Submissions are now open!

imagineNATIVE promotes Indigenous-made media by developing platforms for artists to assert their voices, express their perspectives, and share their cultures.

The upcoming 25th annual imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival will take place in-person at the TIFF Lightbox in Toronto from June 3-8, 2025, and move to our online streaming and iNdigital platforms from June 9-15, 2025.

Get ready to submit your work to the world’s largest Indigenous film and media arts Festival! 

We’re accepting submissions in Film + Video, Digital + Interactive, and Audio.

We are announcing a change of dates for the next imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival!

The 25th imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival will take place June 3-8, 2025 (Toronto) and June 9-15, 2025 (online).

Visit our FAQ page to learn more about this change, submissions for our 2025 Festival, and find the answers to other questions. To keep up-to-date on our year-round screenings, events, professional development opportunities, and more, subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on social media!

imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival will take place from October 17-29th, 2023

Submissions to the 24th Annual imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival, running from October 17-29, 2023, are now closed.

Thank you to everyone who submitted their work for consideration! Submissions will open for our 25th Festival in spring 2024.

About the Festival

As the largest presenter of Indigenous screen content, we invite audiences everywhere to join us at our annual Festival, where we feature artistic and industry programming. We are proud to showcase Film + Video, Digital + Interactive, and Audio works created by Indigenous artists (including directors, producers, writers, and designers) at all levels of experience, from all over the world.

2023 Award Winners

 
The imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival juries selected winners across film, video, audio and digital media works, many of which were presented at the 2023 Awards Presentation alongside August Schellenberg Award of Excellence recipient, Jennifer Podemski. 

The 2023 Festival presents artists with $66,000 in cash prizes in recognition of their outstanding work, innovation and excellence.
 

Festival Date Change

The 25th imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival will take place June 3-8, 2025 (Toronto) and June 9-15, 2025 (online).
 
Celebrating its milestone 25th anniversary, the imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival is permanently moving its fall festival to June just in time for Indigenous Peoples’ Month.

Submissions

Stay tuned for our Call for Submissions for the 2024 imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival!

Submissions will reopen in spring 2024. For more information, please contact:
submissions@imagineNATIVE.org.

Institute

The Institute is a department within imagineNATIVE that houses year-round professional development programs, events, talks, and Indigenous-led professional development opportunities to address gaps within the industry and build capacity for Indigenous creatives. The Institute also presents Industry Days a multi-day professional conference at the annual imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival featuring panels, masterclasses, and networking events.

iNdigital

At its core, imagineNATIVE’s mandate is to respect story in every form: the integrity, intention and perspective of artists as channeled through screen-based storytelling. Over the past two decades, imagineNATIVE has played a crucial role in promoting Indigenous-made media by developing platforms for artists to assert their voice, express their perspectives and share their cultures.

Following these successes for film, our next step is creating an ecosystem where new media practitioners can experiment and thrive. This means creating opportunities for maximum inclusion across the spectrum of media, building capacity within interactive programming and cultivating talent through professional and creative development initiatives.

imagineNATIVE is a registered charity committed to inspiring and connecting communities through original Indigenous film, video, audio, and digital media. Our Festival, Tour, Institute, and year-round initiatives showcase, promote, and celebrate Indigenous filmmakers and media artists from Canada and around the world. We are committed to creating a greater understanding of Indigenous peoples and cultures through the presentation of contemporary Indigenous-made artistic expressions.

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