FAQ: Film entries 2026

To enter your film, you need to first read our regulations carefully. In the regulations you will find the general entry requirements and the entry requirements per program section. After having read our regulations, please go to MyIDFA to complete the online entry form and pay the entry fee.

i. World premiere: the first screening ever, on any media, and anywhere.
ii. International premiere: the first screening of the film outside the country of production. Your film is eligible for international premiere status if, prior to IDFA, the film has only been screened in its home country. Example: a Canadian film that has only been screened in Canada is eligible for an international premiere at IDFA.
iii. European premiere: the first screening in Europe, referring to countries in the geographic region of Europe according to the United Nations’ M49 coding classification. Your film is eligible for European premiere status if, prior to IDFA, the film has been screened outside the country of production but not yet in Europe. Example: a Chinese film that has been screened in China and the United States is eligible for a European premiere at IDFA.
iv. Dutch premiere: the film was screened in Europe outside its country of production before, but this is the first screening in the Netherlands.

The country of production is the country or countries where the (co-)production company(s) are registered, and/or the country(s) that the director(s) identifies as their home, be it in terms of citizenship, origin, or residence. Shooting locations do not count as countries of production.

Although we strongly prefer to be sent final versions, we do accept works in progress. Please note, however, that IDFA will consider any film entry only once, whether it is entered as a work in progress or a final version. Rejected works in progress cannot be re-sent when a newer version is available, nor for the following year.

IDFA welcomes student films and takes these into consideration in any of its competitions and program sections for which it is eligible according to the general and specific program section’s eligibility criteria.

Films that are shorter than 40 minutes in duration can, depending on its premiere status and approach, be entered for consideration in the IDFA Competition for Short Documentary, Luminous, Frontlight, Paradocs, Signed, and Best of Fests.

IDFA welcomes films suitable for ages 9-12 and ages 13+ for inclusion in the festival program. These films can be entered to any of the program sections for which it is eligible according to the general and specific section’s eligibility criteria. In addition, films for younger audiences will be considered for IDFA's year-round education activities and IDFA Junior, a curated program during IDFA for families and children. Applicants can indicate that their film is suitable for one or both of these age groups in the entry form.

Each year, IDFA invites more than 300 independent films, 45 projects, and over 3,000 professionals. IDFA’s guiding principle in its selection process is to support critical, independent filmmakers and films. Artistic quality and shared values such as humanity and connection, as well as the belief that documentary art can bridge divides, are central to this. These films and individual film professionals may come from any country—including countries where freedom of expression is under pressure, or where governments commit human rights violations. However, if filmmakers and films have demonstrable ties to governments that contribute to serious human rights violations, these films are generally not selected. This assessment is informed by the Global Press Freedom Index, focusing on countries in the two lowest categories. Independent films and filmmakers are always assessed on a case-by-case basis, and exceptions may apply. The same principle applies to official government delegations or institutions affiliated with such governments: in principle, they do not receive official IDFA accreditation, although they may, for instance, be invited in a personal capacity. For more information, please read IDFA's principles and guidelines.

Once you have sent in the entry form, you can no longer make changes yourself. Please send an email to program@idfa.nl, and we will correct the information in our database.

We watch every film entry to IDFA, but there have been instances in which our views are not recorded on Vimeo’s statistics. As also stated in Vimeo's Analytics FAQ, Vimeo is not always able to record views if films are not watched via their direct link in a web browser.

IDFA greatly appreciates your entries, and we sincerely hope that you see IDFA as a valuable launch pad for your creative documentary. Unfortunately, we have to charge a fee for each entry. This fee will cover the processing, careful viewing, and consideration of your film.

After completing and sending the entry form in MyIDFA, you will be redirected to the payment page. Payments are handled by Adyen. We are offering the following methods to pay the entry fee:
i. Credit cards: MasterCard, VISA, and American Express
ii. iDEAL (for forms sent from the Netherlands)

If you don’t have the ability to use one of the above methods of payment, please send an email to program@idfa.nl.

Payment should take place as quickly as possible and within two weeks after the completion of our online entry form. Entries will not be processed and taken into consideration until your payment has been received. Entries cannot be taken into consideration if the payments are completed after our final entry deadline.

If the film's main country of production is on the IBF country list, it is eligible for a fee waiver based on IDFA's discretion. In this case, we encourage you to fill out a fee waiver request form.

Unfortunately, we apply a no-refund policy.

If you get an error while trying to pay, please send an email to program@idfa.nl.

To solve the problem, we advise you to open the page in Google Chrome and make sure to pause all ad blockers that may be running on the page. If the problem persists, please send an email to program@idfa.nl.

If your payment was successful, the payment page will state this. You will receive a confirmation by email after your entry form has been processed by IDFA.

If your film is being or has been made with support from the IDFA Bertha Fund, please send an email to idfaberthafund@idfa.nl before filling out the entry form.

Yes, this may be the case, as Adyen handles all IDFA payments.

In case you fill out a company which has a billing address based outside the Netherlands, you will not be charged additional VAT by IDFA, but you will have to pay your VAT duties in your own country.

• If this is within the European Union, you need to fill in your VAT details in the billing address field. For general VAT rules within the EU please go to EU Tax and Customs info. Please make sure to fill out the correct VAT information in the billing details on the entry form, as this cannot be adjusted on the payment page. If you forget to fill out your VAT number, you will be charged VAT. If you made a mistake in filling out the VAT information, please send an email to program@idfa.nl before completing the payment, as this is the only way to still edit the information. IDFA cannot refund VAT after the payment has been completed.
• If your company is based outside the EU, IDFA will not charge VAT but you will need to check your tax regulations in your own country and act accordingly.

All Dutch entries and all entries done by private persons only (with no company attached) will need to pay VAT and will be charged in the IDFA invoice.

If you've already sent in your form and continued to the payment page, you can no longer edit the billing information yourself. Please send an email to program@idfa.nl before completing the payment, as this is the only possibility to still add this information. IDFA cannot refund VAT after the payment has been completed.

IDFA invites all directors of selected films and new media projects to attend the festival and represent their work in Q&As and other events. Directors of selected films and new media projects will receive free festival accreditation upon filling out an accreditation form via MyIDFA. The festival will do its utmost to cover the costs of hotel accommodation for directors not based in the Netherlands whose works have been selected for IDFA’s festival program. After selection, IDFA’s Guest Services department will inform directors about all guest arrangements.

Once your film has been selected, you should deliver the screening copy as a DCP (2K/4K), 35mm, or 16mm film print for cinema screenings. IDFA requires all DCPs to be in XYZ colorspace encoded in JPEG2000. Presentation of other formats and video systems requires authorization from the festival. If your film is selected as part of the festival’s online program, IDFA will require a ProRes or h.264 for online screenings.

A sub-selection of films made by the IDFA program team will be invited for the online program of the festival.

All films in the festival program will be made available to accredited guests for viewing in IDFA’s Press & Industry Library, hosted on the festival's website, unless requested otherwise by the rightsholder. Additionally, a selection of films from the IDFA program will be included in our Press & Industry Screenings in cinemas.