Tampa Bay International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival

Dear Filmmakers,

Thank you for submitting your work to the Tampa Bay International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival. We deeply appreciate the time, creativity, and care that goes into each submission, and we are honored to share these stories with our audiences.

We want to provide an update on TIGLFF’s programming. The separate St. Pete festival originally planned for January 2026 is on pause. We plan to resume submissions for the pre-pandemic format of a combined Tampa and St. Pete festival in September 2026.

This change is part of a broader evolution for TIGLFF. We are rebranding and expanding to include not only film but other forms of LGBTQ+ art and storytelling. Our goal is to continue building spaces where community connection, creativity, and joy thrive, following the legacy of “Friends of the Festival,” our founders, from over 35 years ago. Recent initiatives, such as the community picnic added to our Trans Film Festival, have demonstrated the power of shared experiences in strengthening our local arts community, and we aim to expand on this model.

All submissions received for the originally scheduled January 2026 festival (Submitted June 2025 > September 2025) will be carried forward for consideration in the September 2026 festival, which we hope will include both in-person and virtual screenings to reach broader audiences. Filmmakers who do not wish for their work to remain in consideration are invited to contact us for a full refund of submission fees.

TIGLFF is the oldest LGBTQ+ film festival in Florida and one of the oldest in the country. Films will be screened in-person at venues in Tampa and St. Petersburg and encompass the whole Tampa Bay area.

The mission of the Festival is to showcase a selection of compelling films by, for, or about the LGBTQ+ community that Entertains, Empowers, and Enlightens the festival audience, as well as establish a sense of community between the audience, filmmakers, and talent.