The opening ceremony, held at the Bangladesh National Museum, was inaugurated by Syeda Rizwana Hasan, Adviser for Information and Broadcasting, alongside international dignitaries including Croatian filmmaker Aleksandra Marković.

Following vibrant cultural performances, the festival commenced its screening programme with the Chinese feature The Journey to No End, followed by the Iranian drama Without Me. This year’s ambitious event features 245 films spanning 91 countries, distributed across diverse categories such as the Asian Film Competition and the Women Filmmakers section. In a historical first, the Bangladesh Tourism Board launched concurrent open-air screenings at Laboni Beach in Cox’s Bazar.

The 2026 edition also expanded its “West Meets East Screenplay Lab” to include creators from across the entire Asian continent, offering substantial grants for top projects. Educational highlights include an upcoming masterclass on 17 January featuring international experts like Teresa Vina. The festival is scheduled to conclude on 18 January with an awards ceremony presided over by Cultural Affairs Adviser Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, followed by a screening of the winning film