New Zealand International Film Festival — Wellington

Recent Editions

NZIFF Wellington

2025— Best Short: Womb • Fresh Best Film: My Father’s Shadow

2024— Spirit of the Civic: Growing Still • Best Performance: Nora Aati

2023— Best Short: Hey Brainy Man • Emerging Talent: Anu

About the Festival

Founded

1972— Wellington Film Festival inaugurated by Lindsay Shelton and the Wellington Film Society

First edition— Seven films, 5,000 tickets. Included films by Louis Malle, Eric Rohmer & Luis Buñuel.

2009— Consolidated with Auckland and other regional festivals into the unified NZIFF

Key Awards

Umbrella Best Short Film— Top prize for NZ short filmmaking

Emerging Talent Award— New Zealand emerging filmmaker

Māori Pasifika Award— Letterboxd Award for Māori and Pasifika talent

Fresh section— Competitive strand for debut international features