How far in advance do your festival dispatches go live?

Same-day or next-morning for press premieres. The Weekly Reel newsletter collects the week's strongest reviews and notebook entries every Saturday, so subscribers get the reading list before the next day's photocall schedule drops.

Do your festival reviews contain spoilers?

Reviews use a toggleable spoiler-line system in the article header — readers who don't want plot details can skip the marked section. Dispatch notebook entries are spoiler-free by default.

Can I follow just one festival, like Cannes only?

Yes. Each festival has its own archive page and a per-festival tag inside the Weekly Reel. Members can filter their newsletter to a single circuit without losing the weekly editorial pick.

What is your press credential policy?

Filmxa credentials its own staff critics through the festival's press office; we don't redistribute or sell badges. Coverage outside the press corps relies on public screenings and publisher hospitality.

I have a film at a festival — can I pitch it for coverage?

We accept pitches at editors@filmxa.net. Include a press kit, screening link or schedule, and a one-paragraph hook. We read every pitch but can only review a fraction; festival submissions get priority over unsolicited screeners.

Dawn press call at the Palais des Festivals, Cannes — The Palais des Festivals, dawn of press week — May 2025

The Festival Desk · 2025 circuit

Festival dispatches, filed by critics on the ground — not aggregated from press notes.

From Cannes to Toronto, our correspondents cover the four major festivals of the season with the patience of print and the urgency of a telegram. Reviews, interviews, and on-the-ground reporting from the people actually in the screening room.

By the Filmxa Festival Desk · edited by Marco Lefèvre

Read the Latest Dispatches

Los Angeles

Renée Okafor

Bureau Chief · Sundance, Telluride
London

Hugh Bexley

Senior Critic · BFI London, Berlinale
Tokyo

Aiko Murakami

East Asia Editor · Tokyo, Busan
Lagos

Tunde Adeyemi

Africa Correspondent · Durban, FESPACO
São Paulo

Beatriz Almeida

Latin America Editor · São Paulo, Cartagena

Review · 24 May 2025

A Critical Year at Cannes: The Films That Earned Their Standing Ovations

Six days into the festival, our dispatch on which premieres have delivered on the promise of the press kit — and which have not.

By Priya Anand · 1,820 words
Interview · 21 May 2025

Payal Kapadia on the Long Road to the Croisette

The Mumbai filmmaker on writing her Cannes competition entry in a notebook kept beside her kitchen table — and why she refused to cut a single frame.

By Aiko Murakami · 42 min read
Dispatch · 19 May 2025

Inside the Debates: A Note from the Salle Debussy Press Bench

Three screenings in, three arguments already. Our senior critic on what the opening week has revealed about the state of auteur cinema.

By Hugh Bexley · 1,340 words

Review · 17 February 2025

The Berlin Competition Made a Quiet Case for Slowness

Five films into the program, our verdict on a lineup that refused the dopamine hits of the streaming-era marketplace.

By Hugh Bexley · 1,640 words
Dispatch · 14 February 2025

From the Press Tent: What the Buyers Are Actually Watching

A walk through the European Film Market with our Berlin correspondent, and the titles quietly shifting hands at the Marriott.

By Renée Okafor · 1,210 words

Review · 02 September 2025

Venice 2025: A Biennale That Trusted Its Audience

Our reading of a competition that leaned into runtime, ambiguity, and the slow reveal — and where it faltered.

By Priya Anand · 1,790 words
Interview · 30 August 2025

Celine Song on the Discipline of a Second Feature

Aboard the yacht press lounge, our interview on expectations, restraint, and the gap between Past Lives and what came next.

By Marco Lefèvre · 36 min read

Dispatch · 28 January 2025

From Main Street: The Acquisitions Race That Wasn't

A quieter market than the streamers promised. Our correspondent on what eight days of screenings said about the indie business.

By Renée Okafor · 1,460 words
Review · 26 January 2025

The Ten Sundance Films Worth Tracking Through the Year

Our annual shortlist of the titles our critics expect to be discussing in December — and two they expect to forget by March.

By Marco Lefèvre · 1,920 words

Dispatch · 11 September 2025

TIFF Dispatch: The Awards-Season Pivot, Live from King Street

Three premieres in twelve hours, two standing ovations, one real surprise. Our notes from the front of the line at the Princess of Wales.

By Priya Anand · 1,280 words

312

Premieres covered across Cannes, Berlin, and Venice

Six unbroken years of daily coverage
4,200+

Films reviewed since launch

From 71 countries, with critics in five bureaus
140+

Director interviews in 24 months

Including Ari Aster, Celine Song, and Payal Kapadia
2×

OFCS Best Independent Film Publication

2023 & 2024, awarded by the Online Film Critics Society

How far in advance do dispatches go out?: Our festival-week coverage begins the morning the first press screening starts and runs through closing weekend. Reviews of competition titles publish within twelve hours of the premiere; interviews within forty-eight. Off-season, we publish a weekly circuit preview every Tuesday.
Do your reviews contain spoilers?: No. Our house style marks spoilers only inside a clearly labelled blockquote, and the blockquote is always placed after the verdict. Festival reviews follow the same rule — we do not trade endings for clicks.
Can I follow a single festival?: Yes. The Weekly Reel includes a festival digest section during the four majors, and every dispatch is tagged by circuit so you can filter the archive. Members can also build a personal watchlist from festival coverage.
What is your press credential policy?: Filmxa holds editorial accreditation at Cannes, Berlin, Venice, Sundance, and Toronto. We cannot extend reader accreditation through our coverage — festival press credentials are issued by the festivals themselves — but we publish a yearly explainer on how to apply.

The Weekly Reel · Saturdays at 7am ET

The Weekly Reel lands Saturday morning, before the photocalls.

Festival coverage, longform criticism, and the week’s most interesting new releases — delivered to 218,000 inboxes with a 41% open rate. Free, ad-light, member-supported.

Festival dispatches, filed by critics on the ground — not aggregated from press notes.

Who is filing from Los Angeles, London, Tokyo, Lagos, and São Paulo this year.

The season, festival by festival.

Cannes — 78th edition, 312 premieres covered

A Critical Year at Cannes: The Films That Earned Their Standing Ovations

Payal Kapadia on the Long Road to the Croisette

Inside the Debates: A Note from the Salle Debussy Press Bench

Berlin — 75th Berlinale, the post-cold palette

The Berlin Competition Made a Quiet Case for Slowness

From the Press Tent: What the Buyers Are Actually Watching

Venice — 82nd Mostra, on the Lido

Venice 2025: A Biennale That Trusted Its Audience

Celine Song on the Discipline of a Second Feature

Sundance — Park City, the indie market

From Main Street: The Acquisitions Race That Wasn't

The Ten Sundance Films Worth Tracking Through the Year

Toronto — TIFF, the second premiere

TIFF Dispatch: The Awards-Season Pivot, Live from King Street

Premieres attended, critics in the room.

What readers ask before they subscribe.

The Weekly Reel lands Saturday morning, before the photocalls.