Television Meets the Cinema Audience
The official opening program on November 1, 2026 begins with a reception at 7 p.m., followed by a ceremony at 8 p.m. The two episodes of the series created by Hanan Savyon and Guy Amir are scheduled for 8:30 p.m. All times are local to Israel.
The main auditorium screening will have Hebrew subtitles, while a simultaneous screening in Auditorium 2 will have English subtitles. A conversation with the creators is also part of the program, bringing a shared viewing experience to a series audiences know through Netflix.
Booking is through the Sderot Cinematheque's ticket system. Its opening event page lists subscription and ticket card options but does not establish a single price for all festival events. Visitors should check each screening's language, subtitles and auditorium when reserving.
Southern Stories Take Their Place
"Soul Traces" will present five short films by western Negev filmmakers examining life after the October 7, 2023 attack. Two films by Bedouin women from the Negev, developed through the "Through a Woman's Eyes" incubator, are also scheduled.
Sami Shalom Chetrit will present "Gourrama, My Love," about his father and life in Morocco and Israel. Returning Sapir graduates include Efrat Corem with "Golden Heart," Shir Houri Abu with "Sarah," and Sderot filmmaker Tal Avitan with "Carlos Outside the Lines."
Eight past festival winners will connect the anniversary program to its history. The New South Cinema competition and the launch of the Negba incubator for young southern filmmakers at the closing ceremony turn toward future work. Completed films will therefore sit alongside a new route for developing the next productions.
Nili Feller Tribute and a Swiss Guest
Editor Nili Feller will receive a retrospective featuring four films she edited and a master class. Sapir also lists encounters with filmmakers including Ari Folman and Dani Rosenberg.
Swiss director Thomas Imbach will attend in cooperation with the Swiss Embassy. His master class is scheduled for November 3, 2026 at 4:30 p.m. in Auditorium 2, exploring approaches to filming, editing and storytelling. Two of his films will also be screened.
Other selections include Yael Hedaya's comedy drama "What About a Child?" and "Whose Daughter Are You?" by Efrat Shalom Danon and Keren Shaayo. Iris Zaki's "What Is She Thinking" is scheduled to close the festival as part of the Feller tribute.
Culture Within the City's Recovery
The festival began in 2001 as a competition for students' graduation films. Over the years, it operated in a city repeatedly hit by rockets from Gaza, before Sderot faced the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023 and the evacuation of residents.
JNS reported the reopening of the city's educational institutions on March 3, 2024 after roughly five months of closure. That was a documented step in the return of services and public activity, rather than proof that recovery was complete.
Festival director Reuma Mantzur told The Jerusalem Post, in an article published on October 29, 2026, that recent years had largely been about keeping the festival going. She stressed investment in the local creative community and space for stories emerging from the South.
Sapir identifies the Sderot Cinematheque as the festival's permanent home, alongside wider southern activity and screenings throughout the year. The five festival days are therefore the annual focus of continuing work, rather than its only meeting point with local audiences.
Sapir President Professor Nir Kedar emphasized the college's commitment to local filmmakers and the next generation. Festival chairman and film school head Rani Blair Elkabetz linked the program to life after the attack. At 25, that continuity takes a practical form: screenings, meetings and new opportunities for people creating in the region.
