The 33rd New York African Film Festival (NYAFF33), running from May 1 to May 30, 2026, is a month-long celebration of African cinema in all its richness and diversity. This edition features over 100 films—spanning contemporary features, short films, restored classics, and documentaries—hailing from more than 30 nations.

This year’s theme, As the Stars Sow the Earth, uplifts the cosmic agents—Ancestors, Spirit, God(s) — that have sown memory, will and possibility into Africa and her Diasporas. It celebrates the resourceful and often miraculous ways African people across the world have transformed displacement, environmental degradation, war, and domination into grounds for cultural, political, ecological, and aesthetic life.

The program kicks off with a Town Hall event at The Africa Center, followed by a series of screenings, artist Q&As, and panel discussions hosted throughout May at world-renowned venues including Film at Lincoln Center, the Brooklyn Academy of Music, and Maysles Cinema, with many filmmakers present for post-screening conversations. The festival opens May 6 with the New York premiere of Erige Sehiri's Promised Sky and concludes May 30 with an outdoor celebration in St. Nicholas Park.

Special highlights of this 33rd edition include a retrospective honoring legendary Tunisian filmmaker Férid Boughedir, and 36 Years at NYAFF, a digital exhibition drawing on archival footage and photographs with pioneering figures of African and diasporic cinema. This edition also proudly presents several German co-productions, including Germaine Acogny – The Essence of Dance directed by Greta-Marie Becker, and Cotton Queen by Suzannah Mirghani.

From world premieres to restored classics, NYAFF33 offers a comprehensive encounter with both the “Old Guard” and the “New Wave” of African storytelling—a culturally essential event that invites audiences of all backgrounds to engage with the vitality of African cinema on the world stage.

Date and Time: & Locations

From May 1 to May 30, 2026

The festival moves to different venues throughout May. Please find the exact dates below:
- The Africa Center: May 1
- Film at Lincoln Center: May 6-12
- Maysles Cinema: May 15-17
- Brooklyn Academy of Music: May 22-28
- St. Nicholas Park: May 30

More Information: https://nyaff33.eventive.org/schedule