The Key West Film Festival is an annual celebration of contemporary cinema in a historically rich, artistically vibrant, and culturally diverse island community.
KWFF strives to showcase the best of Florida filmmaking talent, while highlighting visiting filmmakers and industry leaders through discussions and workshops, with access to some of the biggest names in the film business. The festival also looks to support the next generation of local student filmmakers with scholarships and other key awards.
The Festival’s Critics Focus program, enhanced with the juried Critics Prize and the Costume Design Focus, marks the Key West Film Festival as a vital stop on the awards season’s fall festival circuit, with programs designed to support film criticism and craft while giving audiences greater context and perspective through public conversations guided by expert voices.
website: https://keywestff.com
The 15th Annual Key West Film Festival kicks off on November 18, 2026, led by the Miles Teller, Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson thriller PAPER TIGER, which was also the Opening Night film of the New York Film Festival. Closing the festival will be one of the frontrunners for Best Picture, THE DEBUT, starring Academy Award winner Julianne Moore and Oscar nominee Paul Giamatti. Serving as Centerpiece Films are ELSINORE, which has been gathering momentum for a Best Actor nomination for Andrew Scott; and CLUB KID starring Jordan Firstman, which premiered at Cannes Film Festival earlier this year. As is tradition at the festival, leading critics from across the country will be on hand to present and discuss these and other films in the lineup. This year’s visiting critics include Alison Willmore of Vulture.com, Esther Zuckerman of The Wall Street Journal, and David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter.
As previously announced, Golden Key Award honorees this year include renowned comedy, film and television star David Cross, who will be honored alongside a screening of BOB AND DAVID CLIMB MACHU PICCHU; Award-winning writer, director and actor Edward Burns, appearing with his film BENEATH THE BLUE SUBURBAN SKIES, and celebrated costume designer Amy Roth, appearing at the festival prior with her latest work in PAPER TIGER. This is the 11th annual award for Costume Design – the only such annual award given the to form in the world – and past honorees include multiple Academy Award winners and nominees.
The foreign language category this year boasts many of the top contenders for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Feature, including Pedro Almodovar’s BITTER CHRISTMAS which premiered at Cannes, Chuko and Arie Esiri’s CLARISSA starring Sophie Okonedo in a re-imagining of the Virginia Woolf novel “Mrs. Dalloway,” Markus Schleinzer’s ROSE, Austria’s official selection for the Oscar starring Sandra Hüller, and Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s ALL OF A SUDDEN from Japan, which is also being mentioned as a contender for Best Picture. Key West Film Festival has featured the last four Almodovar films to be released.
Leading the Documentary section is Academy Award nominee Liz Garbus and Elizabeth Wolff’s GIVE ME THE BALL!, about the extraordinary life of Billie Jean King; SARA BAREILLES: GOOD GRIEF, featuring a recorded intro by the artist; BLEEDING HEARTS, following the rise of the next great alternative country band Chaparelle; the mind-bending and visually stunning PHENOMENA, in which light, sound and energy are captured on screen like you’ve never seen before; ODYSSEY, a timeline of the exploration of space in the US; and BURGUNDY, Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw’s heartfelt journey to the famous wine country area. This is Dweck’s third film to be featured at the festival, after THE LAST RACE and GAUCHO, GAUCHO (also co-directed with Kershaw).
Embracing the community that helped build Key West, the festival puts a special focus on LGBTQIA+ programming. David Rooney serves as the lead programming consultant. Leading the pack is Academy Award nominee Jennifer Kroot’s HUNKY JESUS, about the titular festival in San Francisco and the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence; TEST, itself a hunky thriller from Sam McConnell; FLESH AND FUEL, a steamy European trucker romance; and TIME WARP, which follows a small town production of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” in a conservative area of Wyoming.
A new section of programming is included in the festival this year called FLORIDA AND FRIENDS. Culled from hundreds of submissions of Florida-based films, filmmakers and stories, these three films show the incredible stories being told by Florida filmmakers and stories that capture the spirit of Florida. Making its World Premiere at the festival is THE FARMER AND THE SHARK, capturing the real-life person on whom Robert Shaw’s character in JAWS was based. Celebrated Florida filmmaker Billy Corben returns to the festival for a 20th Anniversary screening of COCAINE COWBOYS. Producer Tony Armer takes us into the world of Jen Msumba, an autistic filmmaker and artist from Florida in THE FISH DON’T CARE WHEN IT RAINS. After a sneak preview earlier this year, UNSPOKEN BOND, about the special bond between pets and their owners, makes its official Key West premiere at the festival. Academy Award-shortlisted director Dana Reilly brings us OUR BODY ELECTRIC, featuring Miami-based body builder and former Ms. Olympia Ariel Khadr, who visits the festival. And Patrick Bresnan brings the Florida Keys premiere of FIRST THEY CAME FOR MY COLLEGE, which follows the brazen efforts to dismantle New College, the heralded public liberal arts school in Sarasota. Two students will join the festival for a Q&A.
Special events include the 12th Annual KWFF Critics Panel and a screening of the 1953 classic ROMAN HOLIDAY, featuring a conversation by Zuckerman and Willmore about one of their favorite classic romantic comedies.
Per annual tradition, the festival’s final screening will be a music-themed film, this time celebrating the recent release of OCCUPATIONAL HAZARD: THE FIRST CORAL REEFERS. Director John H. Cunningham and Producer Ted E. Haynes will be on hand to receive the inaugural “Spirit of the Keys” award at the festival. After the film, some members of the original Coral Reefer Band will perform at The Smokin’ Tuna.
The short film lineup features a dynamic slate of festival favorites, critical hits, and local stories, selected from a record pool of nearly 1,000 submissions across 50 countries. Notable selections include SXSW Audience Award winner WE WERE HERE, Sundance standout BALLOON ANIMALS, and acclaimed festival winners MEETING YOUR MAKER, DISC, and THE PLATFORM. The program also spotlights local artistry with the award-winning documentary short BODY OF WORK, profiling Key West painter Eric Anfinson.
"Audiences are in for one of the most distinguished and engaging slates of shorts we’ve ever assembled," said Mike McNamara, Director of Short Film Programming. "Expect plenty of laughs, a healthy dose of drama, and, naturally, that unmistakable Florida spirit."
This year’s program was selected from a record number of more than 1,000 submissions from over 50 countries.
