45th Vancouver International Film Festival

Who should cross for this

Film travelers, Asian and Canadian cinema audiences, filmmakers, students, critics, producers, distributors, and screen-industry delegates.

VIFF has a documented history as a North American gateway for East Asian cinema, while current industry programs support international co-production, distribution, and creative exchange.

Suggested trip length: 5 nights for a focused program or 11–12 nights for the full festival

Let the venue map shape the stay

Yaletown and Downtown South make a practical provisional base. The VIFF Centre is at 1181 Seymour Street, and Yaletown-Roundhouse offers a direct Canada Line connection from YVR. Downtown hotels also keep several recurring festival venues within reach. Mount Pleasant and Commercial Drive become stronger choices only when selected films cluster there.

TransLink buses and rapid transit are accessible. At VIFF Centre, wheelchair spaces can be reserved by phone, and hearing-assistance headsets are available. Open captions, closed-caption devices and descriptive video appear only on selected screenings, while partner-venue facilities differ.

Plan for popular screenings and standby

Buy priority titles when single tickets open. If a screening sells out, returned or unused seats may be released through standby at showtime, with one ticket per person and no guarantee. Lochmaddy Studio Theatre does not offer standby. Late seating is discretionary, so leave generous travel time between venues.

Festival prices have not been announced. The amounts currently shown on the ticket page are year-round VIFF Centre rates. Ticket purchases include a basic viewing membership in the festival society because some films are unclassified under provincial rules.

Follow Vancouver's Pacific film lineage

VIFF's earlier Cinema of the Pacific Rim and Dragons and Tigers programs helped North American audiences encounter filmmakers including Bong Joon-ho, Jia Zhangke, Ann Hui and Hirokazu Kore-eda. The modern festival also foregrounds Canadian and Indigenous work and runs industry pathways for co-production, works in progress and distribution.

That history makes VIFF a natural transpacific trip, but the 2026 case should rest on the films and guests announced in August. Use the live schedule for changes; the printed guide available from September 10 may not capture late additions.

Official information