To our audience of devoted cinephiles: you’re cordially invited to our launch party for the very first edition of the All Americas’ Independent Film Festival, which will be held at Digital Village, Paris on July 3rd. The event starts at 7 p.m. – we hope to see you there!

AAIFF Americas’ Launch Party: Release of the Official Selection

Mark your calendars! We can hardly wait for our upcoming Launch Party on Thursday, July 3, from 19:00 to 21:00 at Digital Village Paris (21 Rue Albert Bayet, 75013 Paris)! ÉCU welcomes you to join us as we celebrate a recap of ÉCU 2025 and officially launch the All Americas’ International Film Festival (AAIFF).

At 8 p.m. today, our official selection for the All Americas’ Independent Film Festival will be available on our website!

We want to thank our friends over at Digital Village for providing a welcoming, open space for our Americas’ Launch Party. In addition to celebrating our fantastic film selection for this year, we also invite you to enjoy the live music and conversations with fellow filmmakers and cinephiles!

The All Americas’ Independent Film Festival 2025

Submissions for the All Americas’ Independent Film Festival are now closed! Our fantastic Events Department has been working tirelessly to procure a diverse selection of original, imaginative, and remarkable films from locations ranging from Canada to Venezuela. Given that it’s the first year of the All Americas’ Independent Film Festival, we are hitting the ground running to ensure that this viewing experience is truly like no other.

Submissions are still open for our All African Independent Film Festival

For another exciting reminder, our second annual All African Independent Film Festival is taking place in mid-October! For this festival, the Extended Submission deadline is August 1st! We are elated at the film submissions that we have already received, and heavily encourage ambitious filmmakers to submit their works as well. ÉCU has been presented with works from all over the continent, extending from Kenya to Côte d’Ivoire. Time is ticking to be a part of this coalition of talented filmmakers and artists!

Submissions are open for our All Asian Independent Film Festival!

While still a ways ahead, it’s never too early to start thinking about submitting to our second annual All Asian Independent Film Festival, which will be taking place from December 5th-7th! Our Earlybird Deadline is coming up on July 4th, but there’s also the Regular Deadline on August 1st, the Late Deadline on August 29th, and the Extended Deadline on September 26th. There’s still plenty of time, so to our wonderful Asian filmmakers: get those submissions in!

ÉCU 2025 Partner Highlights

We’d like to take a moment to recognize our sponsors and partners (our festival wouldn’t be the same without them!) Here are a few highlights:

Recent Articles: Fitting In, Falling Apart: How Independent Cinema Exposes the Gendered Violence of Conformity

In this captivating article, journalism intern Nathan Sledjeski examines themes of gender violence, and more specifically how both male and female independent filmmakers approach the topic. We encourage you to take a look at these articles and others to learn a little more in-depth about the behind-the-scenes dynamics of independent filmmaking!

What to do in Paris this July?

If you’re looking to step out in the city this summer – Parc de la Villette in the 19th arrondissement offers an outdoor movie-going experience in the park. The Open Air Cinema Festival (Cinéma en plein air) screens a variety of both French and international films of genres ranging from independent art films to blockbusters. All foreign films are subtitled in French. This event is free and open to all.