Doha Film Festival is putting a strong international stamp on its 2026 edition, selecting 15 films from around the world for its International Feature Film Competition. The lineup brings four Palestinian films to Doha, includes seven films directed by women and features 11 titles supported and co-financed through the Doha Film Institute’s Grants programme. With $185,000 in prize money at stake, the competition is one of the central attractions of the festival, which runs from November 19 to 27.
The Palestinian presence is particularly notable. Rabab Khamis’s Sama will have its world premiere at the festival, following 10-year-old Sama as she sells fuel in Gaza to help support her family. Hosam Abu Dan’s Thirteen in Gaza also joins the competition after winning the NETPAC Award at the Toronto International Film Festival. The selection further includes Muayad Alayan’s Conversation With The Sea and Mohanad Yaqubi’s Revolutionaries Never Die, giving Palestinian filmmaking a significant place within the international programme.
The wider competition brings together filmmakers and stories from several parts of the world, with narrative and documentary cinema sharing the same space. Among the titles attracting attention are Thailand’s 9 Temples to Heaven, the country’s official submission for the 99th Academy Awards, and Chile’s The Meltdown, its official Oscar submission. 9 Temples to Heaven also arrives with a Best Director win from the Shanghai International Film Festival, adding another festival distinction to an already closely watched title.
What makes the selection interesting is the range of films gathered together. The programme moves between intimate human stories, documentaries shaped by real circumstances and films carrying the weight of Oscar campaigns. That mix gives the competition room for discovery as well as recognition, allowing lesser-known filmmakers to sit alongside titles that have made an impression on the festival circuit. This balance could become DFF’s defining strength.
There is a clear emphasis on filmmakers working from different perspectives. Seven of the 15 films are directed by women, making their work an important part of the competition rather than a separate strand. The presence of 11 DFI Grants-backed films is equally significant. Through its funding programme, the Doha Film Institute has supported projects before they reach audiences, and their strong representation here shows how that investment has helped shape the festival’s international selection.
The competition also comes with substantial financial support. The Best Narrative award carries $75,000, while the Best Documentary award offers $50,000. Best Artistic Achievement comes with $45,000, and the gender-neutral Best Performance award carries $15,000. Together, the four awards make up the $185,000 prize pool. The festival’s official rules confirm that the International Feature Film Competition will be judged by a five-member jury, with the awards recognising both filmmaking and individual achievement.
The festival will open with the MENA premiere of The Station, directed by Yemeni-Scottish filmmaker Sara Ishaq. Set around a women-only petrol station in war-torn Yemen, the film brings a distinctly regional story to the opening night while setting the tone for a programme interested in cinema from places often seen through headlines rather than through personal stories.
The 2026 edition will also introduce a new chapter in the festival’s critical programme. The International Federation of Film Critics, known as FIPRESCI, is partnering with DFF to establish its first-ever critics’ jury at the festival. The move gives international film critics a formal role in recognising work from the competition.
Taken together, the selection gives Doha Film Festival a clear identity for its second edition. It brings established festival titles alongside emerging voices, places Palestinian cinema prominently within the programme and puts meaningful support behind independent filmmaking. More than a collection of premieres and awards, the competition reflects a festival building its place in the international cinema calendar.
