Overview
The Louisiana International Film Festival (LIFF) is a regional film festival based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Founded in 2011, the festival screened approximately 50 feature-length films and shorts across 4 screens at the Cinemark Perkins Rowe theater, with filmmaker Q&As, workshops, and guest speaker events. LIFF was operated by the Louisiana Film Foundation, a nonprofit that also maintained a year-round film society and pre-release screenings. The festival ran 7 editions before going on hiatus during the COVID-19 pandemic. As of July 2026, the festival has not resumed operations.
Louisiana was one of the first US states to offer film tax incentives, beginning in 2002, and has been one of the most active production states outside of California, New York, and Georgia. The state's incentive program and diverse locations from New Orleans to bayou country have attracted productions for over two decades.
Festival Details (Historical)
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Status | On hiatus since 2019 (COVID-19 pandemic) |
| Venue | Cinemark Perkins Rowe, 10000 Perkins Road, Baton Rouge, LA |
| Typical Format | 4 to 5 days, 4 screens |
| Film Volume | Approximately 50 feature-length films and shorts |
| Ticket Pricing (Historical) | $10 single screening, $20 student pass, $125 all-access pass, $150 VIP pass |
| Submission Platform | Previously Withoutabox/FilmFreeway |
Historical Submission Requirements
- Projects completed on or after January 1, 2012
- All non-English films required English subtitles
- Works in progress and promotional or commercial works were not accepted
- Entry fees were required in US funds, non-refundable
Key Sections (Historical Programming)
- Feature Film Program - domestic, foreign, and regional feature films
- Documentary Program - nonfiction features
- Short Film Competition - competitive short film programs across genres
- Louisiana Film Section - films by Louisiana filmmakers and films with Louisiana themes
- Workshops and Panels - over 30 workshops per edition, with guest speakers including actors Vincent D'Onofrio and Sally Kirkland, Oscar-winning cinematographer Mauro Fiore, and director Bernard Rose
- Year-Round Programming - pre-release screenings of awards contenders for film society members
Major Awards (Historical)
- Best Film - jury prize for top feature
- Best Louisiana Film - jury prize for Louisiana-connected production
- Audience Award - voted by festival attendees
- Best Short Film - jury prize for top short
What Filmmakers Should Know
Current Status: On Hiatus
As of July 2026, the Louisiana International Film Festival has not resumed operations since its 2019 edition. The festival went on hiatus during the COVID-19 pandemic. Filmmakers should not attempt to submit films until the festival officially announces a resumption. The organization's website (lifilmfest.org) remains registered, but no active programming has been confirmed.
Louisiana Film Tax Incentive Program
Louisiana operates one of the most established film tax incentive programs in the United States. For applications approved on or after July 1, 2025, under Act 44 (SB 232) of the 2025 Regular Session:
| Credit Component | Rate |
|---|---|
| Base Investment Credit | 25% on qualified in-state production expenditures |
| Louisiana Screenplay Bonus | +10% (screenplay by Louisiana resident, expenditures $50K to $5M) |
| Out-of-NOLA Zone Bonus | +5% (production office and 60%+ of principal photography outside New Orleans MSA) |
| Louisiana Resident Payroll Credit | +15% on qualified Louisiana resident payroll (first $3M per resident) |
| VFX Credit | +5% on qualified VFX spend (50%+ of VFX budget in-state, or minimum $1M) |
| Total Maximum | Up to 40% |
Key program parameters:
- Annual credit issuance cap: $125 million per fiscal year (reduced from $150M by 2025 legislation)
- Minimum in-state expenditure: $300,000 for general productions, $50,000 for Louisiana screenplay productions
- Credits can be transferred back to the State for 90% of face value (88% net after 2% transfer fee)
- Act 44 removed per-project credit caps and per-person payroll caps that existed under prior law
Baton Rouge benefits from the Out-of-NOLA Zone bonus, as it falls outside the New Orleans Metropolitan Statistical Area. Celtic Studios, a major production facility in Baton Rouge, has hosted numerous productions. The city's proximity to New Orleans (approximately 80 miles) allows productions to access both markets while qualifying for the bonus.
Alternative Louisiana Festivals
With LIFF on hiatus, Louisiana filmmakers seeking festival exhibition have several alternatives:
- New Orleans Film Festival - the state's largest active film festival, typically held in October/November
- Baton Rouge Irish Film Festival - accepting submissions through July 1, 2026, with no submission fee
- Louisiana Bayou Film Festival - first annual edition July 31 to August 1, 2026, in Louisiana, accepting short films (10 minutes or less) with a $150 submission fee and $5,000 in total cash prizes
Festival History
The Louisiana International Film Festival was founded in 2011 by the Louisiana Film Foundation. The inaugural juried festival was held April 18 to 21, 2013, at Cinemark Perkins Rowe in Baton Rouge. By 2015, attendance reached 6,000, with over 60 films screened and over 30 workshops. The 2016 edition screened 39 feature films, including Werner Herzog's Lo and Behold, Reveries of the Connected World and Cannes Palme d'Or winner Dheepan. The 2019 edition collaborated with the Arts Council of Baton Rouge at the Ebb & Flow Festival. This was the last confirmed edition before the festival went on hiatus.
Past Winners
LIFF presented juried and audience awards across its 7 editions (2013-2019). The top juried prize was Best Film, with additional categories for documentary, Louisiana cinema, and short films.
2013 (Inaugural Edition):
- Best Documentary: Bound by Flesh (dir. Leslie Zemeckis).
- Best First Feature: Lonely Boy (dir. Dale Fabrigar).
- Best Actor: Dennis Quaid for At Any Price.
- Audience Award (tie): Twenty Feet from Stardom (dir. Morgan Neville) and Disconnect (dir. Henry-Alex Rubin).
2015 (3rd Edition):
- Best Director: Brett Haley for I'll See You in My Dreams.
- Best Documentary: Big Charity (dir. Alexander Glustorm). A Louisiana documentary about the closure of a historic New Orleans hospital.
- Best Louisiana Short Film: Madeline's Oil (dir. Caleb Michaelson).
2017 (5th Edition):
- Dan Ireland Award: Kills on Wheels (dir. Attila Till).
- Special guest: Renee Zellweger presented the inaugural Dan Ireland Award, honoring the festival's late artistic director.
2018 (6th Edition):
- Dan Ireland New Voices/New Visions Award: Stealing Rodin (dir. Victor Vukosavljevic).
- Best Documentary Feature (Audience): Sammy Davis, Jr.: I Gotta Be Me (dir. Sam Pollard).
- Best Louisiana Narrative Feature: Blaze (dir. Ethan Hawke).
- Best Louisiana Documentary Feature: Larger Than Life: The Kevin Aucoin Story (dir. Tiffany Bartok).
Notable Alumni Films
LIFF functioned as a regional exhibition festival. Most films screened had already premiered at Sundance, Cannes, or SXSW. Several films that screened at LIFF achieved significant downstream success:
- Twenty Feet from Stardom (2013) - won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature at the 86th Academy Awards. Distributed by Radius-TWC. Earned $21 million worldwide on a $1 million budget. Tied for the LIFF 2013 Audience Award.
- The Embrace of the Serpent (2016) - screened at LIFF 2016 after its Cannes premiere. Nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Distributed by Oscilloscope Laboratories.
- RBG (2018) - screened at LIFF 2018. Distributed by Magnolia Pictures and Participant Media. Earned $14 million at the US box office. Nominated for 2 Academy Awards.
- Blaze (2018) - Louisiana premiere at LIFF 2018, shot near Baton Rouge. Directed by Ethan Hawke. Distributed by IFC Films.
Submission Tips
Since LIFF is on hiatus, these tips reflect the festival's historical curatorial preferences for filmmakers considering future submissions:
- Louisiana connection matters. The festival maintained a dedicated Louisiana Film section with separate awards. Films shot in Louisiana or made by Louisiana residents received priority consideration for this track.
- Documentaries performed well at LIFF. Three of the festival's most notable selections were documentaries (Twenty Feet from Stardom, Miss Sharon Jones!, Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You). Character-driven nonfiction features aligned with the festival's programming taste.
- International arthouse cinema fit the program. LIFF screened films like The Embrace of the Serpent, Dheepan, and Timbuktu. Foreign language films with festival circuit buzz matched the festival's curatorial direction.
- Festival circuit premieres helped. Films that had premiered at Sundance, Cannes, SXSW, or Tribeca but had not yet screened in Louisiana were strong candidates for LIFF's state premiere slots.
- Short films had dedicated competition. LIFF ran separate short film competitions for international and Louisiana shorts, with juried awards in both categories.
Industry Reputation Notes
LIFF occupied a specific niche in the US festival circuit: a regional festival in a major production hub. The festival was not a market festival and did not broker distribution deals. Its industry value came from a mentorship program that connected visiting filmmakers with Louisiana-based industry professionals (guests included Vincent D'Onofrio, Sally Kirkland, Mauro Fiore, and Bernard Rose), the Louisiana Film Society's year-round screenings of awards contenders before their wide releases, and the festival's location in Baton Rouge with access to the state's production infrastructure.
Compared to peer festivals, LIFF was smaller and more community-focused than the New Orleans Film Festival (NOFF), which attracts roughly 20,000 attendees. LIFF drew 6,000 attendees at its 2015 peak but offered a more intimate filmmaker experience with direct access to guest speakers and a dedicated mentorship program. Against other Southern regional festivals like the Oxford Film Festival (Mississippi) or the Sidewalk Film Festival (Birmingham), LIFF competed on programming quality but differed in its emphasis on the Louisiana production industry connection. The tax incentive context gave LIFF a unique angle that pure exhibition festivals could not offer.
See Also
For the New Orleans Film Festival, see New Orleans Film Festival. For festival circuit strategy, see Film Festival Strategy. For independent filmmaking approaches, see Independent Filmmaking Strategies. For Louisiana production incentive details, visit the Louisiana Entertainment Motion Picture Production Program page. For historical festival information, visit lifilmfest.org.
