We’re having a milestone birthday!
Founded in 1977, IWFF is celebrating its 50th festival in 2027. Get involved with special events, excursions, and all things wild.
The International Wildlife Film Festival is excited to present a variety of events to commemorate 50 years of wildlife and conservation films. Please check back often as events will continue to be added to the calendar.
More info is coming soon, sign up for our newsletter to get the latest.
IWFF 50th Anniversary Safari
September 19 – 26, 2027
Celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Wildlife Film Festival with the ultimate wildlife experience!
Discover one of the planet’s most extraordinary ecosystems – Brazil’s Pantanal, the world’s largest tropical wetland and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Designed for modern explorers who crave authentic adventure with a purpose, this journey plunges you into a wildlife wonderland where the thrill of spotting a wild jaguar is always a possibility.
Hosted by Rewild Safaris. Private and limited to 10 adventurers of all abilities.
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IWFF50 Memory Collection Project
In honor of the 50th International Wildlife Film Festival, the IWFF team is collecting and sharing stories of past festival-goers. Join us at the Roxy Theater to share your experiences and reminisce about the past five decades of wildlife film.
Do you have photos or home videos to share? We would love to see them! Our team is specifically interested in photos from 1977 – 1999.
Please email your photos or reach out to [email protected] to schedule a time to share your memories.
Koko: A Talking Gorilla
September 15, 2026
In 1977, acclaimed director Barbet Schroeder and cinematographer Nestor Almendros entered the universe of the world’s most famous primate to create the captivating documentary Koko: A Talking Gorilla.
The film introduces us to Koko soon after she was brought from the San Francisco Zoo to Stanford University by Dr. Penny Patterson for a controversial experiment—she would be taught the basics of human communication through American Sign Language.
Released the same year the IWFF organization was founded, this entertaining, troubling, and still relevant documentary evokes the science-minded, educational style of the films programmed in the earliest days of the International Wildlife Film Festival.
Duration: 80 Minutes
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Celebrate World Animal Day with a matinee screening of Cane Toads: An Unnatural History (1988) and The Natural History of the Chicken (2000)
October 4, 2026
In 1988, Australian television producer and documentary filmmaker Mark Lewis exploded onto the scene with Cane Toads: An Unnatural History, a documentary detailing the spread of Hawaiian sugar-cane toads through Australia in a botched effort to introduce them as pest control. His take on an ecological crisis was experimental and comedic, an early landmark in the expanding definition of what wildlife filmmaking can look like, is an idea that IWFF strives to promote even today with our New Vision awards category.
Throughout his career, Lewis continued to seek out and share remarkable stories of human-animal relationships and interactions. His 2000 film A Natural History of the Chicken combines interviews and reenactments to investigate the role of one of the most important animals in American life: the chicken.
Run time: 102 Minutes
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More ways to engage with IWFF
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