From Gaza to Manila and Buenos Aires: 15 films enter Doha’s 2026 feature competition

By Tahani Elghazaly
Published October 13, 2026
Updated October 13, 2026

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Doha Film Festival has selected 15 films from four continents for its 2026 International Feature Film Competition, bringing together titles from the Arab world, Asia, Africa, Europe and the Americas. The lineup includes 13 Middle East and North Africa premieres and one world premiere.

The festival will run from November 19 to 27, 2026, with the feature competition offering a combined US$185,000 in awards.

Palestinian cinema has a particularly strong presence, with four films in competition. They include Thirteen in Gaza, shot entirely in Gaza and recently awarded the NETPAC prize at the Toronto International Film Festival, and Sama, which will receive its world premiere in Doha.

Other Arab titles include Jordanian-Palestinian documentary Concrete Land, Moroccan feature Bardi, and Yemeni filmmaker Sara Ishaq’s The Station, set inside a women-only petrol station during the war in Yemen. The Station had already been announced as the festival’s 2026 opening film.

The competition also features films from Cameroon, Angola, Thailand, China, the Philippines, Chile, the United States, Argentina, Ireland and France. Several have already received recognition at major festivals including Cannes, Venice, Locarno, Sundance, Toronto and Shanghai.

Seven of the 15 films are directed by women, while 11 received support through the Doha Film Institute’s Grants programme.

Awards include US$75,000 for Best Narrative, US$50,000 for Best Documentary, US$45,000 for Best Artistic Achievement and US$15,000 for Best Performance. A three-member FIPRESCI jury will also present a separate critics’ prize.