The 7th SYDNEY SCIENCE FICTION FILM FESTIVAL has confirmed
OCTOBER 9-11 as our 2026 Festival Dates.
Our 7th annual SYDNEY SCIENCE FICTION FILM FESTIVAL promises more of the challenging, thoughtful, ingenious speculative storytelling for which we’ve become known since our inception in 2020. But this year we are also taking a deep-dive into some of the genre’s darker elements, with a classic space-opera/horror film from the international sector and a 25th anniversary deep-space shocker already program-locked. So if you are a filmmaker with a short film, feature or animated work that might rattle our cage, don’t hesitate to drop it into our FilmFreeway portal.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF COUNTRY | Sydney Science Fiction Film Festival acknowledges the traditional custodians of the land on which we live, learn and work, and pays respect to Elders of all generations, and to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Sydney Science Fiction Film Festival celebrates the history and contemporary creativity of the world’s oldest living culture.
In other news, we can confirm that we are once again screening our three-day fest at EVENT Cinemas George Street, the flagship site for the nation’s oldest and largest exhibition chain. The recently-rejuvenated George Street precinct is a busy pedestrian gathering spot, with restaurants, cafes, gaming centres and bars. The cinemas are a 3 minute walk from Town Hall train station and right on the light rail line, providing access to Sydneysiders from the inner west and eastern suburbs.
And a huge thank you to our Melbourne venue partner Cinema NOVA and all the insanely keen Southerners who came out for our 5th MELBOURNE SCIENCE FICTION FILM FESTIVAL from March 6-8. Despite the city being in the grip of Formula 1 fever with the Melbourne Grand Prix happening, our festival still managed to have its most successful run ever, with Zev Howley’s documentary THE MAN WHO SAW THEM ARRIVE, Prof. Jose Salazar’s COSMOGRAPHIES and the always popular Australian Shorts Showcase packin’ them in. And a huge shout-out to all those lovers of crazy film follies who came out to see our rare screening of the Val Kilmer/Marlon Brando freakshow, THE ISLAND OF DR MOREAU, which closed the festival’s run. See you in 2027 (if not before…).