Whānau Mārama: New Zealand International Film Festival 2025 returns from 31 July to 10 September, and it’s bigger, bolder, and more accessible than ever!
Each year, the festival rolls out the red carpet for film lovers across Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, inviting them to step into the iconic The Civic and immerse themselves in a world of cinematic wonder. With a carefully curated selection of dramas, comedies, documentaries, shorts, animations, and more from around the globe, there’s something for every kind of moviegoer.
As the festival’s long-standing Auckland home, The Civic adds its own unique magic to the experience—transforming every screening into a celebration of storytelling, creativity, and culture.
See our highlights below and the full programme here.
Our top picks
It Was Just an Accident (2025) | The Civic | 31 JUL, 7pm
Directed by Jafar Panahi | Strand: Big Nights
A masterpiece of cinematic invention and political bravery, Jafar Panahi’s rousing new film deservedly won the Cannes Palme d’Or and opens NZIFF 2025 on a powerful and inspiring note.
Prime Minister (2025) | The Civic | 2 AUG, 6.15pm
Directed by Michelle Walshe & Lindsay Utz | Strand: Big Nights
The uncharted highs and crashing lows of Jacinda Ardern’s time at the helm of Aotearoa get their due in an intimate-access international documentary about state power and human vulnerability.
Sentimental Value (2025) | The Civic | 10 AUG, 8.15pm
Directed by Joachim Trier | Strand: Big Nights
Joachim Trier’s follow-up to his arthouse hit The Worst Person in the World, this piercing and ecstatically moving reflection on family and memory stars Renate Reinsve, Stellan Skarsgård, and Elle Fanning.
Sentimental Value NZIFF 2025
Prime Minister NZIFF 2025
It Was Just an Accident NZIFF 2025
The stuff of dreams - or nightmares
The Shrouds (2024) | The Civic: AUG 4, 8.45pm | The Academy: AUG 8, 1.30pm
Directed by David Cronenberg | Strand: Nocturnal
David Cronenberg’s sardonic self-portrait of his own struggle with grief is couched within a chilly and unsettling story of a tech-savant and his morbid invention which brings bereavement into the app age.
Lurker (2025) | The Civic: AUG 5, 8.45pm | The Academy: AUG 1, 4pm
Directed by Alex Russell | Strand: Nocturnal
Writer Alex Russell, whose credits include small screen hits Beef and The Bear, graduates to the big screen with this darkly compelling thriller about a desperate wannabe who attaches himself to a singer on the rise.
Lesbian Space Princess (2024) | The Civic: AUG 8, 9.00pm
Directed by Emma Hough Hobbs & Leela Varghese | Strand: Nocturnal
Set in a gay-laxy far, far away this crowd pleasing and proudly queer Aussie adult animation delights with its vivid, candy-coloured palette, kinky sense of humour and catchy, upbeat musical numbers.
A celebration of Kiwi voices
From the treasure trove
Hard Boiled (1992) | The Academy | 4 AUG, 3.45pm
Directed by John Woo | Strand: Treasures
John Woo's influential cops vs. gangsters gun-fu classic comes back to the big screen with a pristine 4K remaster making it a perfect time to revisit or discover one of the greatest action films of all time.
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) | The Civic | 1 AUG, 9.15pm
Directed by Tobe Hooper | Strand: Treasures
Frequently cited as the greatest horror film ever made, Tobe Hooper’s raw, deeply disturbing journey into a sweaty, grimy, all-too-real hell still has the power to shake you to your core.
Werckmeister Harmonies (2000) | The Civic | 8 AUG, 12.45pm
Directed by Béla Tarr & Ágnes Hranitzky | Strand: Treasures
Frequently singled out as one of the best films of the 21st century, Béla Tarr’s melancholy, mud-deep world of simmering mob chaos foretells of resurgent fascism in the heart of Europe.
Workshops, quizzes, panel discussions and more!
Pae Kōrero – Panel Discussions
Don't miss the chance to dive deeper into the themes and issues explored in selected films, through engaging conversations with filmmakers and experts.
Can you tell your Roy Andersson from your Wes Anderson? Your Kiarostami from your Kaurismäki? Get your team together and join the annual NZIFF film quiz.
NZIFF After Dark
Space princess costume parties, themed cocktails, spot prizes, late-night horror and midnight mayhem... you've got it all this year at NZIFF After Dark. Get amongst the festive fun!
Image via nziff.co.nz
Famous faces
Blue Moon (2025) | The Civic | 1 & 10 AUG, 11am & 5.45pm
Directed by Richard Linklater | Cast: Ethan Hawke, Magaret Qualley, Bobby Cannavale, Andrew Scott
A washed-up songwriter drowns his sorrows as his former collaborator triumphantly opens Oklahoma! on Broadway. A career-peak performance by Ethan Hawke powers Richard Linklater’s theatrical drama.
Eddington (2025) | The Civic | 3 AUG, 5.45pm
Directed by Ari Aster | Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, Pedro Pascal, Luke Grimes, Michael Ward, Austin Butler, Emma Stone
A bracingly audacious political satire, Ari Aster’s modern-day Western utilises an A-list cast (Joaquin Phoenix, Emma Stone, Pedro Pascal, Austin Butler) to ruthlessly skewer the polarisation of post-pandemic America.
The Mastermind (2025) | The Civic | 6 AUG, 6.15pm
Directed by Kelly Reichardt | Cast: Josh O'Connor, Sterling Thompson, Alana Haim, Jasper Thompson, Bill Camp
A perfectly rumpled Josh O’Connor’s criminal ambitions go awry in Kelly Reichardt’s arthouse art-heist film showcasing the American master of cinematic minimalism at her absolute best.
See the world through film
Kokuho (2025) | The Academy | 9 & 11 AUG | 8.15pm & 5.15pm
Directed by Sang-il Lee | Strand: Visions
The all-consuming dedication of the Japanese Kabuki artist gets its due in an ornate, decades-spanning spectacular of passion and pain that charts the journey of two young trainees.
A Poet (2025) | The Academy | 1 AUG | 8pm
Directed by Simón Mesa Soto | Strand: Portraits
A once-celebrated writer chases relevance through petty schemes, fading commissions and awkward self-promotion. Simón Mesa Soto’s character study is biting, funny and deeply attuned to the sadness of creative decline.
Romería (2025) | The Civic: 5 AUG, 6.15pm | The Academy: 6 AUG, 4pm
Directed by Carla Simón | Strand: Visions
One of the standouts of Cannes 2025, Carla Simón’s personal exploration of the restlessness of a young woman without parents is a poignant example of the healing power of cinema.
Kokuho NZIFF 2025
A Poet NZIFF 2025
Romería NZIFF 2025
Hidden gems
Simon of the Mountain | The Academy | 6 AUG, 6.15pm
Directed by Federico Luis | Strand: Portraits
Simon doesn't feel as though he belongs anywhere, yet he somehow fits in with a group of voracious, mentally disabled teenagers. This intensely felt debut explores the lengths Simon will go to find his place in the world.
My Father's Shadow | The Academy | 10 AUG, 8.45pm
Directed by Akinola Davies Jr | Strand: Fresh
Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù gives a masterful performance as a stern but loving father that takes his children on an impromptu day trip to Lagos to recover a debt in the midst of a political upheaval.
Imago | The Academy | 3 AUG, 6.15pm
Directed by Déni Oumar Pitsaev | Strand: Frames
Déni Oumar Pitsaev’s Cannes-awarded documentary is a lyrical meditation on the dreams of the displaced, as he returns to a valley in the Caucasus in search of a sense of home.
$2.50 per hour to a max of $12.50 on weekends and a $12 flat rate for weekday evenings at The Civic car park. Find out more.