Flickerfest celebrates 35 years of cinematic magic with impressive 2026 program
Flickerfest is set to return in 2026 for its 35th year, with the three-day festival of short films kicking off under the stars at Luna Outdoor Leederville from Thursday, February 19, to Saturday, February 21.
This year’s smorgasbord of over thirty short films was handpicked from 3,700 entries received for Flickerfest’s Academy Award and the BAFTA-qualifying short film festival screened recently in Bondi.
Highlights of the premiere include much-loved festival award winners and handpicked favourites to excite Perth audiences with the best Australian and international short films, screening alongside exciting, fresh local talent.
On Thursday, February 19, audiences can raise a glass to 35 years of Flickerfest at the festival’s opening night drinks, then celebrate Australia’s short film talent with a host of stories honouring Australia’s unique identity and culture with Flickerfest’s Best Of Australian Shorts program.
Highlights include nine WA-connected films, fresh from their premieres at Flickerfest Bondi, including Trading Cards by Writer/Director Radheya Jang; Without White Clovers by Writer/Director Cooper Clarke; Mango Seed (芒果芯) by Perth-born director Berni Jiang; Grey by Writer/Director ’Ana Ika; and Shelly by Perth Writer/Director James Trevor Chappell, starring screen icon Gary Sweet. Also screening are Hemma by Director Bailey Parkinson and Jay Doherty; E-Mum by Writer/Director Jessica Londono; Inheritance by South West WA Writer/Director Myles Pollard and producer Jasmine Leivers; and The Scan by Perth Writer/Director Jake Shannon.
On Friday, February 20, audiences can take a trip around the world with the Best Of International Shorts programme. Among a host of international highlights enjoying their Australian premieres is the Oscar-nominated A Friend of Dorothy, starring UK acting royalty Miriam Margolyes and Stephen Fry, who take us on a heartwarming journey where wisdom, compassion and friendship are found in the most unexpected places. Hot off the Oscar nominations is also the powerful and intimate The Singers. Also screening is My Plastic Mother, winner of Flickerfest 2026 Best International Short Film, a deeply moving work from Indonesian filmmaker Amar Haikal that explores grief, memory and survival on the edge of a landfill. The program additionally features Radix, winner of Flickerfest 2026 Best International Animation, a visually striking and imaginative animated short that showcases bold storytelling and innovative cinematic craft.
On Saturday, February 21, clever comedy brings big laughs to the screen with the Short Laughs Comedy program, a collection of off-kilter Flickerfest shorts from Australia and around the world. Shorts include Carcassonne-Acapulco, where a chance encounter at 30,000 feet sparks a surprisingly profound and funny existential debate between strangers hurtling through the sky; Baby Blues, a sharply observed comedy that hilariously captures the anxieties, paranoia and emotional free-fall of new parenthood; and Shrimp Fried Rice, a warm and witty tale that finds humour in cultural misunderstandings, family expectations and the emotional significance of a humble takeaway meal.
Flickerfest hits Luna Outdoor Leederville from Thursday, February 19, to Saturday, February 21, 2026. For more info and to buy tickets, visit flickerfest.com.au
