PAST EVENT: This event has already happened. The information below may no longer be accurate.
In-person
Arts & Culture
More Information
Dreamspeakers International Film Festival
April 15, 2026 to April 19, 2026
Organized by:
Dreamspeakers Festival Society
This year's edition of the first Indigenous film festival in Canada will feature over 30 films: shorts, features, documentaries, and animations.
This year's festival will feature over 30 films: Shorts, features, documentaries, and animations. In-person screenings will be held at Landmark Cinema in Downtown Edmonton, from April 16-19, 2026, with a free screening of "Nika & Madison" at Metro Cinema at the Garneau on April 15th fresh from its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival; presented as part of National Canadian Film Day.
Dreamspeakers International Indigenous Film Festival (DIIFF) was first presented in Edmonton in 1992 and was the first Indigenous film Festival in Canada and the second in the world. It was founded by Indigenous filmmakers and creatives in response to the growing industry and to support Indigenous representation in film and media. The name "Dreamspeakers" was derived from a story about the first Dene filmmaker who returned home to his community in the north and struggled to talk to the Elders about his work because a word for "filmmaker" did not exist in their language. The Elders understood and called it Dreamtalking. We adapted our name from this story.
More dates and times
- Wednesday, April 15, 2026 at 11:30am at Beaver Hills House Park — ᒥᑭᐊᐧᐦᑊ How to Pitch a Teepee (mîkiwahp) & Teachings with Elder Dr. Jerry Saddleback
- Wednesday, April 15, 2026 at 1:30pm at CO*LAB — ᑕᐅᐧᐤ DIIFF 2026 Opening Ceremonies - tawâw
- Wednesday, April 15, 2026 at 3:00pm at CO*LAB — ᓂᑲᐣíᐊᐧᐠ Community Dialogue: Walk of Honour - nîkâníwak
- Wednesday, April 15, 2026 at 6:45pm at Garneau Theatre — Nika & Madison
- Thursday, April 16, 2026 at 10:00am at Edmonton City Centre — Artisan Market
- Thursday, April 16, 2026 at 10:00am at Kakio Studio Cafe — Micro Stories Workshop
- Thursday, April 16, 2026 at 11:30am at Landmark Cinemas 9 (Edmonton City Centre) — The Source of Life (Te Puna Ora)
- Thursday, April 16, 2026 at 1:30pm at Landmark Cinemas 9 (Edmonton City Centre) — Bring Them Home & How the Land Remembers Us
- Thursday, April 16, 2026 at 4:00pm at Landmark Cinemas 9 (Edmonton City Centre) — In the Land of Palm Oil
- Thursday, April 16, 2026 at 6:30pm at Landmark Cinemas 9 (Edmonton City Centre) — NiiMisSak: Sisters in Film
- Thursday, April 16, 2026 at 9:00pm at Landmark Cinemas 9 (Edmonton City Centre) — Mountain Lion: Healing Film of St. Francis
- Friday, April 17, 2026 at 10:00am at Edmonton City Centre — Artisan Market
- Friday, April 17, 2026 at 10:00am at Kakio Studio Cafe — How to Pitch Your Film Idea Workshop
- Friday, April 17, 2026 at 11:30am at Landmark Cinemas 9 (Edmonton City Centre) — Munkha
- Friday, April 17, 2026 at 11:30am at Landmark Cinemas 9 (Edmonton City Centre) — Songs of Kamui
- Friday, April 17, 2026 at 2:00pm at Landmark Cinemas 9 (Edmonton City Centre) — The Time of Waters
- Friday, April 17, 2026 at 7:00pm at CO*LAB — Awards Ceremony & After Party
- Saturday, April 18, 2026 at 10:00am at Edmonton City Centre — Artisan Market
- Saturday, April 18, 2026 at 10:00am at Kakio Studio Cafe — Community Dialogue: Indigenous Film Academy
- Saturday, April 18, 2026 at 1:30pm at Landmark Cinemas 9 (Edmonton City Centre) — When we say evaluation, it isn't the same thing
- Saturday, April 18, 2026 at 4:30pm at Landmark Cinemas 9 (Edmonton City Centre) — Tea Creek & Kanenon:we - Original Seeds
- Saturday, April 18, 2026 at 7:00pm at Landmark Cinemas 9 (Edmonton City Centre) — Foster Child with Filmmaker & Elder Panel
- Saturday, April 18, 2026 at 9:00pm at Beaver Hills House Park — Light Strikes: Walk of Honour
- Sunday, April 19, 2026 at 11:30am at Landmark Cinemas 9 (Edmonton City Centre) — Te Pito o Te Henua & Becoming Air & Enchukunoto
- Sunday, April 19, 2026 at 12:00pm at Edmonton City Centre — Artisan Market
- Sunday, April 19, 2026 at 1:30pm at Landmark Cinemas 9 (Edmonton City Centre) — Glen Reige 20 WP & MONSTR
- Sunday, April 19, 2026 at 4:30pm at Landmark Cinemas 9 (Edmonton City Centre) — So Surreal: Behind the Masks & Tule
- Sunday, April 19, 2026 at 7:00pm at Landmark Cinemas 9 (Edmonton City Centre) — THE TERRITORY OF PULOUI
Related events
Loading...
Loading events...
April
30
Women's Pop-Up Screening
Thursday, April 30
Starts at 7:00pm
Waffle BirdJoin us for a FREE Pop-Up Screening featuring Alberta's talented women filmmakers!
May
1
Standing Free Edmonton - a cinematic Ukraine fundraiser
Friday, May 1
Starts at 7:30pm
Ukrainian Youth Unity ComplexEdmonton’s premiere of Standing Free, a war documentary, accompanied by Bandura music, a Q&A from the Director, and fundraising for Ukraine.
May
2
2026 Edmonton Mountain Bike Film Fest
Saturday, May 2
Starts at 6:00pm
Garneau TheatreThe evening will kick off our riding season, and bring our community together to celebrate dirt, bikes, and trails. And beer.
May
4
2026 Edmonton Arts Prize Presentation
Monday, May 4
Starts at 6:30pm
Garneau TheatreJoin us for an evening of celebration and connection at the 2026 Edmonton Arts Prize Presentation!
May
9
The Animators Town Hall
Saturday, May 9
Starts at 11:00am
The Orange HubThe Animators Town Hall is a FREE 1-day Community Plenary event designed for our local animation community.
May
12
Screenwriting with Eric Janiver: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Process
Tuesday, May 12
Starts at 1:30pm
Art Gallery of AlbertaIn this session we will be focusing on several key points that go into screenwriting including story ideas, story structure, formatting, re-writes, scr...
Thank you! Your feedback has been submitted.