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It’s official - Cannes Film Festival Palme d'Or winner, It Was Just An Accident, is this year’s opening night film.

Filmed in secret in Iran, It Was Just An Accident is a road movie revenge thriller featuring biting black humour, borderline absurd happenings, and vividly shifting viewpoints from a van-load of ex-prisoners. At the same time, it looks at bigger questions around morality, justice, unhealed trauma and the impact of the Iranian regime.

And strikingly, there’s an air of the autobiographical for acclaimed director Jafar Panahi, once imprisoned himself and finally free from a filmmaking ban imposed by Iranian authorities. With It Was Just An Accident, Panahi tempers the anger with irony, and ultimately, he shows us that we can stay human only by seeking justice and truth rather than vengeance.

"Jafar Panahi's film is cinema at its boldest. It challenges the notion of revenge through compassion. It is the kind of cinema that stays with you. I am excited that New Zealand audiences will be among the first in the world to see it!" - Paolo Bertolin, NZIFF Artistic Director.

Our centerpiece this year is... Prime Minister 

Directed by Michelle Walshe and Lindsay Utz, the documentary takes a highly personal, behind the scenes look at former PM Jacinda Ardern’s time at the helm of Aotearoa. Using candid voiceovers and home videos, the doco charts her time in office as she navigates imposter syndrome, first time motherhood, unprecedented crises, and a sharp turn in NZ's political landscape.

“World leaders have rarely been captured with as much intimacy... As a portrait of struggles in the seat of power, the film presses all the right emotional buttons.”—Siddhant Adlakha, Variety.

An NZIFF multi-trip pass is the best way to secure your seat - learn more here.

See more films and save with an NZIFF Multipass

Multipasses are the best-value way to experience the Festival. Available in both 5-Trip and 10-Trip options (with student pricing in select centres), they give you the flexibility to curate your own NZIFF experience and save while doing it.

In Auckland and Wellington, all 10-Trip Multipasses come with Earlybird access, which means:

• Exclusive entry to our ticket pre-sale before general sales open

• A digital NZIFF programme delivered to your inbox as soon as it's released

With some of our most in-demand titles likely to sell out fast, Earlybird access gives you the best chance to secure seats to your top picks if you're in Auckland or Wellington.

Whether you're planning a few highlights or a full Festival immersion, there’s a Multipass to suit your schedule and your budget:

• 5-Trip Multipass

• 5-Trip Student Multipass

• 10-Trip Multipass (includes Earlybird access in Auckland and Wellington only)

New This Year: Online Booking with Your Multipass 

In Auckland and Wellington, Multipass holders can now book their tickets directly through our website - no need to visit the cinema in person. We’re excited to roll this out to more centres in the future as we continue improving the

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A politically charged near-future drama from Brazil, an acclaimed Norwegian trilogy exploring intimacy and desire, an Australian animated queer space opera, a haunting psychological drama set in remote Aotearoa, and a 70s horror classic restored to its full glory are among the first films revealed for Whānau Mārama New Zealand International Film Festival (NZIFF) in 2025.

Artistic Director Paolo Bertolin says these films offer an early glimpse of the energy, ideas and themes shaping this year’s festival and a taste of the adventurous and memorable stories awaiting audiences this year.

“These films reflect the pulse of contemporary cinema and speak powerfully to the moment we are living in. They ask big questions, take risks, and remind us why cinema matters more than ever.

“Thanks to the exceptional work of the NZIFF programming team, we are shaping this year’s festival as a chance to experience that urgency, curiosity and beauty together on the big screen,” Bertolin says.

Bertolin is joined in the selection of films by a renewed programming team composed of Programme Manager Michael McDonnell and programmers Carmen Gray, Heperi Mita, Amanda Jane Robinson and Jordan Salomen.

Each of the first films revealed is part of one of the ten

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Whānau Mārama New Zealand International Film Festival will return to six regional centres in 2025, with screenings confirmed in Kirikiriroa Hamilton, Ahuriri Napier, Whakatū Nelson, Ngāmotu New Plymouth, Whakaoriori Masterton, and Tauranga-moana Tauranga this August and September.

This completes the national rollout for NZIFF 2025, following the earlier announcement of festival dates in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington, Ōtautahi Christchurch, and Ōtepoti Dunedin.

We’ve worked closely with regional cinemas and film societies to ensure the festival continues to reach audiences across Aotearoa in 2025. There’s a strong appetite for NZIFF in the regions, and we’re excited to return this year and build on the partnerships that make it all possible.

NZIFF 2025 will screen in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland (31 July – 10 August), Ōtautahi Christchurch (8 – 24 August), Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington (14 – 24 August), Ōtepoti Dunedin (15 – 31 August), Kirikiriroa Hamilton (28 August – 10 September), Whakatū Nelson (28 August – 10 September), Ahuriri Napier (28 August – 7 September), Ngāmotu New Plymouth (28 August – 7 September), Tauranga-moana Tauranga (28 August – 7 September), and Whakaoriori Masterton (28 August – 7 September).