Films by Persian filmmakers (Iranian, Afghan, Tajik and other Persian-language communities), Persian co-productions, films with Persian crew, or films with a Persian theme. Other films are welcome as guest showcases in the World Section.

Films that have qualified for the festival’s first stage are currently assigned the preliminary acceptance status of “Accepted.” The status will be updated to “Selected” on the website, subject to confirmation and the completion of the necessary technical and administrative procedures, carried out by the festival’s technical team. The absence of the “Selected” status does not mean that your film has been rejected.

No. Submitting a film is free, through our submission form or FilmFreeway.

All films that have qualified for the festival so far are at the First Stage of acceptance. The festival consists of several stages of acceptance, evaluation, selection and judging. Qualifying for the first stage does not mean that a film has entered the official competition section or been nominated for an award. All films must proceed through the subsequent stages.

The early deadline is November 30 and the regular deadline is January 15. The festival runs from March 1 to April 2 every year. The Rules page always has the latest dates.

No. At this stage, none of the qualified films have been officially announced as Final Official Selections or award nominees. The official competition and final judging processes have not yet been completed. Films selected for the official competition section, as well as award nominees, will be formally announced once all evaluation and judging procedures have been completed.

Short films (40 minutes or less), animations and documentaries compete for the festival prizes and the 13 medals. Feature films (41 minutes or more) go through the Academy track. Guest showcase films are not in competition.

No. Publishing a film poster on the festival’s Instagram page does not indicate Official Selection, entry into the competition section or award nomination. At the request of several participants, the festival’s laurel and logo files were made available to all accepted films so that filmmakers could announce their films’ acceptance into the first stage earlier. Instagram posts about individual films are published by the filmmakers or their representatives, in coordination with the festival’s official page. A poster, logo or laurel only indicates that the film has qualified for the first stage.

All films start as Applied. Selections are announced after programming review, and your film page and profile show its status. We also write to the email on your submission.

Posters are not duplicated. A film may appear in more than one section because it belongs to more than one category. For example, an Animation film may appear both in the Animation section and in the general listing of all festival films. In later stages, films that qualify for the competition section or are announced as nominees or winners may also be featured again in their respective sections.

Applied films have been entered. Exhibit films are shown at the festival but are not judged. Competition films are judged by the Academy for nominations and medals.

All accepted films remain at the first stage, and the submission and acceptance process is still ongoing. After the submission deadline all films will be reviewed and judged by the festival’s jury. Films in the official competition section will be announced in March 2027 on the website and official channels. Screenings are scheduled to begin in early March 2027 and continue until April 2 or April 13, 2027; the exact closing date and complete schedule will be announced later, including the screenings in each country. Filmmakers may attend screenings in the respective countries if they cover their own travel and accommodation. Nominees and winners will be announced in March 2027. Qualifying for the first stage, entering the competition section, receiving a nomination and winning an award are separate stages, each announced officially after review and approval. Please follow the website and social media for updates.

Every credited person gets a profile automatically. Open yours, press Claim, and upload a document that proves who you are. After we verify it you can edit the profile, add photos and fix credits.

Academy members vote in rounds. The top nominees go through to the final round, and winners are announced at the ceremony in Toronto. Some categories may also have a public vote.

Open Program, pick a screening or event and press Get tickets. You need a free account. Tickets and passes appear under My tickets.

Yes. Use the contact form to volunteer, join as a participant or apply for jobs and internships. Sponsorship packages and prices are on the Sponsors page.

Register as media. We review every request and send press access, screeners and the media kit.

Sign in and edit your film from My films. If you can't, send us a message and we will fix it.