JAHA FILM FESTIVAL

Start: Saturday, February 14, 2026 1:00AM
End: Saturday, February 28, 2026 11:00PM

The first JAHA Film Festival celebrates the work of Trans, Intersex, and Nonbinary (TIN) filmmakers from the Global South, focusing on anti-colonial narratives. After packed screenings in Lisbon, Portugal last December, the films will screen virtually Feb. 14–28, 2026. Book passes at JAHA's website. "JAHA is about uplifting the TIN filmmakers who use cinema as a tool for our collective liberation," said trans multidisciplinary artist and festival founder Mama Ganuush (they/them). Along with programmers Kholoud Nasser (they/them) and Zara Ahmed, they culled 1,100 submissions down to the 21 films featured at the festival. Trans Liberation Film School Several of the films are now accompanied by freely available educational curriculum created just for JAHA. Archivists and scholars Eric A. Stanley and dee(dee) c. ardan and JAHA organizer Zara Ahmed (they/them) spent months preparing curriculum that comprises JAHA's Trans Liberation Film School, which viewers can use to deepen their understanding of the films and our world. The curriculum is designed to be completed individually or in study groups, in or out of classrooms. As the organizers said, "Each of the films can be a weapon of our collective liberation–weapons sharpened by our first Trans Liberation Film School." According to JAHA founder Mama Ganuush, "Across the globe, we've all witnessed the recent narrowing of possibilities for people who have been historically and systematically oppressed. Nobody knows this like trans, intersex and nonbinary people from the Global South." "In the face of increasing censorship and erasure, now is the time to spotlight our stories," said Mama Ganuush. Global online screenings will begin on February 14, 2026. Passes are available for pre-order now.