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Kathmandu, Jan 1 — The 14th edition of the Nepal–Africa International Film Festival 2026 will be held from Friday, January 16 to Monday, January 19, spanning four days. This year, the festival has selected 43 films from 20 countries, including Nepal.
Organized at the Film Development Board, Chabahil, Kathmandu, the festival features over 40 Nepali films, documentaries, and short films, with 20 selected for competition, according to festival director Dabbur Kshetri.
Nepali narrative films in the finals include Milan Champs’ Anjila, Saroj Paudel’s Koshedhunga, Rishi Lamichhane’s Magne Raja, Deepak Prasad Acharya’s Paran, and Nar Pradhan (Mitra)’s Yo Man Ta Mero Nepali Ho.
Documentaries include Bhim Lal Shrestha’s Aringal Man, Ramesh Khadka’s Dancing in Fire, and Nisha Manandhar’s A Body Not Mind. Ten short films, both student and open category, will be screened, including A Colorful Night, Anta Warta, Page Five, Echoes of Hope, Bhuva, Maunta, Avashes, Silent Scard, and Drishya. Three indigenous films are also competing.
The international selection features 23 short films from 19 countries, chosen from over 90 applications from more than 40 countries. Notable selections include Indonesia’s Eclipse, Taiwan’s The Elder Crab, Turkey’s I’m Not Work Anymore, Serbia’s Cast, USA’s Grampy Old Man and The Job, Bangladesh’s No Dice and Letter of the Fallen Lovers, France’s August 17 at 5 PM, India’s Blue, and Hong Kong’s Paper Ring.
Finalists in international narrative films include Bangladesh’s Memory of Gloomy Monsoon and Côte d’Ivoire’s Silence Mortel. Documentaries feature Ukraine’s The Scheduled of Fighting to Learn, Estonia’s Artist of Surveillance, and Germany’s Girls Don’t Play Sports. African films in competition include Egypt’s The Monkey, Tunisia’s Metropolis, and Morocco’s The Chamber.
The festival will also conduct a dance training program for 30 participants, organized in collaboration with Nepal Academy of Music and Drama and the Film Development Board. A four-day art exhibition titled Cinema, Culture and Nature will be held at the festival venue. Ten international filmmakers are attending this year.
According to director Dabbur Kshetri, the festival was renamed the Nepal–Africa International Film Festival last year to expand its scope to include global cinema.
