The 24th Tirana International Film Festival Opens Tonight

The Tirana International Film Festival (TIFF) holds its 24th edition from September 21 to 27, bringing to the capital a broad international program of 230 feature and short films.

This year’s edition, themed “Bring It Back! Humanography”, focuses on human stories, emotions and individual experiences through the language of cinema.

For this edition as well, the Albanian Telegraphic Agency continues as an official TIFF partner.

The festival’s competitive program includes debut feature films and documentaries, while the short-film competition is divided into the categories Live Action, Animation, Documentary, Video Art & Experimental, Student Films, Balkan Shorts and In Albanian Shorts.

Beyond the competition, the PANORAMA section brings thematic programs such as Generations, New World, Divergent Minds, Parade and AI 3.0, dedicated to new forms of audiovisual storytelling.

One of the festival’s highlights is RetrospecTIFF, dedicated to Italian director Luchino Visconti, where audiences will be able to see three of his renowned films: “Ossessione” (1943), “Rocco e i suoi fratelli” (1960) and “L’innocente” (1976).

TIFF also continues its programs for young people through KIDs & TEENs, with selected screenings for children and teenagers, as well as educational activities and audience voting.

After the opening ceremony, the festival will officially begin with the national premiere of the film “Mother”, by Macedonian director Teona Strugar Mitevska. The film, which had its world premiere at the 2025 Venice Film Festival, tells the story of the nun who became the religious icon Mother Teresa.

The special screenings program also includes “Shame and Money” by Visar Morina, winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival, the French documentary “The Bow and the Brush”, and “Live a Little” by Fanny Ovesen.

A special space is dedicated to Albanian cinematography through “Made In ALBANIAn”, with national premieres of new films produced in Albania and Kosovo in the Albanian language.

The festival will close with “Mimoza llastica” by Xhanfise Keko, a 1973 Albanian film restored in 4K in collaboration with AQSHF and presented as the world premiere of the restored version.