HIFF BLOG | HIFF | Hawai'i International Film Festival

Awards

HIFF46: Official International Feature Oscar Submissions from Around the World

From Cannes, Sundance, Berlin, Busan and beyond, the 46th Hawai‘i International Film Festival presented by Halekulani showcases an extraordinary collection of films representing countries in the race for the Academy Award® for Best International Feature Film. The road to Oscar runs through Hawai‘i this fall! HIFF46 is proud to present 12 films selected by their

HIFF Programming October 10, 2026

HIFF46

Introducing the 2026 HOCCI Cohort

The 2026 HIFF ONLINE CREATIVES & CRITICS IMMERSIVE (HOCCI) program, powered by Critical Minded, supports sustainable film criticism in Hawai‘i through mentorship and paid career opportunities. The mission of HOCCI is to broaden and strengthen film criticism culture in Hawaiʻi across a new media multi-disciplinary approach–via online (blog, magazine) review writing, but also via more

HIFF Programming October 7, 2026

Features

Tenderness & Defiance: LGBTQIA+ Cinema at HIFF46

At the 46th Hawai‘i International Film Festival presented by Halekulani, this year’s LGBTQIA+ films arrive in many forms: intimate coming-of-age stories, audacious comedies, sweeping dramas, documentaries, animation, and stories of chosen family and cultural identity. What connects them is not a single definition of queer experience, but their remarkable humanity. Among the festival’s major highlights

HIFF Programming October 6, 2026

Features

SPOTLIGHT ON KOREA: South Korean Cinema in all its forms at HIFF46

Presented by the Korean American Foundation of Hawaii (KAFH) The 46th Hawai‘i International Film Festival (HIFF46) presents a dynamic cross-section of contemporary Korean cinema with its SPOTLIGHT ON KOREA, presented by the Korean American Foundation of Hawaii (KAFH). This year’s nine-film showcase brings together U.S. and International Premieres, acclaimed auteurs, emerging filmmakers, documentaries, genre cinema,

HIFF Programming October 5, 2026

Features

SOUTHEAST ASIAN SHOWCASE: The Best Of The Region Comes To HIFF46

Southeast Asia continues to produce some of the most exciting, adventurous, and socially incisive cinema on the international festival circuit. At HIFF46, the SOUTHEAST ASIAN SHOWCASE brings together six films representing the breadth of contemporary filmmaking from the region—from bold new voices making their feature debuts to internationally acclaimed auteurs returning with deeply personal new

HIFF Programming October 5, 2026

Features

AAPI FILMMAKERS IN FOCUS: Remembering Japanese American History

At HIFF46, AAPI FILMMAKERS IN FOCUS, presented by the Daniel K. Inouye Institute, celebrates the power of AAPI filmmakers to preserve, reclaim, and pass down histories that should never be forgotten. This special program brings together two new short films—Brian Tee’s ENOUGH and Chris Naoki Lee’s THUMBPRINT—that examine the Japanese American experience during World War

HIFF Programming October 4, 2026