Stockholm’s Arab Film Festival adds library events for families this November

Arabic-language shadow theatre, children’s creative workshops and a programme of contemporary cinema are coming to Stockholm this November, as the city’s Arab Film Festival expands beyond its cinema screenings.

The seventh Arab Film Festival Stockholm runs from 5 to 9 November 2026 at Filmstaden Sergel and Zita Folkets Bio. Organiser Malmö Arab Film Festival says this edition introduces its first family-film programme, alongside selected screenings in Stockholm’s public libraries throughout November.

Two dates for families

At Tranströmerbiblioteket on Saturday 7 November, from noon to 2pm, children can watch Arabic-language shadow theatre inspired by Alfons Åberg, try making their own shadow stories and take part in a creative workshop linked to the short film The Escape to School.

Kista bibliotek hosts a similar programme on Sunday 8 November, from 2.30pm to 4pm. Its listing specifies drop-in attendance and describes the Arabic-language family theatre performance as suitable from age three. Actor and director Helen Al-Janabi leads the shadow-theatre performance.

The Escape to School is a 16-minute Swedish-Palestinian film with Arabic dialogue and Swedish subtitles. Its story follows small forest-dwellers who find shelter in a village school after a winter storm, with the children’s workshop offering a way to explore the film’s ideas through making and storytelling.

Check the subtitles before booking

For adults choosing an evening screening, the festival programme includes features, documentaries and short films. Language and subtitle combinations differ, an important detail for audiences who are still learning Swedish.

Calle Málaga, directed by Maryam Touzani and starring Carmen Maura, screens at Zita 1 on Friday 6 November at 8.30pm. The film centres on an older Spanish woman in Tangier whose daughter plans to sell her home. It has Spanish and Arabic dialogue with Swedish subtitles.

For an English-subtitled option, Mohamed Siam’s My Father’s Scent screens at Zita 1 on Saturday 7 November at 6.30pm. The Arabic-language film runs for 96 minutes.

Love Imagined, the Egyptian romantic musical directed by Sarah Rozik, is scheduled at Filmstaden Sergel on Thursday 5 November, with Arabic dialogue and Swedish subtitles.

Use the individual film pages for ticket links, prices and any programme changes. Families should check the relevant library listing before travelling: Kista explicitly offers drop-in attendance, while the Tranströmerbiblioteket listing does not state an admission arrangement.

Image: festival artwork via maffswe.com