Events

Event details

Arab Film Fest Tulsa returns for a sixth year with acclaimed films and docs from the SWANA (Southwest Asia + North Africa) region, offering encounters with complex, authentic narratives from a spectrum of contemporary Arab world life. This year: an epic magical-realist Lebanese romance; a brilliantly comedic and stylized Egyptian drama on family and politics; a gorgeous coming-of-age story in a changing rural Sudan; an existential encounter with Qaddafi through a rare selection from Libya; a pair of incredible docs investigating American extremism and justice, from a Palestinian murder in California to cross-country cases–featuring Tulsa, OK. Join us for singular films, welcoming community, receptions with food and music, and special talks and guests–stay tuned for details!

Click here for full schedule, trailers, and tickets

WHAT: Arab Film Fest Tulsa 2026
WHEN: November 13–15, 2026
WHERE: Circle Cinema, 10 S. Lewis Ave. Tulsa, Oklahoma 74104

SCHEDULE:

November 13: Opening Night

7pm A Sad and Beautiful World by Cyril Aris
+Postfilm opening reception catered by Shawkat’s Mediterranean Grill
Tickets

Saturday November 14

2pm American Hate—Survivors Speak by Arjun Sethi and Harry M. Gantz
Tickets
4:30pm Who Killed Alex Odeh?  by William Lafi Youmans and Jason Osder
Tickets

Documentary double feature plus post-film talk with American Hate visiting filmmaker Arjun Sethi, local victim family Vicky Jabara, and Alex Odeh filmmaker William Youmans via prerecorded video, as well as refreshments.
Documentary Double Feature Tickets

7:30pm The Stories
Tickets

Sunday November 15

2:30pm My Father and Qaddafi by Jihan K
Tickets
+ Postfilm catered reception by Burning Cedar

4:30pm Cotton Queen by Suzannah Mirghani
Tickets
+ Prefilm catered reception by Burning Cedar, special guest intro, & prerecorded conversation post-film with director Suzannah Mirghani in conversation with Safia Elhillo (Sudanese-American poet and writer). 

Non-English dialogue subtitled / Wheelchair-accessible venue / Email moheb@mizna.org for sliding-scale tickets or ASL interpretation of talks (two-week advanced notice needed)

ABOUT THE FESTIVAL
Arab Film Fest Tulsa makes SWANA (Southwest Asian and North African) film and filmmakers  accessible and alive through careful curation, special guest talks, and community gatherings, allowing audiences to encounter complex, authentic narratives from a spectrum of contemporary Arab world life as well as intersecting nationalities. This event is curated by Mizna and supported by the Tulsa Artist Fellowship.

ABOUT MIZNA
For over 25 years, Mizna has promoted experimental approaches to art, literature, and film; work that questions and expands the forms and conceptual frameworks of Arab and SWANA culture. We publish a biannual print literary and art journal, Mizna, and Mizna Online, a digital platform for literary and multidisciplinary work reflecting critically on the current realities of the SWANA region and beyond. We produce the Twin Cities Arab Film Festival, the largest and longest-running SWANA-centered film festival in the Midwest. Mizna also offers readings, film series, performances, public art commissions, and community events that have featured 1000+ local and transnational writers, filmmakers, and artists.

ABOUT TULSA ARTIST FELLOWSHIP
Tulsa Artist Fellowship, located in the heart of Oklahoma’s Green Country, is an initiative of the George Kaiser Family Foundation (GKFF). Using evidence-based practices, GKFF invests in a culturally vibrant and economically robust Tulsa with the belief that a thriving community will