Iraq Short Film Festival

The Iraq Short Film Festival, founded in 2005, honors films made by and for Iraqis. This is the second one among the most popular festivals in Iraq. Throughout Baghdad, a series of short films in Arabic or Kurdish are exhibited. The festival runs from August 1 until September 30.

Short and feature-length fiction films and documentaries by known and rising Iraqi directors based in Iraq and the diaspora are included in the festival's lineup. The program is divided into two strands of short films: new-wave filmmaking and contemporary feminisms in Iraqi cinema.

The festival is the brainchild of four Iraqis living in the diaspora: Ahmed al-Habib, the inventor of the shakomakonet digital platform; Israa al-Kamali, an Iraqi writer and poet; Shahnaz Dulaimy, a feature-film editor; and Roisin Tapponi, an editor, curator, and founder of the Habibi collective.

The film festival, according to the organizers, is intended to assist build the identity of emerging post-2003 Iraqi cinema, provide opportunities for Iraqi filmmakers, and challenge preconceptions.

Time: August 1 - September 30