India, June 19, 2025 – Alternativa has announced that the 3rd edition of the Alternativa Film Festival will take place in Colombia in Q2 2026, with an expanded prize fund of 120,000 USD (an increase of 20,000 USD from the previous edition) and a new award category for a feature film from the focus region, bringing the total number of awards to seven. The open call for submissions runs from June 10 to October 10, 2025. Feature-length films of all genres are accepted from India, Latin America and Asia.
Alternativa Film Festival honors films that bring positive change to the world and society, combining artistic excellence with the potential for significant social impact. Last year, in 2024, two Indian films, Mikka Bannada Hakki(Bird of a Different Feather-Kannada) directed by Manohara K and Kottukkaali (The Adamant Girl-Tamil) directed by Vinothraj PS won Spotlight Award and Nativa Award, respectively at the Alternativa Film Project.
A message from Arsen Tomsky, CEO and founder of inDrive and the visionary behind Alternativa, was shared during the press conference: “At inDrive, we believe that talent and powerful stories should never be limited by borders — and that art has the power to create meaningful change for millions of people around the world. It can also help advance inDrive’s mission of challenging injustice — both through our business and beyond. That’s why we founded and support Alternativa and its festival that gives impact filmmakers from the Global South a platform to be seen, heard, and celebrated”.
The Alternativa Film Awards recognise films with artistic excellence that also address important social and cultural topics, and which have an ambition to positively affect the lives of people and local communities and to challenge injustice in line with the mission of inDrive. In 2024, the festival received over 1,000 submissions from 33 countries. India was among the 25 shortlisted films.
The open call for the Alternativa Film Festival 2026 begins on June 10 and will remain open until October 10, 2025. Fiction films, documentaries, animations, and hybrid works of all genres completed after January 1, 2025, are eligible. For films with a world premiere before August 1, 2025, the submission deadline is September 1, 2025, at 23:59 (UTC -5). For films with a world premiere after August 1, 2025, the deadline is October 10, 2025, at 23:59 (UTC -5). A full list of eligible countries and detailed film requirements can be found in the Rules & Regulations, available on the official Alternativa website: alternativa.film.
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