12th annual international film festival showcasing local and international cinema with screenings, workshops, and cultural events across the city.
Chania Film Festival 2025 returns to Crete as a two-week celebration of cinema, education, and community, confirmed to run in Chania in late October with official dates published by the festival and partner listings. The festival’s English homepage announces that the 13th edition will take place in Chania, Crete in October 2025, during the traditional late‑October window when CFF anchors the island’s cultural calendar with screenings, workshops, masterclasses, and school programs that draw tens of thousands each year. Independent event roundups align with that window and cite specific late‑October dates, reflecting CFF’s established slot at the end of the month, often stretching into early November with parallel activities and awards.
Dates and format
The festival confirms its 13th edition in October 2025 in Chania, maintaining the long‑standing pattern of an eleven‑day program spanning the last week of October and, in some editions, the first week of November, with competition sections for fiction, documentary, and animation alongside a robust education track. European festival directories characterize CFF as an annual autumn event that “takes place on the island of Crete, at the last week of October every year,” consolidating it as a dependable date for cinephiles planning fall travel to Greece. Local media listings also echo the late‑October window and promote CFF’s multi‑venue footprint and citywide footprint each year.
What to expect
- Screenings: An international selection of features, documentaries, and animation, programmed across multiple venues in Chania and accompanied by Q&As, panels, and curated sidebars that highlight new voices and regional stories.
- Competitions and awards: CFF hosts juried awards, including dedicated prizes such as the Film Clubs Association (OKLE) Award, “History and Culture of Crete” Award, “Right to Life” Award, and a Podcast Award, which focus attention on thematic excellence and innovation across forms.
- Learning and outreach: Beyond the main slate, CFF is recognized for year‑round educational initiatives; during the festival it presents workshops, masterclasses, and CFF Edu programs that serve schools and emerging filmmakers, contributing to audience development and industry literacy across Crete.
Submissions and selection
For 2025, the festival specifies a submissions window from February 1 to May 31, 2025, with eligibility for works produced in the last three years (2022–2025) and notifications by late July; entries are made exclusively online via the designated submissions portal. The programming team places films either as Official Selections or Nominations for the CFF Award, and retains flexibility to include works in on‑site or controlled‑access online screenings that expand audience reach while protecting rights. The festival’s regulations also note creator consent for promotional use of trailers and the possibility of future inclusion in CFF’s education initiatives, reflecting its mission to connect art and learning.
Scale and audience
CFF reports attendance of more than 22,000 viewers across its eleven‑day run, including a significant school audience that participates in dedicated programs and matinees, distinguishing CFF from purely industry‑facing festivals and strengthening its social impact in Crete. That public focus meshes with Chania’s city character: a walkable old town, easy distances between venues, and an engaged local audience that brings energy to premieres and conversations throughout the week.
Venues and city experience
Screenings and parallel events typically take place in central Chania venues, with festival activity clustered around the old town and harbor area, making it simple for visitors to combine films with strolls along the Venetian port and evenings at cafés and tavernas. The festival’s club and cine‑club activities underscore CFF’s year‑round presence, including curated series like “Attikon Screenings,” which frame the main event within a continuous conversation about cinema in the city. Accommodation guides for Chania highlight the convenience of staying within walking distance of Koum Kapi and Nea Chora beaches, placing festival‑goers close to both cinemas and the waterfront.
How 2025 fits in the Crete festival ecosystem
Chania’s late‑October film festival complements other Crete film and media events that bookend the season, including September’s Chaniartoon animation and comics festival in Chania and August’s Ierapetra documentary festivals in eastern Crete, making the island a multi‑stop destination for cinephiles and creators through late summer and fall. Public listings group CFF among Crete’s headline cultural fixtures for 2025, often referencing the same mid‑ to late‑October dates for planning purposes.
Planning a visit
- When to book: Airfare and hotels in Chania are more available than in peak summer, but the festival draws international and domestic visitors; locking in stays around the old town provides optimal access to venues and nightlife.
- Getting there: Fly into Chania International Airport (CHQ) or Heraklion (HER) and drive or bus to Chania; CHQ is a short transfer from the old town.
- Getting around: Chania is walkable; most festival venues and hospitality spots are within a compact radius around the harbor and old town streets.
- What to pack: Light layers for mild autumn evenings, a compact notebook for screenings, and comfortable walking shoes for cobbled lanes and venue hopping.
Tips for filmmakers
- Submit early: The window closes May 31, 2025; films completed between 2022 and 2025 qualify, with notifications by late July, giving teams time to plan travel and materials.
- Materials: Prepare screener links, press kits, stills, and a trailer; ensure audio meets stated technical specs and ship any required exhibition files by August 20, 2025.
- Engagement: CFF covers two nights of hospitality for participating filmmakers, encouraging on‑site presence for Q&As and workshops that deepen audience connection and industry networking.
Why Chania Film Festival stands out
The combination of international scope, community engagement, and education gives CFF a distinct identity. It is large enough to attract global work and juried recognition, and intimate enough to facilitate close encounters between filmmakers and audiences. The late‑October timing also allows visitors to experience Crete in a gentler season, where screenings can be paired with day trips to beaches or mountain villages and evenings in one of Greece’s most atmospheric old towns.
Verified details at a glance
- Event: 13th Chania Film Festival (CFF).
- When: Late October 2025 in Chania, Crete, aligning with the festival’s traditional “last week of October” slot.
- Submissions: Feb 1–May 31, 2025; eligible production years 2022–2025; notifications by end of July; online submission only.
- Program: Fiction, documentary, animation; competitions and special awards; workshops, masterclasses, and education track; potential on‑site and controlled online screenings.
- Audience: 22,000+ across eleven days, including schools; multiple central venues and citywide cultural footprint.
Block late October on the calendar, book a base near Chania’s old harbor, and plan days that mix coastal walks with screenings and post‑film conversations under the city’s Venetian lights. Filmmakers should finalize submissions by May 31 and prepare to meet an engaged audience that makes Crete’s largest film event as welcoming as it is ambitious. Follow the festival’s official site for the 2025 lineup, venue schedule, and ticket details as autumn approaches, and come ready to see why Chania Film Festival has become a cornerstone of Greece’s cultural fall season.