Havana Film Festival (Festival Internacional del Nuevo Cine Latinoamericano)

Overview

The Havana Film Festival, officially the Festival Internacional del Nuevo Cine Latinoamericano, is Latin America's longest-running politically engaged film festival. Founded in 1979 by the Cuban Institute of Cinematographic Art and Industry (ICAIC), the festival runs for 10 days each December in Havana. The 46th edition took place December 4 to 14, 2025, screening over 330 films from 42 countries. The 47th edition is scheduled for December 3 to 13, 2026.

The festival's identity is inseparable from the New Latin American Cinema movement of the 1960s and 1970s, which included filmmakers like Tomas Gutierrez Alea (Memories of Underdevelopment), Glauber Rocha (Black God, White Devil), and Jorge Sanjines (Blood of the Condor). ICAIC created the festival as the primary international showcase for this tradition of anti-imperialist, socially committed cinema. That political identity has been maintained across 46 editions through Cuba's economic crises, the Special Period, and the post-Cold War transition.

For filmmakers working with Latin American or Caribbean themes, the Coral Awards are among the most historically significant competitive prizes in the region. The festival does not charge submission fees for its competitive categories, making it one of the few major Latin American festivals with free entry. Registration is handled exclusively through the festival website or in person at the Casa del Festival (Calle 19 y 2, Vedado, Havana).

Submission Details

Submissions for the 47th edition (December 2026) open May 28, 2026, and close August 15, 2026.

Competitive Categories

• Fiction Feature - Latin American narrative features competing for the Coral Award for Best Feature Film
• Opera Prima - first-time feature directors, competing for the Coral for Best Debut Feature
• Documentary Feature - Latin American nonfiction features
• Short Film - Latin American and international shorts (fiction, documentary, animation)
• Animation - animated features and shorts
• Otros Territorios - experimental cinema, alternative narrative proposals
• Arrecife - works addressing LGBTQ+ themes, competing for the Coral Arrecife
• Guion Inedito - unproduced screenplays
• Cartel - festival poster design

Eligibility Rules

Films must address Latin American or Caribbean themes, either in their stories, character situations, or contexts. Films that have participated in previous editions of the festival are ineligible for competition. Films that have been screened at other film events in Cuba are also excluded from competition, though they may be considered for non-competitive sections like Latinoamerica en Perspectiva and Panorama Internacional. Films openly shared on digital platforms are ineligible for competition.

Premiere Status Requirements

The festival does not require a World Premiere but excludes films previously screened at other Cuban festivals or previously submitted to past editions of the Havana festival itself. Films available on digital platforms are excluded from competitive categories. For international films screening in non-competitive sections, the premiere requirements are more flexible.

46th Edition Coral Award Winners (2025)

The 46th edition ceremony took place December 12, 2025, at Cine Charles Chaplin in Havana. Key winners:

Fiction Feature:

• Coral for Best Feature Film: "Un poeta" (dir. Simon Mesa Soto, Colombia/Germany/Sweden) - also Colombia's Oscar submission
• Coral for Best Director: Kleber Mendonca Filho for "El agente secreto" (Brazil/France)
• Coral for Best Screenplay: Kleber Mendonca Filho for "El agente secreto"
• Coral for Best Actor: Ubeimar Rios for "Un poeta"
• Coral for Best Actress: Helen Mrugalski for "Cuerpo celeste" (Chile/Italy) and Denise Weinberg for "El sendero azul" (Brazil) (shared)
• Special Jury Prize: "El origen del mundo" (dir. Jazmin Lopez, Argentina)
• Coral for Artistic Contribution: "Eva" (dir. William Reyes, Honduras)

Documentary:

• Coral for Best Documentary Feature: "El principe de Nanawa" (dir. Clarisa Navas, Argentina)
• Special Jury Prize (Documentary): "Hijo de tigre y mula" (dir. Annie Canavaggio, Panama/Colombia)

Opera Prima:

• Coral for Best First Feature: "La misteriosa mirada del flamenco" (dir. Diego Cespedes, Chile)

Animation:

• Coral for Best Animated Feature: "Corazon de las tinieblas" (dir. Rogerio Nunes, Brazil/France)
• Coral for Best Animated Short: "Raptus" (dir. Ivette Avila, Cuba)

Other Categories:

• Coral Arrecife (LGBTQ+): "Dos veces bestia" (dir. Luis Esguerra Cifuentes)
• Otros Territorios: "Croma" (dir. Manuel Abramovich, Argentina)
• FIPRESCI Prize: "En el camino" (dir. David Pablos, Mexico)
• Don Quixote Award: "Un poeta"
• SIGNIS Award: "Un poeta"
• Glauber Rocha Award (Prensa Latina): "Belen" (dir. Leandro de Loredo, Argentina)

Industry Program

The festival's industry section includes programs for projects in development and post-production:

• Produccion en Curso - projects in the development stage, with specific submission details published separately on the festival website under the Industria section
• Postproduccion - projects in post-production, competing for Coral Awards in post-production with partner awards from Aracne DC, Tauro Digital, La Burbuja Sonido, Estudios Churubusco, and Boogieman Media
• Encuentro de Coproduccion - co-production meetings connecting Latin American producers with international partners

The industry section is one of the few platforms in Latin America specifically designed for politically and socially engaged cinema projects. Post-production awards include in-kind services from Cuban and regional post-production houses.

What Filmmakers Should Know

For Latin American Filmmakers

The Havana festival is the most historically significant competitive platform dedicated exclusively to Latin American and Caribbean cinema. The Coral Award for Best Feature Film carries weight across the region's film industries. Winning the Coral has historically translated into distribution attention within Latin America and festival circuit invitations from Europe.

The festival's free submission policy means cost is not a barrier. The trade-off is that the festival's infrastructure has been affected by Cuba's economic situation. Communication with festival staff may be slower than at European or North American festivals. Filmmakers should plan for longer response times and be prepared to deliver screening materials through diplomatic channels or in-person delivery if standard shipping proves unreliable.

Films that have been publicly shared online are ineligible. This is stricter than many festivals that only exclude VOD or theatrical release. If your film has been posted on Vimeo, YouTube, or any public platform, it cannot compete.

For International Filmmakers

The festival's competitive sections are restricted to Latin American and Caribbean-themed works. International films without Latin American themes can screen in non-competitive sections (Panorama Internacional, Latinoamerica en Perspectiva) but cannot compete for Coral Awards. International filmmakers with films about Latin American subjects or co-produced with Latin American producers should verify eligibility directly with the festival.

The festival does not have an attached film market. Its industry value is in the co-production meetings and the concentration of Latin American producers, directors, and CNAC (Centro Nacional Autonomo de Cinematografia) representatives from across the region.

Practical Considerations

Havana's infrastructure presents logistical challenges. Internet access is limited and expensive. Accommodation options range from state hotels to casas particulares (private homestays). Filmmakers attending in person should arrange accommodation well in advance and budget for higher-than-expected costs due to Cuba's dual-currency system and tourism pricing.

Screening venues include Cine Charles Chaplin, Cine Yara, Cine Acapulco, Cine Infanta, and Cine 23 y 12, all within Vedado and central Havana. The festival's closing ceremony and Coral Award announcement take place at Cine Charles Chaplin.

Festival History

The Festival Internacional del Nuevo Cine Latinoamericano was founded in 1979 by ICAIC (Instituto Cubano del Arte e Industria Cinematograficos), which was itself established in 1959 as one of the first cultural institutions of the Cuban Revolution. The festival was created to provide a dedicated platform for the New Latin American Cinema movement, which sought to decolonize Latin American visual culture from Hollywood and European models.

The festival has operated continuously for 46 editions, surviving the collapse of the Soviet Union (Cuba's primary economic partner), the economic crisis of the Special Period in the 1990s, and the ongoing effects of the US trade embargo. Through these periods, the festival maintained its commitment to Latin American and Caribbean cinema as a tool for cultural sovereignty and political expression.

The Coral Award, named after the coral reefs surrounding Cuba, has been the festival's top prize since its founding. Past Coral winners include films by Tomas Gutierrez Alea, Fernando Birri, Walter Salles, and other major figures of Latin American cinema. The festival expanded its categories over the decades to include animation, opera prima, documentary, experimental cinema (Otros Territorios), and LGBTQ+ cinema (Arrecife).

See Also

Calculate your total festival submission costs and projected return using the Festival ROI Calculator. Estimate your acceptance probability with the Festival Acceptance Odds Estimator. For festival circuit strategy and Latin American premiere planning, see Film Festival Strategy. For Latin American film market analysis, see International Film Markets. For the Mar del Plata International Film Festival, Argentina's other major Latin American festival, see Mar del Plata. Submit through the official festival website.