Agenda
On Tour: Facing War
With Movies that Matter On Tour, we bring festival favourites to seventeen cinemas throughout the Netherlands. In October, we kick off the new season with the documentary Facing War, winner of the Grand Jury Documentary Award at the Movies that Matter Festival 2025. See all screening dates About the Film A political documentary with a...
Leiden International Film Festival
11 days filled with premieres, special film events, parties and more: that’s the Leiden International Film Festival. LIFF was founded in 2006 and has grown into one of the most important film festivals in the Netherlands. The 2025 edition will take place from 9 to 19 October, and will feature over 100 films from all...
Now in Cinemas: Mediha
A young Êzidî woman survived kidnapping and enslavement by ISIS and goes on a brave quest. For justice, for internal healing, and for her missing parents and brother. Heartbreaking and inspiring. ‘Ever since I returned from ISIS, I falter when I speak,’ Mediha Alhamad says at the beginning of the documentary Mediha. Mediha’s early childhood was simple and...
Now in Cinemas: Red Path
Mghila Mountain, Tunisia, November 2015. When jihadists attack two young shepherds, 13-year-old Achraf is forced to bring a gruesome message to the villagers. Traumatized and trying not to lose his mind, Achraf needs to stand strong, confronted with the helplessness of his elders, themselves abandoned by the authorities. In the harsh landscape of Tunisian...
Imagine Fantastic Film Festival
Imagine is the largest film festival for Fantastic film in the Netherlands, showcasing the best in fantasy, horror, sci-fi and everything in between. Imagine is all about the imagination. They believe dreaming big is best, because Weird Is Wonderful. Each year, they try to challenge our audience to use their imagination to fantasise about the...
On Tour: Mister L.
With Movies that Matter On Tour, we bring festival favourites to seventeen cinemas throughout the Netherlands. In November, we are showing the Dutch feature film Mister L. by Thomas Stokmans. About the Film An Asian tourist visits the touristic highlights that the Netherlands has to offer. After losing his passport – due to biased assumptions...
Now in Cinemas: It Was Just an Accident
Like so many of Jafar Panahi’s films, Palme d’Or winner It Was Just An Accident opens inside a vehicle. Its driver, Eghbal (Ebrahim Azizi), is heading home with his wife (Afssaneh Najmabadi) and daughter (Delmaz Najafi) when he hits a dog, killing the poor animal and destroying his engine. Seeking roadside assistance, he wanders into a...
On Tour: If I Die, It’ll Be of Joy
With Movies that Matter On Tour, we bring festival favourites to seventeen cinemas throughout the Netherlands. In December, we will be screening the French documentary If I Die, It’ll Be of Joy by Alexis Taillant. About the Film In a world that often overlooks the power of the elderly, Micheline, Francis, and Yves lead a...
On Tour: Artificial Justice
With Movies that Matter On Tour, we bring festival favourites to seventeen cinemas throughout the Netherlands. In January, we will be screening Simón Casal’s political science fiction thriller Artificial Justice. About the Film In the near future in Spain, the Government aims to replace judges with an Artificial Intelligence software, pledging to effectively automate and...
Movies that Matter Festival 2026
Save the date: the next Movies that Matter Festival will take place from 20 to 28 March 2026 in The Hague. 📅 Add the festival to your calendar What can you expect at our festival? Nine days, over 90 powerful films – from short films to feature-length, fiction and documentaries. Stories that move and inspire....