Bishkek, April 22, 2026 /Kabar/. The opening ceremony of the 14th International Short Film Festival of the CIS, Baltic, and Georgian Countries took place in Bishkek. The event will run from April 21 to 24.
This year, the festival once again confirmed its high international interest: over 900 applications were received from directors from various countries, a testament to its growing prestige.
The festival is dedicated to the 90th anniversary of the outstanding filmmaker Algimantas Vidugiris, a director and educator who made a significant contribution to the development of regional cinema. The festival will also feature a photo exhibition dedicated to his life and work.
In addition to the competition program, guests can look forward to master classes led by experts on various aspects of cinema.
It's worth noting that the festival is supported by the Department of Cinematography under the Ministry of Culture, Information, and Youth Policy of the Kyrgyz Republic, the Interstate Fund for Humanitarian Cooperation of the CIS Member States, the Cultural Cooperation Fund, and the Kyrgyztasmasy State Cinema Center. For the 14th year in a row, the country has been gathering young filmmakers from across the post-Soviet space, and Bishkek has become the capital of short films.
The program includes international and national competitions. The international competition included 14 films, and the national competition included 15 works by Kyrgyz directors.