Vancouver, Canada

Hollywood North International Film Festival®

1 April – 25 April 2027

279 films · 55 countries · 13 awards

Explore the archiveHNIFF 2027
Poster for The Meaning of Malice: On the Trail of the Black Widow of Highland Park
Today’s pick · HNIFF 2025The Meaning of Malice: On the Trail of the Black Widow of Highland ParkDaniel Hancock · United States · 40 min"The Meaning of Malice" examines the life and crimes of Sandra Bridewell—a beguiling socialite in the affluent Dallas suburb of Highland Park in the seventies and early eighties. True crime author John Leake presents new evidence to substantiate his belief that Bridewell (who is still alive and free) is an officially undetected serial killer. In May 1987, Sandra Bridewell was the subject of a D Magazine feature titled "The Black Widow" that suggested she had murdered her third husband—as well as her first husband, and the wife of a prominent cancer doctor who had treated her second husband for what turned out to be terminal lymphoma. Author John Leake grew up in Highland Park, down the street from Sandra Bridewell, and often visited her at her home to socialize with one of her children. With the assistance of former Los Angeles County criminalist Lynne Herold and former FBI forensic psychologist, Gregg McCrary, he analyzed the three gunshot deaths reported in the 1987 D Magazine feature. Leake began his multi-year investigation in 2007, when Sandra Bridewell was arrested (and later pled guilty) for aggravated identity theft. Assuming the guise of a Christian missionary, she ingratiated herself with an elderly lady in Southport, North Carolina (near Cape Fear) to steal the unsuspecting victim’s identity and to plunder her financial assets. Leake visited Bridewell in pretrial detention and began documenting her life and wanderings. Join author John Leake as he takes a closer look at the true story of Sandra Bridewell and follows a trail of seduction, blackmail, identity theft, and murder that has perplexed Dallas high society for forty years.

The question of the week · closes in 7 days

What is the one film you would make a stranger watch before they die?

No lines yet — yours would be the first.

One line each, from anyone, anywhere. Add your line →

Last festival · HNIFF 2025

158 films from 34 countries

7 awards went to 6 of them — pick a country for what it sent.The 2025 archive →

Drawing the world…
145 films● won an awardOutlines Natural Earth
All 34 countriesFilms
Canada
45
United States
45
Australia
7
India
6
Italy
6
Iran
5
United Kingdom
5
Brazil
4
Spain
4
Denmark
2
France
2
Israel
2
Mexico
2
Norway
2
Switzerland
2
Türkiye
2
Austria
1
Bangladesh
1
Belgium
1
Chile
1
Dominican Republic
1
Egypt
1
Finland
1
Germany
1
Greece
1
Hong Kong SAR China
1
Hungary
1
Indonesia
1
Japan
1
Netherlands
1
Puerto Rico
1
Sweden
1
Syria
1
Ukraine
1
Poster for The One-Way Ticket
Film of the week · from the jury’s shortlistThe One-Way TicketMelika Rezapour · Germany · 11 minA German-Iranian coproduction. The story is being narrated from Taha's POV, a six-year old boy, who has been raised by a misogynist father and lives in a society where women have no freedom of choice. He finds out that his sister wants to escape with her lover. Now the decision is his whether to reveal the secret to his father or not.About the film →
In the spotlight

Australia

7 films have come to the festival from Australia.

From the Selection Room: What Our Judges Have Learned from Hundreds of Submissions

01Decisions form in the first minuteScreeners work through large volumes in one sitting. An opening has to establish tone and signal control before it earns the rest of the runtime.
02Sound is scored before pictureDialogue must be clear without effort. Uneven levels and room noise read as carelessness, and strong images do not compensate for them.
03Scenes justify their own lengthThe strongest field each year runs five to twenty minutes. A film padded past its natural length competes worse than the tighter cut of itself.
04Endings decide what gets rememberedJudges look for a final beat that resolves, reframes or lingers. An ending that feels accidental weakens everything before it.
05Enter the category your film isFormat, runtime band and genre decide who judges the film and against what field. A documentary entered as narrative competes in the wrong one.
06The poster is the first frameProgrammes, archive pages and social feeds all lead with the artwork. A film without a real poster is harder to programme and harder to promote.
07Write the synopsis for a strangerTwo or three sentences on what happens and why it matters. Describe the film that exists, not the one that was intended.
08Consent decides where a film goesStreaming window, archive, clips for social: what is ticked on the entry is what the festival can do. Films that opt in are seen more.
Around the worldWatched in 13 countries this year, with films from 55.See the map →

The jury · HNIFF 2025

Who decided the year

Meet the jury

Award winners · HNIFF 2025

What the jury chose

Every award, every year

Photo gallery · HNIFF 2025All 246 photos →

One night, every seat — the 2025 awards gala, sold out under the dome of the H.R. MacMillan Space Centre.

For filmmakers

Deals, training and calls for entries from the filmmaking press.

Announcements
Submissions for HNIFF 2026 close 1 October

Entries come through FilmFreeway. Horizontal and vertical films are both eligible, at any runtime up to forty minutes.

23 August 2026

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