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Festival Internacional de Cine de Cuenca

Festival overview

About Festival Internacional de Cine de Cuenca

Physical film festival with submission categories including Ecuadorian movies and International Feature Competition.

Cuenca International Film Festival 2026 Where the world's stories find their echo in the Andes. The Cuenca International Film Festival (FICC) is one of the pioneering film events in Ecuador.

With more than twenty years of history, it has become a strategic meeting point for international filmmakers, producers, distributors, and programmers, consolidating Cuenca as an epicenter of cinema in Latin America. Throughout its history, the FICC has featured important figures, names that reaffirm the festival's mission to build bridges between the global industry and local narratives.

In 2022, the festival expanded its reach with the creation of Shortfest Cuenca, a platform specialized in short films that functions as a laboratory for narrative innovation and the discovery of new talent, thus consolidating its role in the international film ecosystem. Non-Competitive Sections • Fantastic Visions: dedicated to genre, fantasy, and horror films. • Cinema and Human Rights: with a focus on ecology, feminism, and social justice, responding to the most pressing debates of our time.

FICC 2026 – A Platform for the Industry The festival is not only an exhibition space, but also a networking and co-production platform, connecting Ecuadorian and Latin American cinema with international players: producers, distributors, platforms, and allied festivals. Cuenca: City of Cinema FICC 2026 will be held in July in the city of Cuenca, Ecuador.

Declared a World Cultural Heritage Site by UNESCO, Cuenca is transformed each year into a living cinematic stage, where tradition and modernity intertwine at every screening.

Schedule

Important Dates

Call for Entries Opens
Sep 22, 2025
Final Submission Deadline
Sep 18, 2026
Notification Date
Nov 18, 2026
Festival Starts
Dec 2, 2026
Festival Ends
Dec 6, 2026
Recognition

Awards & Prizes

Best International Feature FilmBest International Feature FilmBest Director Male Performance Female PerformanceBest Director Male Performance Female PerformanceBest PhotographyBest PhotographyBest ScreenplayBest ScreenplayBest Latin American Film AwardBest Latin American Film AwardBest International Short FilmBest International Short FilmBest Ecuadorian Short FilmBest Ecuadorian Short Film
Eligibility

Rules & Eligibility

General Rules+
  1. TERMS Entries for the Festival are open for national and international fiction, animation, documentary and experimental feature and short films.

  2. Productions must have been completed as of January 1, 2024 Film submissions to the Festival are made through the event's official platforms.

  3. Final term: The producer who owns the rights must submit the film to the Festival, before April 17, 2026.

  4. Registration through the official platforms of the Festival will have the character of a sworn statement and in it you declare that you know and accept these regulations.

  5. Registration for Ecuadorian films will be free.

  6. No film will be considered submitted until the Festival receives the pre-selection copy online.

  7. Copies with Spanish or English subtitles can be submitted for selection.

  8. The Festival does not require a premiere condition but will give priority to films that have not been previously screened in the Republic of Ecuador.

  9. Once registered and selected, the film cannot be withdrawn from the Festival's programming, nor can it be exhibited in Ecuadorian territory before its official presentation at the FICC.

  10. SECTIONS The Festival's programming will include competitive and non-competi

Current Categories, Deadlines & Fees

Category

Ecuadorian movies

Inscripción de película ecuatorianas de cualquier metraje de 2024 en adelante. Los filmes serán evaluados para participar de las distintas secciones competitivas.

Current Fee
RuntimeMaximum runtime: 180 minutes
Category

International Feature Competition

International Fiction, Animation, Documentary and Experimental Feature (40+ minutes) -All productions must have been completed after January 1, 2024. -All films must have Spanish or English subtitles in case Spanish is not the original language. -The Festival does not require premiers but will give priority to films that have not been previously exhibited in the Republic of Ecuador.

Current FeeUSD 20.00Early
RuntimeMaximum runtime: 40 minutes
Category

International Short Film Competition

International Fiction, Animation, Documentary, Fantasy and Experimental Short films (-40 minutes) -All productions must have been completed after January 1, 2024. -All films must have Spanish or English subtitles in case Spanish is not the original language. -The Festival does not require premiers but will give priority to films that have not been previously exhibited in the Republic of Ecuador.

Current FeeUSD 14.00Early
RuntimeMaximum runtime: 40 minutes
Category

Ecology and human rights cinema

Movies that celebrate a new look at humanity. Tags: Memory, Environment, sustainability, Migration, Youth, human rights, feminism, food sovereignty, water, health, architecture, urbanism, outdoor life.

Current FeeUSD 20.00Early
Category

Latin American Film Competition

Competition for Latin American fiction, non-fiction and animation films. Films of more than 40 minutes in length are accepted.

Current FeeUSD 20.00Early
RuntimeMaximum runtime: 40 minutes
Category

Ecuadorian short film competition

Cortometrajes (39 minutos o menos) de ficción, animación, documental, fantástico y experimental nacionales. -Todas las producciones deben haber sido terminadas después del 1 de enero de 2025. -El Festival no exige premieres pero le dará prioridad a los filmes que no se hayan exhibido con anterioridad en la República del Ecuador.

Current FeeUSD 15.00Early
RuntimeMaximum runtime: 40 minutes
Category

Horror and fantasy films

Horror and fantasy feature films (40 minutes or longer). -National and international fiction, animation, documentary, and experimental works are accepted. -All productions must have been completed after January 1, 2024. -Copies with Spanish or English subtitles may be submitted for selection. -The Festival does not require premieres, but will give priority to films that have not previously been shown in the Republic of Ecuador.

Current FeeUSD 20.00Early
RuntimeMaximum runtime: 180 minutes