About the festival

The Children's International Film Festival (CHIFF) brings a curated selection of international features, family short films and special events tailored to our youngest film buffs.

Catering for children aged 3 years and up, the festival's program ranges from non-verbal films for the miniature movie lover, through to a more challenging mix of foreign and English-language films from all over the world, perfect for older budding cinephiles.

The 2026 CHIFF program features 30 premiere films, handpicked from world-class film festivals all over the world. These films rarely get a release outside of their home countries, so CHIFF provides one of the only ways for families to catch them on the big screen in Australia.

After a successful launch in 2018, CHIFF returns for an eights edition in June and July 2026, once again presenting a jam-packed line-up of carefully curated feature films from around the globe.

Artistic Director's Welcome

"Welcome to the 2026 Children’s International Film Festival!  

This is the only festival in Australia where the films are selected exclusively with children in mind. I’ve long been inspired by author L. Frank Baum, who declared that he wrote The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (published one and quarter centuries ago!) “solely to pleasure children of today…in which the wonderment and joy are retained and the heartaches and nightmares are left out.” 

With the spirit of Baum in mind, you will discover stories from all around the world at CHIFF. Stories about pirate mice, adventurous papaya seeds, superhero babies, runaway ostriches and cross-country car racing. There is magic to be found everywhere, with a giant hippo wishing to be small again, friendly monsters on camp, whale songs that protect the ocean, a boy made from spare parts and a girl who must save time. Travel through history to the Incan Empire, early 20th century Brazil and ancient China (with Tom and Jerry!). 

We are particularly excited to be presenting the Australian premiere of the English-language version of the Academy Award-nominated Little Amélie or the Character of Rain, a special screening of the acclaimed underwater adventure The Last Whale Rider, and a Family Fun Day screening of Disney & Pixar’s Toy Story 5. These special presentations join 25 other internationally acclaimed films that have screened at some of the most prestigious overseas festivals dedicated to young audiences, plus children’s classics The Flight of the Navigator, celebrating its 40th anniversary, and Fly Away Home, celebrating its 30th anniversary."  

—Thomas Caldwell, Artistic Director 

Festival team

Artistic Director Thomas Caldwell
Festival Events & Partnerships Manager Marc Repse
Festival Content Coordinator Katie Page
Design Ryan Beasley
Cover Illustration Simon Howe
Head of Marketing Jaymes Durante
Moving Story Marketing Caitlin Pettit, Emelyn Kirkegaard, Oliver John
Web Development Chook
Materials & Conversion JORR

A special thank you to the Moving Story Entertainment team and the dedicated teams at Classic, Lido, Cameo and Ritz Cinemas, and to our film-loving community for their ongoing support and enthusiasm.

Terms and conditions:

CHIFF has received a classification excemption from the Australian Classification Board. Age recommendations for films are provided by the festival as guidelines, and specific information about language and themes are provided in the detailed description of each film. All assesments by CHIFF are subjective, and consideration by a parent or guardian is advised to asses whether a film is a good fit for your family.