Out on Film: On a cinematic journey with Atlanta’s LGBTQI film festival
Out on Film – Atlanta, Georgia’s LGBTQI film festival – is one of the oldest film festivals of its kind in the United States, devoted to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community. The event was launched in 1987 by Atlanta community leaders, including playwright Rebecca Ranson, under the umbrella of SAME (Southeastern Arts, Media, and Education Project). “For many years after, the event was staged by the Atlanta Film Festival until a new group (including myself) took over in 2008 and became a non-profit LGBTQI-run organization,” explained festival director Jim Farmer. “Now we run for eleven days and feature more than 125 films each year.” The celebrated, long-running festival screens films at its annual event in every category from narratives to documentaries to short films. “We show everything from international fare to local programming to retrospectives, and we also place a big premium on working with filmmakers.”
Out on Film now presents approximately 150 narratives, documentaries, shorts, and web series across its main event and supplemental programming. The core festival still runs eleven days, but the organization has grown into one of the oldest and largest LGBTQIA+ film festivals in the United States. That scale gives Atlanta a sustained platform for queer cinema that few cities can match.
Current Scale and Reach
The festival’s reach extends well beyond the September run. Year-round screenings and special events keep the programming calendar active and give local audiences regular access to new work. Submissions for 2026 are already open through FilmFreeway, with films completed in 2025 or later eligible for consideration. Organizers have also made the process flexible enough to route strong entries toward both the main fall event and the smaller spring showcase.
Year-Round Programming and Special Events
Out on Film supplements its September centerpiece with a fourth annual Queer All Year Spring Mini-Fest, held this year from March 17–19, and a third annual Queer Film Summit planned for 2026. The summit brings filmmakers, programmers, and industry guests together for roundtables and networking sessions that extend the festival’s mission past the screening room. These additions keep the organization visible in Atlanta’s cultural life even when the main slate is months away.
Festival Prestige and Industry Recognition
The festival’s reputation now carries formal weight. Out on Film is both Oscar-qualifying and BAFTA-qualifying, which means the winner of Best Drama Short earns eligibility for the Academy’s Live Action Short Film category. In 2023 the event was also named the number-one film festival in the country by USA Today’s 10Best readers, a nod that reflects both audience enthusiasm and industry respect.
Recent Award Highlights
Audience Awards now recognize Best Narrative Feature, Best Documentary, Best Drama Short, and Best International Film. Jury Awards cover Best Feature, Best Documentary, Best International Film, Best Performance, Best Director, Best First Film, Best Ensemble, Best Drama Short, and Best Documentary Short. In 2025 the jury singled out the short film “Two People Exchanging Saliva” and the documentary “The Librarians” for top honors, underscoring the range of work the festival continues to champion.
Out on Film remains an awards event, offering prizes that distinguish narrative features, documentaries, and shorts while highlighting the specific achievements of trans-themed work, comedy, and international titles. The structure keeps the focus on both audience favorites and critical consensus, giving filmmakers a clear sense of how their projects land with different groups.
Providing a cinematic journey of LGBTQI lives, culture, and identity, each year Out on Film assembles a selection of films that attempt to capture just what it means to be queer in contemporary society in often challenging and captivating ways. Farmer explained that it is vital to give voices to LGBTQI filmmakers so that these artists can tell (and continue to tell) their stories that are uniquely about the LGBTQI experience. “Festivals provide a forum to showcase these filmmakers and their films to appreciative audiences, hungry for programming that speaks directly to them.”
Over the years, Out on Film has garnered warm reviews from attendants and filmmakers alike. Andrea Hintermaier described it as a “wonderful festival,” adding, “I can’t tell how grateful I am that my world premiere was at this beautiful event, full of genuinely creative and kind people.” Meanwhile, Edward King said it was a “fantastic experience – everyone was so warm and giving.”
The 2026 festival runs September 24 through October 4. Filmmakers can submit via FilmFreeway. However, if you’re simply a film buff looking to network and witness the next big thing in LGBTQI cinema, tickets will soon be available on Out on Film website. Be there or be square!
