The San Diego Latino Film Festival returns March 17 to 21, 2027, for its 34th edition. Media Arts Center San Diego is planning it as an in-person festival, and the call for entries and the poster competition are both open now.
SDLFF started as a student film festival and grew into one of the bigger Latino film festivals anywhere. Its festival week mixes films with parties, Sonido Latino concerts, and Arte Latino showcases. The 2027 lineup, venues, and prices are not out yet. Here is what is confirmed, plus how the 2026 edition worked, as of September 28, 2026.
The quick version
| When | Wednesday, March 17, through Sunday, March 21, 2027 |
| Where | San Diego. 2027 venues not yet announced; 2026 used AMC Mission Valley 20 and the Digital Gym CINEMA |
| Edition | 34th |
| Program | Latino and Latinx features, shorts, documentaries, local Frontera films, youth shorts, and episodic work |
| Tickets | 2027 prices not announced; 2026 ran $13 to $200, per KPBS |
| Ages | 2026 was listed as all ages |
| Official site | sdlatinofilm.com |
What’s screening
The 2027 lineup has not been announced. Filmmakers are notified by February 2, 2027. The festival’s call for entries covers feature films (60 minutes or more), short films (30 minutes or less), local Frontera features and shorts, youth shorts, and episodic content. A selection committee of filmmakers, academics, critics, and community members helps pick the films.
What 2026 looked like
The 33rd festival ran March 18 to 22, 2026. It opened with Ricardo de Montreuil’s Mistura, starring Bárbara Mori, which went on to win the Premio Corazón for Best Narrative Feature. Other 2026 winners:
- Best Documentary Feature: Traces of Home, Colette Ghunim
- Best Narrative Short: Juanita
- Best Frontera Feature: Un Techo Sin Cielo, Diego Hernandez
- Audience Award, Narrative Feature: Vainilla, Mayra Hermosillo
- Audience Award, Documentary Feature: American Pachuco: The Legend of Luis Valdez, David Alvarado
The Frontera films
Local filmmakers compete in their own Frontera categories for features and shorts, and those awards are sponsored by the International Community Foundation. There is a youth film award, too. Those blocks are where to find work made in the San Diego and border region.
Passes and tickets
2027 prices have not been posted. For 2026, KPBS listed tickets at $13 to $200, with individual tickets and festival passes with VIP perks sold online and at the ticket windows. The 2026 ticketing ran through Eventive.
Venues
SDLFF has not named its 2027 venues. In 2026, screenings were at:
- AMC Mission Valley 20, in Mission Valley.
- Digital Gym CINEMA, 1100 Market St., San Diego, CA 92101, Media Arts Center San Diego’s own cinema in the same building as its offices.
About the festival
SDLFF is produced by Media Arts Center San Diego, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. The festival says more than 350,000 people have attended over its history and more than 4,020 films and videos have screened. Past guests include Gael García Bernal, Diego Luna, Alfonso Cuarón, Dolores Huerta, Edward James Olmos, America Ferrera, and Danny Trejo. Ethan van Thillo is executive director, and Diana Cervera is festival program director.
Still to come
The 2027 lineup, opening night film, venues, schedule, ticket and pass prices, parking, and accessibility details have not been announced. The 824 Journal will update this guide when they are released.
Sources
- San Diego Latino Film Festival, official site (2027 dates)
- SDLFF: Press (34th edition, March 17 to 21, 2027)
- SDLFF on FilmFreeway (2027 dates, categories, notification date, venue, organizers)
- SDLFF: 2026 Premio Corazón Winners
- SDLFF: About Us
- KPBS: 33rd Annual San Diego Latino Film Festival (2026 dates, venues, prices, program)
Featured photo: Mickey J. Brijandez via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0
