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The Melbourne International Film Festival has unveiled its full 2026 program, with more than 300 films, shorts, XR experiences and special events screening across Melbourne and regional Victoria this August.
MIFF 2026 runs from August 6–23, with MIFF Online available nationally from August 14–30.
Opening this year’s festival is Wicker, the new film from Australian-born filmmakers Eleanor Wilson and Alex Huston Fischer. The film will have its Australian premiere at HOYTS Melbourne Central on August 6, with both directors attending.
Other major titles in the program include Andrey Zvyagintsev’s Minotaur, Gus Van Sant’s Dead Man’s Wire, Paweł Pawlikowski’s Fatherland, Lukas Dhont’s Coward, Gregg Araki’s I Want Your Sex and Zachary Wigon’s Victorian Psycho.
MIFF will also host the world premiere of Tina Arena: Unravel Me, a 25th-anniversary screening of Hedwig and the Angry Inch presented by John Cameron Mitchell, the return of Footy Shorts and the inaugural Sovereign Shorts Gala.
The festival’s Premiere With Purpose Gala returns on August 11 with Silenced, a documentary examining how defamation law has been used against women who speak publicly about abuse and misconduct.
This year’s Family Gala will feature the Australian premiere of DreamWorks Animation’s Forgotten Island.
If you can’t get into Metro Melbourne for any screenings or events, there will be some films available to rent online as part of MIFF. At the same time, MIFF Regional will run across Bendigo, Ballarat, Castlemaine, Geelong, Healesville, Rosebud, Sale and Warrnambool on August 14–16 and August 21–23.
Tickets for MIFF 2026 are on sale now, and you can begin planning your festival experience.
