The best films to watch at the 2026 Sydney Film Festival

These films should be at the top of your watchlist

By Cayle Reid

Published: May 26, 2026

Sydney Film Festival 2026 Best Films — *The Death of Robin Hood*

THE 2026 SYDNEY Film Festival – otherwise known as the Sydney-based cinephile’s Christmas – is right around the corner. As usual, the program is packed with indie darlings, recent standouts from the global festival circuit – including the Palme D’Or winner direct from Cannes – and some early frontrunners for the 2027 Oscars race.

Running from June 3 to 14, 248 films and documentaries from over 80 countries will be screening at the 2026 Sydney Film Festival. The lineup includes 19 world premieres, 140 Australian premieres and 19 films direct from Cannes. The size of the program is a testament to the festival’s growing stature on the world’s stage. It’s not quite Cannes, Venice or Sundance (yet!), but its renown is increasing.

To the average moviegoer, however, the Sydney Film Festival presents a rather overwhelming decision-making process. Should you stick to local features to support Australian cinema, or expand your palette with international films? Is it worth bothering with the bigger names on the billing if they’ll be releasing in cinemas soon anyway? Should you flock to the obscure indie flicks because there may not be another opportunity to see them? These are some of the questions you will ask yourself after seeing the lineup.

Don’t worry though, we’ve got you covered. Here, we’ll be breaking down the best films at the festival – the ones you’ll want to prioritise – as well as everything else you need to know to make sure you get the most out of the festivities.

What are the best films to see at the Sydney Film Festival 2026?

Fjord

Be honest, did you clock that the almost bald man in the above image was Sebastian Stan? If you didn’t, we won’t hold it against you. The usually full-headed Stan is nearly unrecognisable in Fjord, which just won the Palme D’Or in Cannes. Director Cristian Mungiu’s film follows a devout Christian family of Romanian immigrants in Norway, who find difficulties assimilating when their cultural norms clash with those of the secular society which they now inhabit. Stan (who you may not have known was actually born in Romania) stars alongside recent Oscar nominee Renate Reinsve in an early contender for the 2027 awards season.

The Death of Robin Hood

Hugh Jackman stars alongside Jodie Comer in this radical retelling of the classic Robin Hood tale, which reimagines the hero of the working class as anything but a hero. The film immediately immerses the audience in the gritty, bleak and overtly violent landscape of Medieval England and portrays Robin Hood as a condemned figure, doomed to a lonely death while contemplating what the future holds for a man with such a brutal past.

Leviticus

From Australian director Adrian Chiarella, Leviticus has been drawing global praise after its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January. It centres on two young boys in a God-fearing, conservative Christian community in regional Victoria. The pair have a strong attraction for each other – which, once discovered, is punished by a pseudo-conversion therapy ritual carried out by a strange healer. This releases a supernatural entity which targets the boys by taking the form of what they desire most: each other.

The Invite

Olivia Wilde directs and stars in this dinner party dramedy in which she trades barbs with Seth Rogen, Edward Norton and Penélope Cruz. Wilde and Rogen play a tightly wound couple who can’t seem to agree on anything. When they invite their more free-spirited neighbours (Cruz and Norton) around for dinner, their apartment seems set to blow.

Marc by Sofia

In Marc and Sofia, the ‘Marc’ is fashion designer Marc Jacobs and ‘Sofia’ is director Sofia Coppola. It’s the latter’s first documentary and is a personal portrait of her longtime friend, Jacobs. The pair first met in 1993, when Jacobs was designing for Perry Ellis, and the documentary will kick off from around that time and chart Jacobs’ success while offering an insight into his creative process and influences.

Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma

If the title of Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma has you intrigued, you’ll be even more interested to know that this is Jane Schoenbrun’s third feature film and first since I Saw the TV Glow. It also just won the Queer Palm at Cannes. It’s a psychosexual horror starring Hannah Einbinder as Kris, a filmmaker hired to resurrect an ’80s slasher franchise called Camp Miasma. Kris is adamant that the star of the original should return, which means recruiting the now reclusive Billy, played by Gillian Anderson. As the two grow closer, the mystery of Camp Miasma begins to be unravelled, bringing with it a revelatory psychosexual climax.

Árru

Árru is about a Sámi reindeer herder fighting to protect her ancestral lands and way of life from a mining project. Set in Sápmi in the northern part of the Scandinavian Peninsula, the film deftly weaves together grounded drama with bursts of traditional song, drawing on Sámi culture to deliver what is ultimately a cathartic tale about breaking your silence to do the right thing.

Pressure

Countless films have been made about World War II, and especially the D-Day landings. But you know what’s an area of the campaign that hasn’t been covered? The weather! That’s what Pressure is all about: the nail-biting 72 hours in the lead up to D-Day through the eyes of a meteorologist. Said meteorologist is Captain James Stagg (Andrew Scott), who is tasked by General Dwight Eisenhower (Brendan Fraser) with finding the best day to launch the largest seaborne invasion in history.

Rose of Nevada

A time travel mystery, Rose of Nevada stars Callum Turner and George McKay as a pair of confused fisherman. Thirty years after vanishing off the coast of Cornwall, a fishing boat named the ‘Rose of Nevada’ suddenly reappears. Nick (McKay), signs up to join its new crew along with drifter Liam (Turner), but when they return from their first voyage they discover that the year is 1993 and that the locals believe they are the original crew members.

The Fox

Olivia Colman plays a talking fox and Sam Neill a talking magpie in this Australian absurdist comedy. Need we say more? In case we do, Jai Courtney also features as the protagonist, a small-town fox catcher and heir to a sizeable local estate. His personal life is a mess – he’s just caught his fiancée cheating on him with her boss – but a solution to that problem presents itself when he catches a fox who promises him the perfect wife in exchange for freedom.

The Man I Love

best films at the sydney film festival 2026

Fresh off of creating some hype at Cannes, The Man I Love now comes to Sydney as one of the most anticipated films on the program. It’s set in New York City during the 1980s, at the height of the AIDS crisis. It stars Rami Malek as Jimmy George, an actor coming to grips with his diagnosis with the disease while working on what will be his final film. The Man I Love is, above all, a romantic drama. It focuses on George’s relationship with his devoted partner, an attractive new neighbour and how devastating his loss would be to his community.

When is the Sydney Film Festival?

The 2026 Sydney Film Festival will take place from June 3rd-14th. The festival will begin with the opening night gala and red carpet premiere of Silenced at the State Theatre. Prizes will be handed out at the closing night awards ceremony at the State Theatre on June 14th, followed by a yet to be announced screening.

Where can you get tickets for the Sydney Film Festival?

Single-session tickets and more expansive flexipasses for the 2026 Sydney Film Festival are available to purchase at the Sydney Film Festival’s official website here.

What venues are hosting the Sydney Film Festival?

12 venues spread across four regions will host showings during the 2026 Sydney Film Festival. These aren’t just any run-of-the-mill franchises or run-down multiplexes though. All 12 venues are rich in history and can count themselves amongst Sydney’s finest cinematic establishments. Find the full list of host venues below.