Spokane International Film Festival (SpIFF)

Overview

The Spokane International Film Festival (SpIFF) is eastern Washington's primary film festival. Presented by the Contemporary Arts Alliance (CAA), a Spokane-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit, SpIFF has screened international and independent features, documentaries, and short films since 1999. The 27th annual festival ran March 6 to 8, 2026, at multiple venues across downtown Spokane. The 28th edition is planned for March 2027, with submissions open via FilmFreeway.

SpIFF is an intimate festival where filmmakers and audiences engage directly with the art of cinema. The festival programs a small, selective offering of high-quality features, documentaries, and shorts that have not yet been commercially released. Screenings, parties, and events are open to the public and designed to encourage interaction between filmmakers and audiences.

Spokane is the second-largest city in Washington State (approximately 230,000 residents), located in the Inland Northwest - a region spanning eastern Washington and northern Idaho that is culturally distinct from the coastal Pacific Northwest. The city is home to Gonzaga University and Washington State University's Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine. Spokane's downtown core, where SpIFF screenings take place, has experienced significant revitalization with restaurants, breweries, and arts venues.

Submission Details

Submissions for SpIFF 2027 are open via FilmFreeway.

Eligibility Rules

• SpIFF will not consider open submissions that were publicly screened before the submission deadline of the most recently completed festival (October 15, 2025 for SpIFF 2027)
• Films readily available on the internet without password protection will not be considered, except in extraordinary circumstances (retrospective screenings, films of regional significance, or special invitations)
• SpIFF loves Pacific Northwest filmmakers and especially values those who have their Spokane premiere at SpIFF. Open submissions that receive significant prior exhibition in Spokane (theatrical, non-theatrical, broadcast, or streaming) may be declined at the programmers' discretion
• Filmmakers who plan to require a screening fee must notify SpIFF when submitting on FilmFreeway
• Contact submissions@spokanefilmfestival.org with any eligibility questions before submitting or before screening work in Spokane

Submission Categories

• Narrative feature films
• Documentary feature films
• Short films (narrative, documentary, animated)
• Genre is open

Awards and Prizes

SpIFF presents both jury awards and audience awards. The 2026 festival awarded the following:

The SpIFFy Award is the festival's signature trophy. Jury awards are announced at the SpIFF Awards Party, held on the Saturday night of the festival. The 2026 Awards Party took place at the Garland Theater, hosted between the 6pm and 8:30pm screenings, with light food and desserts. Beverages are available at the BON BON, the iconic bar adjacent to the Garland Theater. Audience awards are announced on the SpIFF website after all ballots are counted.

Festival Program and Screenings

Venues

SpIFF screenings and events take place at multiple venues across downtown Spokane. The 2026 festival utilized the Garland Theater (a historic venue used for screenings and the SpIFF Awards Party) and multiple downtown Spokane venues. The festival's multi-venue approach creates a festival atmosphere across the city core.

Festival Format

SpIFF runs for three days (Friday through Sunday in recent editions). The 2026 festival ran March 6 to 8. The intimate scale means the festival programs a selective lineup rather than a massive slate. Screenings are followed by Q&As with filmmakers, and the festival's size ensures that attending filmmakers have direct access to audiences and other filmmakers.

Awards Party

The Saturday night SpIFF Awards Party is a central social event. Held at the Garland Theater between evening screenings, the party combines jury award announcements with food, drinks, and socializing, open to the public.

What Filmmakers Should Know

Spokane Premiere Requirement

For Pacific Northwest filmmakers, SpIFF places strong emphasis on the Spokane premiere. Open submissions that receive significant exhibition in Spokane prior to SpIFF may be declined. Contact submissions@spokanefilmfestival.org before screening your work in Spokane if you plan to submit.

No Online Availability

SpIFF will not consider open submissions readily available on the internet without password protection. Password-protected screeners are fine.

Intimate Festival Scale

SpIFF is intentionally small and selective. Competition for slots is high relative to the festival's size, but selected films get meaningful attention from audiences and press.

No Formal Film Market

SpIFF does not host a film market or industry marketplace. The value is in audience engagement, community connection, and the festival's reputation within the Pacific Northwest regional circuit. Press attendance is primarily local.

Budgeting for Attendance

Spokane is significantly more affordable than Seattle or Portland. Hotel rates in downtown Spokane typically run $90 to $160 per night. The nearest major airport is Spokane-Fairchild International Airport (GEG), approximately 7 miles from downtown. Downtown Spokane is compact and walkable. Amtrak's Empire Builder stops in Spokane.

Inland Northwest Audience

Spokane's audience is culturally distinct from the coastal Pacific Northwest, with strong connections to agriculture, mining heritage, and outdoor recreation. The city has an educated population thanks to Gonzaga University and WSU's medical school campus. Filmmakers with films about rural America, the American West, or subjects resonating with inland communities may find particularly receptive audiences.

Festival History

The Spokane International Film Festival was founded in 1999 and has operated annually as eastern Washington's primary film cultural event. The festival is a presentation of the Contemporary Arts Alliance (CAA), a Spokane-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to engage a diverse audience in the arts by bringing high-quality regional, national, and international contemporary art to the Inland Northwest. CAA was founded in 1995 and has brought an array of artistic programs to the region, including international acoustic artists, visual and installation art exhibits, contemporary dance, and film.

The president of CAA is Dr. Pete Porter, a Professor of Film in the Department of Fine and Performing Arts. Porter specializes in nonhuman animal representation in film and media, Menippean satire in film, film festival studies, cognitive-analytical film theory, and animation studies. His scholarship includes work on The Big Lebowski and a forthcoming book titled A Cinema of Persons: From Marching Penguins to Octopus Teachers.

The 27th annual SpIFF ran March 6 to 8, 2026, in Spokane. The 28th edition is planned for March 2027, with submissions open via FilmFreeway and a notification date of February 6, 2027.

Past Winners

SpIFF presents jury awards (Golden and Silver SpIFFy) and audience awards across categories. The 2026 jury awarded Honeyjoon (dir. Lilian T. Mehrel) Best Narrative Feature. Our Mr. Matsura (dir. Beth Harrington) and WTO/99 (dir. Ian Bell) tied for Best Documentary Feature. Angel Hair (dir. Sara Magness) won Best Northwest Short.

The 2024 jury awarded Fancy Dance (dir. Erica Tremblay) the Narrative Feature Golden SpIFFy. Bones of Crows (dir. Marie Clements) won the Northwest Feature Golden SpIFFy. Richland (dir. Irene Lusztig) took the Documentary Feature Golden SpIFFy.

Notable Alumni Films

Fancy Dance (2024 Narrative Feature Golden SpIFFy) premiered at Sundance 2023. Apple TV+ acquired global rights and streamed the film starting June 2024. The film stars Lily Gladstone, fresh from her Oscar nomination for Killers of the Flower Moon.

Bones of Crows (2024 Northwest Feature Golden SpIFFy) premiered at TIFF 2022. Hulu distributed the film in the US in November 2024. Richland (2024 Documentary Feature Golden SpIFFy) premiered at Tribeca 2023 and later broadcast on PBS.

Submission Tips

1. Hold your Spokane premiere for SpIFF - prior theatrical, broadcast, or streaming exhibition in Spokane may disqualify your film
2. Ensure your film is not publicly available online without password protection
3. Pacific Northwest filmmakers receive special consideration - the festival values regional voices
4. Films about rural America, the American West, or inland communities find particularly receptive audiences
5. The festival is small and selective - competition for slots is high relative to the festival's size
6. Notify SpIFF when submitting if you plan to require a screening fee

Industry Reputation Notes

SpIFF does not host a film market or industry marketplace. The festival is a cultural event, not a distribution destination. Press coverage comes primarily from local and regional outlets.

Compared to the Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF), SpIFF is far smaller and more intimate. SIFF screens over 200 films; SpIFF programs a selective lineup across 3 days. Filmmakers get direct audience access at SpIFF that larger festivals cannot match.

Compared to the Olympia Film Festival, SpIFF has a more structured jury award system with Golden and Silver SpIFFy trophies. SpIFF also requires a Spokane premiere, while Olympia has no such requirement.

See Also

For Pacific Northwest festival strategy, see Film Festival Strategy. For independent filmmaking, see Independent Filmmaking Strategies. To calculate the return on festival submission spending, use the Festival ROI Calculator. Visit the official SpIFF website or the SpIFF FilmFreeway page for current submission information.