Overview
Think cinema is on the way out? Think again, with the box office experiencing a major rebound in 2026. If you're overdue for a visit to the silver screen, there's never a better time to get involved than during the Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF), which returns to various cinemas and cultural venues across town from Thursday, August 6–Sunday, August 23.
To pique your interest ahead of the 74th edition of this much-loved annual event, MIFF has just revealed a sneak peek of the program. And there's no shortage of cinematic goodness to get excited about. Leading this early glimpse of what cinema buffs can expect, Dead Man's Wire stars Bill Skarsgård, Al Pacino and Colman Domingo in Gus Van Sant's black-comedy retelling of a 1970s Indianapolis kidnapping.
Dead Man's Wire (2026).
Also screening is Rose, Austrian filmmaker Markus Schleinzer's latest feature starring Academy Award-nominated Sandra Hüller, offering an unsettling 17th-century folktale of identity and deception. Meanwhile, Japanese genre master Kiyoshi Kurosawa is back again, this time adding the samurai film to his formidable repertoire with The Samurai and the Prisoner.
Then, making its Australian premiere at MIFF, Extra Geography is the feature debut of BAFTA-winning TV director Molly Manners. Serving up a funny, bittersweet coming-of-age story about two inseparable best friends whose pact to fall in love with the first person they see threatens to unravel their friendship, it stars Australia's own Alice Englert.
On the doco front, MIFF 2026 will feature The Best Summer — capturing filmmaker Tamra Davis' experience on the Summersault Tour in December 1995. With the unused footage captured on her Sony Hi8 camcorder rediscovered 30 years later, this nostalgia-dripping snapshot features candid interviews and backstage footage of the Beastie Boys, Sonic Youth, Foo Fighters, Pavement, Beck and more.
This sneak peek also reveals six MIFF Premiere Fund titles — the festival's co-financing fund for Aussie-made productions. These include Mad Rush, a micro-budget debut from director Maddelin McKenna that sees Melbourne's laneways and street corners become a gauntlet of dread, and new documentary Jebediah: Are We OK?, where Arlo Dean Cook presents an unflinching account of the namesake band's rise to the top of Australia's 90s alternative music scene.
The Best Summer (2026).
Fans of John Wilson — the cult filmmaker behind HBO's beloved How To With John Wilson — will also get the chance to see his debut feature, The History of Concrete, in person. Just like each episode of his weird and wonderful TV series, the title is merely a jumping-off point, with Wilson making more than a few profound discoveries exploring the world's most ubiquitous building material.
And, as with every instalment of MIFF, a series of special events brings a whole new dynamic to the way we enjoy captivating films, new and old. In 2026, the latest instalment of Hear My Eyes — think a groundbreaking clash of live music and cinema — features Christopher Nolan's Memento, with a soon-to-be-announced local artist delivering the rousing soundtrack.
Memento (2000).
Melbourne International Film Festival returns Thursday, August 6–Sunday, August 23, presented across multiple venues. Head to the website for more information.
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Images: Supplied.