African Film Festival Australia
Carlton's Cinema Nova will host three days of award-winning African films.
Overview
For two years now, African Film Festival Australia (AFFA) has been bringing a lineup of African-made films exclusively to audiences in Sydney. But in 2026, the festival is shifting its focus to Melbourne, where it will run across a short but sweet three-day program from Friday, March 27 to Sunday, March 29 at Cinema Nova. The program showcases the latest and greatest films from across the African continent and its diaspora, with a fine lineup to look forward to in 2026.
Leading the program on the opening night is The Fisherman, the first-ever Ghanaian film to be selected for the Venice International Film Festival, in which a retired fisherman finds his quiet life disrupted by an unlikely friendship with a talking fish. Next is Nawi: Dear Future Me, a Kenyan film that won Best International Feature and Best Debut Performance at the 2025 Raindance Film Festival, in which a young girl escapes an arranged child marriage to pursue an education in rural Kenya.
'Nawi: Dear Future Me', directed by Vallentine Chelluget, Apuu Mourine and Kevin Schmutzler.
The French-Algerian Fanon is a political drama entry that follows Frantz Fanon, a psychiatrist and philosopher in colonial Algeria, whose radical mental health care techniques intersect with the country's growing independence. The screening will be joined by director Jean-Claude Flamand-Barny, who will lead a Q&A afterwards.
On the documentary side is FestIn 2025's Best Documentary winner, Nteregu, a documentary tracing the origins and global impact of Guinean music, a screening co-presented with African Music and Cultural Festival. Then another winner from the festival circuit, My Father's Shadow, winner of a coveted Caméra d'Or Special Mention at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, which follows a father as he takes his two sons across Lagos during a period of political unrest, exposing the responsibilities of parenthood in times of social upheaval.
'The Fisherman', directed by Zoey Martinson
Finally, there's This Jungo Life, which won Best Documentary and Best International Documentary at the 2025 Bantu Film Festival in Botswana and Festival Filmowy NNW, respectively. This Botswanian-made documentary portrays young Sudanese asylum seekers who must struggle to survive and thrive on the margins in Morocco amid displacement, poverty and conflict.
Festival Co-Director Mumbi Hinga said, "Bringing the Festival to the Cinema Nova allows us to share these powerful stories with new communities and continue building space for African voices on Australian screens. It cements our role as a national platform for African cinema, cultural exchange and diverse storytelling."
'This Jungo Life', directed by David Fedele
AFFA Melbourne is presented by Arts & Cultural Exchange (ACE) and Cinema Nova, supported by Weir Anderson Foundation, Ubuntu Project, Kenya Community Victoria, SF3, and the African Music and Cultural Festival.
For more information or to book your tickets, visit the AFFA website.
Lead image: 'My Father's Shadow', directed by Akinola Davies Jr.
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