Film, Audience Awards), Iberoamerica Section (Best Feature Film, Best Short Film), and Cine en los Barrios Section (Best Feature and/or Best Short).
FICCI 65 is a qualifying festival for the Academy Awards in the categories of Iberoamerican short films and documentaries. Works recognized by the Curatorial Committee can be notified directly to the Academy.
What Filmmakers Should Know
FICCI is free and open to the public, meaning films screen to general audiences, not just industry professionals. The Colombia section is the primary domestic competitive platform, with an Audience Award voted by festival attendees. FICCI's Oscar-qualifying status for Iberoamerican short films and documentaries makes it a strategic festival for filmmakers targeting Academy Award consideration. Films must have Colombia premiere status. The submission fee of USD 30 for shorts and USD 60 for features is moderate. Cortos Universitarios and Tierra Adentro are free to submit. The Work in Progress section provides visibility before sales agents and distributors for projects in advanced editing.
Festival History
FICCI was founded in 1960, making it Latin America's oldest film festival. The festival predates all other Latin American competitive festivals by at least a decade. For over 6 decades, FICCI has operated in Cartagena de Indias, a Caribbean port city whose old town is surrounded by 16th-century Spanish colonial fortifications and designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The festival's identity is shaped by Cartagena's complex history as a walled colonial city and a Caribbean cultural center. Nobel Prize laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez was born nearby and set much of his magical realist fiction in the Colombian Caribbean. Sections like Cine Afro and Cine Indigena center historically marginalized communities.
The 65th edition in 2026 marks the return of official competition to FICCI. FICCI is funded through Colombia's national cinema support mechanisms and operates with free admission as a deliberate policy choice.
Practical Information
- 65th edition dates: April 14 to 19, 2026
- Location: Cartagena de Indias, Colombia (UNESCO World Heritage Site)
- Admission: Free and open to the public
- Submission platform: FestHome
- Submission fees: USD 30 (shorts), USD 60 (features). Free for Cortos Universitarios and Tierra Adentro.
- Submission deadline: December 7, 2025 (extended from November 30)
- Notification date: March 17, 2026
- Premiere requirement: Colombia premiere
- Prize money: USD 100,000 total
- Oscar-qualifying: Yes, for Iberoamerican short films and documentaries
- Website: ficcifestival.com
Past Winners
2026 (65th Edition)
Iberoamerica Competition:
- Best Feature Film: Lo demas es ruido (dir. Nicolas Pereda, Mexico/Germany/Canada), also winning Best Interpretation for Teresita Sanchez
- Grand Jury Prize: Chicas tristes (dir. Fernanda Tovar)
- Best Director: Milagros Mumenthaler for Las corrientes
- Best Short Film: Agua fria (dirs. Meme Cabello and Antonia Martinez Valls, Chile)
- Documentary Oscar 2027 Candidate: Nuestra Tierra (dir. Lucrecia Martel)
Colombia Competition:
- Best Feature Film: El hogar fue sepultado en esa tierra que nunca pudimos encontrar (dir. Deimer Quintero), also winning the Audience Award
- Grand Jury Prize: Piedras preciosas (dir. Simon Velez), also winning Best First Film
- Best Director: Las almas ni los ojos (dirs. Canela Reyes and Cesar Jaimes)
- Best Short Film: Futuros luminosos (dir. Ismael Garcia Ramirez)
2025 (64th Edition)
- Best Colombian Feature (Jury): Morichales (dir. Chris Gude), COP 10,000,000
- Best Colombian Feature (Audience): Adios al amigo (dir. Ivan Gaona), COP 10,000,000
- Cine en los Barrios Best Film: Sugar Island (dir. Johanne Gomez Terrero, Dominican Republic/Spain), which premiered at Venice's Giornate degli Autori
Notable Alumni Films and Where They Ended Up
- Ciro Guerra - Embrace of the Serpent (2015) screened at FICCI 56. The film became Colombia's first Academy Award-nominated feature, competing for Best Foreign Language Film at the 88th Academy Awards. Premiered at Cannes' Directors' Fortnight and sold to over 20 territories.
- Cristina Gallego and Ciro Guerra - Birds of Passage (2018) premiered at Cannes' Directors' Fortnight and was Colombia's submission for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Acquired by Sony Pictures Classics.
- Lucrecia Martel - Nuestra Tierra (2025) was selected as the FICCI 65 documentary candidate for the 2027 Academy Awards. Premiered at Venice. Strand Releasing distributed the film in the US.
- Johanne Gomez Terrero - Sugar Island (2024) won the Cine en los Barrios section at FICCI 64. Premiered at Venice's Giornate degli Autori and won the Edipo Re Award.
Submission Tips Specific to This Festival
- Target the right section for your nationality. Colombian films submit to the Colombia section. Films from Latin America, the Caribbean, Spain, and Portugal submit to Iberoamerica. Films from outside these regions submit to the non-competitive Internacional section.
- Iberoamerican short filmmakers should leverage Oscar-qualifying status. Winning Best Short Film in the Iberoamerica section provides a direct pathway to Oscar eligibility.
- Submit through FestHome, not FilmFreeway. The submission fee is USD 30 for shorts and USD 60 for features.
- Colombia premiere is required. Films cannot have screened publicly in Colombia before FICCI.
- Student filmmakers and regional filmmakers can submit for free. Cortos Universitarios and Tierra Adentro are exempt from submission fees.
- Work in Progress projects require direct contact. The WIP section is not part of the FestHome submission process.
Industry Reputation Notes
FICCI holds a unique position as Latin America's oldest film festival. Unlike Mar del Plata, which holds FIAPF Category A accreditation, FICCI operates without FIAPF accreditation. However, FICCI's Oscar-qualifying status for Iberoamerican short films and documentaries gives it a distinct advantage over many peer festivals.
The festival's free admission model means films reach broad public audiences rather than industry-only crowds. FICCI programmed over 200 films from 57 countries at its 65th edition, with 65,000 attendees and 700 accredited press.
FICCI's programming centers on social and cultural engagement, reflected in sections like Cine Afro and Cine Indigena. The festival benefits from Netflix's involvement as a sponsor (announced for FICCI 65). However, FICCI does not host a major film market. Its industry value lies in Colombian and Iberoamerican cinema networking, Oscar qualification, and public exposure.
Watch
See Also
For Colombian cinema context, see Bogota International Film Festival. For Latin American cinema broadly, see International Film Markets. For festival strategy, see Film Festival Strategy. Use the Festival Entry Fee ROI Calculator to evaluate the cost-benefit of submitting to festivals with paid submission fees. For other Latin American festivals, see Mar del Plata in Argentina, FestCurtasBH in Brazil, or Cine Recobrado Valparaíso in Chile.
