Ringing in the New Year in Vancouver, the MENA Film Festival is returning to the local cinema scene for its seventh edition. From January 15th to the 23rd, the festival will air over 40 feature and short films at the Vancouver International Film Festival Centre, providing both in-person and online screenings. Founded in 2019 by Arman Kazemi, the festival intended to fill a gap in the industry and regional market, MENA and SWANA films lacking in both global and local representation. Featuring films by both Canadian and international MENA filmmakers alike, the festival is a valuable platform, boosting the visibility of cultural art as worthy of recognition. The selection of feature films being screened provides a great opportunity for both locals and visitors to enjoy regional art, supporting a representation initiative while getting to see internationally lauded films.
Feature Films:
Cotton Queen
Directed by Suzannah Mirghani
Showing: January 18th, 2026 at 6:00 pm PST (In-Person Exclusive)
Premiering at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival last September, this film follows a Sudanese girl, Nafisa, determined to save the history and future of her grandmother’s village and cotton fields.
East of Noon
Directed by Hala Elkoussy
Showing: January 17th, 2026 at 4:00 pm PST
Streaming: Online from January 15th to January 31st, 2026
A satirical and theatrical production of a rebellious musician’s artistic ambition amidst an everyday industrial Egypt.
Khartoum
Co-Directed by Anas Saeed, Rawia Alhag, Brahim Snoopy Ahmed, Timeea Mohamed Ahmed, Phil Cox
Showing: January 16th, 2026 at 5:00 pm PST (In-Person Exclusive)
Winner of the Peace Film Prize at the 75th Berlin International Film Festival, this documentary shows a humanizing portrayal of five residents of the Sudanese city of Khartoum, connected through a shared struggle amidst the violence.
My Sweet Land
Directed by Sareen Hairabedian
Showing: January 18th, 2026 at 4:00 pm PST
Streaming: Online from January 15th to January 31st, 2026
An eleven-year-old boy, Vrej, is displaced and forced to flee during the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War in Armenia, returning with a strong motivation to defend his homeland.
Naharina
Directed by Ferran Domènech
Showing: January 17th, 2026 at 4:15 pm PST
Streaming: Online from January 15th to January 31st, 2026
A documentary following the descendants of the indigenous original inhabitants of the Mesopotamian rivers throughout Syrian Kurdistan as communal life changes with the loss of their river.
There Was, There Was Not
Directed by Emily Mkrtichian
Showing: January 16th, 2026 at 8:00 pm PST (In-Person Exclusive)
A tribute to Armenia, centred around four women in the Republic of Artsakh, rebuilding their lives in the aftermath of war, their lives and stories being memorialized in a series of portraits.
Where the Wind Comes From
Directed by Amel Guellaty
Showing: January 22nd, 2026 at 6:00 pm PST (In-Person Exclusive)
A pair of childhood friends, Alyssa and Mehdi, take a road trip through Tunisia to participate in an art show, one that could give them a new start in Europe.
Writing Hawa
Co-Directed by Najiba Noori and Rasul Noori
Showing: January 18th, 2026 at 8:00 pm PST
Streaming: Online from January 15th to January 31st, 2026
Revolving around the relationships between women in a Hazara household amidst the Taliban’s 2021 return to power in Afghanistan and the tenuous status of women’s rights and education in the country.
