Golden Apricot Film Festival 2026: Yerevan Hosts Its 23rd International Cinema Week
The 23rd Golden Apricot Yerevan International Film Festival (GAIFF) is underway in the Armenian capital, running from July 12 to 19, 2026. One of the Caucasus region’s most established cultural events, the festival draws filmmakers, producers, and audiences from across Central Asia, the Middle East, and Europe to a week of screenings, industry panels, and open-air events in Yerevan.
What the Festival Is
Golden Apricot was founded in 2004 with a focus on the cinema of the Silk Road countries — a geographic and cultural arc stretching from the Mediterranean through the Caucasus and Central Asia to East Asia. The programming consistently includes films from Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Turkey, Central Asian republics, and further afield, alongside international features in competition.
The name is a reference to the Prunus armeniaca — the apricot, which bears the Latin name of Armenia and has been cultivated here since antiquity. The fruit appears frequently in Armenian cultural symbolism, and GAIFF has leaned into this identity to distinguish itself from the major European festival circuit.
2026 Programme
The 23rd edition continues the festival’s trademark mix: a main competition for feature films, a documentary strand, a short film competition, and a retrospective section dedicated to a filmmaker or national cinema. Regional premieres feature prominently, with several Armenian co-productions among the competition entries.
Open-air screenings take place at several locations across Yerevan, including Republic Square and the Moscow Cinema courtyard — a popular venue for evening films under the summer sky. The city’s temperatures in July (typically 33–36°C) make evening outdoor screenings particularly well-attended. Indoor screenings at the Nairi and Moscow cinemas accommodate larger competition audiences.
Industry events — producer forums, master classes, and networking sessions — run alongside the public programme and are open to accredited participants. Several film schools and regional broadcasters use GAIFF as a commissioning and acquisition opportunity for Caucasus-region content.
Attending GAIFF 2026
Most screenings are ticketed individually, with passes available for the full week. Films screen with English subtitles where the original language is not English; Armenian-language films typically carry English subtitles for international audiences. The festival box office and programme details are available at gaiff.am.
Yerevan in July is warm and dry — the summer peak — with most hotels running at capacity during the festival week. Book accommodation in advance if you’re arriving specifically for the festival. Our guide to July in Armenia covers what to expect from Yerevan in the summer months, including temperatures, festivals, and what else is on.
Beyond the Screenings
The festival is a good reason to time a Yerevan visit, but the city has enough to fill the days between screenings. The Cascade complex, Matenadaran manuscript museum, and the covered Vernissage market are all within walking distance of the central festival venues. For a full picture of what to do in the capital, see our Yerevan things to do guide.
The surrounding region is also accessible for day trips during the festival week — Garni Temple and Geghard Monastery are an hour by taxi, and Dilijan’s forested valleys are reachable in under two hours.