The Melbourne International Film Festival has unveiled the first 25 titles and events for its 2026 edition, offering an early look at a program that promises major international premieres, new Australian filmmaking talent and a handful of special one-off experiences.
Running from August 6th to the 23rd across Melbourne and regional Victoria, before extending nationally via MIFF Online until August 30th, the festival’s first announcement includes six MIFF Premiere Fund titles, acclaimed films fresh from Cannes, Berlin and Sundance, and a slate of special events led by filmmaker and performer John Cameron Mitchell.
Among the headline attractions is John Cameron Mitchell Presents: Hedwig and the Angry Inch, which will see the creator of the cult classic appear in person for a live commentary screening of a newly restored 4K presentation of the film. Elsewhere, MIFF will host the world premiere of SBS drama series The Airport Chaplain, starring Hugo Weaving and Shabana Azeez, while Hear My Eyes returns with a live-score presentation of Christopher Nolan‘s Memento.
Australian stories remain front and centre through the MIFF Premiere Fund, with new works including Sweet Milk Lake, a trans coming-of-age drama from debut filmmaker Harvey Zielinski; Mad Rush, a Melbourne-set thriller from Maddelin McKenna; Jebediah: Are We OK?, a documentary chronicling the iconic Perth band’s 30-year journey; and Hard as Puck, an underdog sports documentary following Western Australia’s only para ice hockey team.
The international lineup is equally stacked. Sandra Hüller arrives fresh from a Berlinale Best Leading Performance win in Rose, while Gus Van Sant‘s darkly comic thriller Dead Man’s Wire, Andrey Zvyagintsev‘s Cannes Grand Prix winner Minotaur, and Clio Barnard‘s acclaimed drama I See Buildings Fall Like Lightning are among the festival’s early highlights. Other notable selections include Joe Swanberg‘s return to feature filmmaking with The Sun Never Sets, Kiyoshi Kurosawa‘s period mystery The Samurai and the Prisoner, and Noah Segan‘s Sundance debut The Only Living Pickpocket in New York.
The festival will also welcome new documentaries from John Wilson (The History of Concrete), Mark Cousins (The Story of Documentary Film) and Tamra Davis, whose newly rediscovered archival footage forms the basis of music documentary The Best Summer.
The full MIFF 2026 program will be revealed on July 9th, with more than 300 titles expected across the festival’s 74th edition.
