The 2026 Austin Film Festival and Writers Conference will feature well over 100 different feature film and short film programs, along with lectures and conversations with a variety of well-known movie and television writers.
Highlights of the film festival include opening night film The Debut starring Julianne Moore and Paul Giamatti and written/directed by Jesse Eisenberg; I Play Rocky; Ray Gunn, written and directed by Brad Bird; Behemoth! starring Pedro Pascal; Club Kid, starring and written/directed by Jordan Firstman; Elsinore starring Andrew Scott; and more.
Films will be premiering alongside AFF’s Annual Writers Conference, featuring awardees and panelists across all sectors of the industry. Among the speakers/panelists will be Brad Bird; Is God Is writer/director Aleshea Harris, producers J.D. Lifshitz and Raphael Margules; Jason Katz, Head of Story at Pixar; and more.
Screenings and other events will take place at the Hogg Memorial Auditorium, Bullock Museum IMAX, Texas Spirit Theatre, and other locations. For a full schedule of events, go to the festival website.