Internationales Frauen Film Fest Dortmund+Köln shows films by women and FLINTA* directors and alternates each year between Dortmund and Cologne, with a selection of the programme usually screened in the other city as well. It grew out of the 2006 merger of two women's film festivals founded in the 1980s, femme totale in Dortmund and Feminale in Cologne, and has used its current name since 2021.
The Dortmund editions host an international feature competition for directors from their third feature onwards, and the Cologne editions a debut feature competition and a national award for cinematographers. Since 2020 a jury of the European Children's Film Association has given the ECFA Short Film Award to a European short from the children's and youth programme. Non-competitive sections include Panorama for documentary and experimental work, begehrt! – filmlust queer, Spot on, NRW! and the archive strand IFFF packt aus. The 44th edition takes place in Dortmund on 20–25 April 2027.
Awards and prizes
International Feature Film Competition (Dortmund, every two years): for directors' third or later feature film; 15,000 EUR, of which 10,000 EUR go to the director and 5,000 EUR to the German distributor.
International Debut Feature Film Competition (Cologne, every two years): first and second feature films; 10,000 EUR, awarded by an international jury of three.
National Competition for Cinematographers (Cologne, every two years): 2,500 EUR each in the fiction and documentary categories, sponsored by CineOne and sPOTTlight.
Female Gaze – CineOne & sPOTTlight Young Talent Award for Cinematographers in NRW (Dortmund): equipment rental worth 5,000 EUR.
Shoot – KHM & IFFF Dortmund+Köln Young Talent Award for a graduate of the Academy of Media Arts Cologne (KHM): 1,000 EUR.
ECFA Short Film Award: no prize money; a jury of three members of the European Children's Film Association chooses a European short film for children (up to 30 minutes) from the children's and youth programme. The winner is nominated for the ECFA award for the best European children's film of the year.
Audience Award: 1,000 EUR, for films of 60 minutes or longer that are no more than two years old.
Festival rules
All submitted films must be directed by one or more FLINTA* filmmakers.
Sections open to submissions for the 2027 edition:
International Feature Film Competition: international feature films intended for cinema release, from the director's third film onwards, at least 65 minutes, completed after 1 March 2025; no student, graduation, debut or second films.
Female Gaze award: graduation films and films from the first two years after graduation by young cinematographers who live and work in North Rhine-Westphalia, completed between 1 January 2025 and 30 November 2026; any genre and length, no animation.
Panorama: international documentary and experimental films of at least 60 minutes, completed after 1 November 2025.
Panorama – Formfragen: films up to 90 minutes made fully or partly with AI in a feminist way (completed after 1 January 2025), and immersive 180°/360° videos up to 60 minutes (completed after 1 January 2024).
begehrt! – filmlust queer: international films with queer content, completed after 1 November 2025, any genre and length.
Programme for Children and Young People: international films for children and young people completed after 1 March 2025, any genre and length.
Entry fees range from 5 EUR to 30 EUR depending on section and running time. Full regulations are published for each section on the festival's submission page.
