CinefestOZ Film Festival

Overview

Since 2008, CinefestOZ has captivated the South West and West Australia with an exciting line-up of premiere screenings, immersive Q+A events and short film sets. The festival also shines through its community-focused initiatives, including the free Deadly Days, the inspiring Cinesnaps School Program, and the enriching Industry Program. CinefestOZ has consolidated its position as the premiere destination film festival in Australia with record numbers of high calibre film guests and a sensational line-up of new Australian films. At the heart of the festival is the prestigious $100,000 Film Prize, the largest cash prize in the country dedicated to Australian feature films. Awarded by a high- profile Jury of Industry experts, the prestigious Film Prize acknowledges excellence in the art of filmmaking.

Last updated Oct 1, 2026

Legitimacy Analysis

Trust Signals

Festival Details

FilmFreeway communityGold festival

• Filmmaker

  Showing our short Washateria at CinefestOz was such an incredible experience. We attended the week long festival and had an amazing time watching films, attending networking events and celebrating at the gala. This is a very well-run festival with incredible staff and great opportunities to network and meet fellow filmmakers. Can't wait to attend again!

• Filmmaker

  We were delighted to have our short horror film 'Sidewinder Avenue' screened at CinefestOZ, the event was wonderful, a selection of fantastic deadly shorts shown in a spookily decorated funeral home, the staff had created so much detail including coffin shaped cookies, spooky lighting, a real coffin (didn't look inside) and dressed up staff, it couldn't have been better. Four of us attended from the film and we were blown away by the whole festival – truly the best festival I’ve ever attended. From the very beginning, the communication was excellent and the staff were incredibly friendly, welcoming, and helpful. The industry program was exceptionally valuable, with panels and talks that were both insightful and inspiring and all the professionals attended the daily networking drinks and were very welcoming and happy to say hello and have a chat, exactly what we went there for. What stood out most was how genuinely supportive everyone was of our journey and projects. The red beret volunteers were so happy and welcoming and hard working. The glitzy gala at the end was a fantastic night and to see 'Songs Inside' win the $100k prize was awesome. The red carpet film premieres and Q&A's were all brilliant. Western Australia really is the friendliest place to visit, well done and thank you to all the organisers and volunteers, I honestly cannot wait to come back next year.

• Filmmaker

  We were ecstatic to premiere 'Riptide' at CinefestOz 2025 in the 'Le Grand Bleu' short film set. The festival was terrific and the organisers couldn't be more welcoming.

• Filmmaker

  The communication from the festival team was really great! We attended the conference at the festival and made a lot of new connections. The awards ceremony was also really fun!

• Filmmaker

  It was a great honour to have our short film be part of the legendary Cinefest Oz! We hope to be back next time with a feature film :)

FilmFreeway reviews are filmmaker opinions, not our score. Cross-check red flags before paying fees.

Related Festivals in Australia