LALIFF 2026 SUBMISSIONS
Submissions for films and episodics will open on Friday, October 31, 2025, and close on Saturday, February 7, 2026 at 11:59pm (PT). Entries will be accepted in the following categories: U.S. Latino feature films, short films, and episodics, as well as international short films and episodics across all genres.
LALIFF is recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as an Oscar® Qualifying Festival, and films that win the Best U.S. Latino Live Action Short and U.S. Latino Animated Short categories at the festival will now be eligible for consideration at the 98th Academy Awards.
SUBMISSION CATEGORIES
U.S. Latino Feature Films:
Any fiction, documentary, or animation film in any genre made by Latino filmmakers in the United States with a total running time of more than 50 minutes are eligible for feature films submission. World premiere must have occurred no earlier than January 1, 2025, and we will NOT be accepting feature films that have had commercial, theatrical, television, or internet distribution in the United States. The festival requires a minimum of a Los Angeles premiere.
U.S. and International Latino Short Films:
Any fiction, documentary, or animation film in any genre made by Latino filmmakers (in the U.S., Latin America and the diaspora) with a total running time of less than 30 minutes are eligible for short films submission. World premiere must have occurred no earlier than January 1, 2025, and we will NOT be accepting short films that have had commercial, theatrical, television, or internet distribution in the United States. The festival requires a minimum of a Los Angeles premiere.
U.S. and International Latino Episodics:
Scripted or non-scripted series in any genre made by Latino creatives are eligible for international episodics submission. Applicants may submit single or multiple episodes of the same project, provided that the total running time does not exceed 90 minutes, including credits.
Multiple episodes should be submitted as one continuous video file. Individual episodes may not exceed 60 minutes in length. Open submissions in this category are not eligible for the Festival if the submitted content has been made available to the general public via any platform (broadcast television, Blu-ray, DVD, streaming, VOD, etc.) in the United States. If the submitted content is a continuation of an existing series, only new episodes are eligible for open submission to the Festival. The Festival requires a minimum of a Los Angeles premiere.
SUBMISSION DEADLINES
Early Submission Deadline: Monday, December 15, 2025
Regular Submission Deadline: Thursday, January 15, 2026
Late Submission Deadline: Saturday, February 7, 2026
SUBMISSION FORMAT
All films and projects must be submitted through FilmFreeway. It is the submitter’s responsibility to ensure that their online entry contains correct information and is properly submitted. Films not submitted through FilmFreeway will not be considered. Only one film per entry form. Multiple entries on one application will not be considered.
LALIFF will only accept submissions via Vimeo web link. If the submitted video is password protected, the password must be included and must not be changed for the duration of the decision-making process. Non-English language films must have English language subtitles at the time of submission.
If selected, films must be available for projection in DCP and digital file.
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LFI houses signature programs, such as: the Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival (LALIFF), the Youth Cinema Project (YCP), LFI Scholar and Policy, LFI Spotlight, and LFI Fellowships.
