The curtain is about to rise for the 2026 St Kilda Film Festival, as it reveals its most diverse and thought-provoking programme yet.
The programme will feature almost 200 short films curated from record submissions. This June, film lovers will be awed and astonished by films celebrating the depth, diversity and originality of Australian cinema.
Proudly presented by City of Port Philip, the festival will transform St Kilda into a hub for audiences and filmmakers alike. . . With screenings, special presentations, and industry events across iconic venues including Palais Theatre, Astor Theatre and St Kilda Town Hall.
There are 15 awards up for grabs. The festival’s prestigious Top Shorts competition will showcase the very best Australian short films, and is an Academy-qualifying event. The competition received a record-breaking 960 submissions, up seven per cent from last year.
Across this year’s programme, audiences can experience everything from local stories, and the best of comedy, to horror and experimental works. There are films starring and created by major Australian talent including Hugo Weaving, Kat Stewart, Colin Lane and Sophie Wilde, alongside new work from filmmaker and performer Ed Oxenbould and animator Michael Cusack, in his live-action debut.
This year’s programme also of course includes special events, like the red carpet opening gala at the Palais, followed by a stand-out night at the Astor Theatre, with PBS bringing its cult radio show Stone Love to the stage, for a live broadcast. Plus, there’s St Kilda Rocks, featuring two documentaries on seminal St Kilda venues, ‘Last Drinks’ about the Prince Of Wales Hotel and ‘Punkline’ about Crystal Ballroom.
Other highlights include the Live Cinema Experience, where films are created in real time before an audience, along with filmmaker Q&As and one-off screenings.
“Our city comes alive once again as bold ideas, inventive storytelling and the very best of Australian short-form cinema take centre stage,” City of Port Phillip Mayor Alex Makin says. “As Australia’s longest-running short film festival, the St Kilda Film Festival reinforces the City of Port Phillip as a creative powerhouse, championing emerging talent while celebrating the achievements of Australia’s most accomplished filmmakers.”
“In spending so much time with this great selection, I have a feeling that 2026 marks a turning point for the short film format in Australia to my eye,” St Kilda Film Festival Director Richard Sowada says. “We know that some filmmakers who have featured in the last couple of years of St Kilda Film Festival are now in preproduction with features or embarking on massive cinematic adventures, and that momentum has some serious presence in this year’s programme. So much confidence. So much risk. So much ambition. It’s just great.”
St Kilda Film Festival 2026 is on from 4-14 June.
