The Zanzibar International film festival (ZIFF) is probably east Africa^'s largest cultural event. Each year in July Ziff presents an exciting and varied programmed of international films and videos, music, dance, drama, art exhibitions, children and youth panoramas, women events, village panoramas and workshops in various aspects of media production.The event normally commence with a Festival parade, which consists of a mixed crowd of local people, tourists, acrobats, drummers and musicians, all changing through the narrow streets of Stone town.

Ziff is a unique initiative for the integrated and sustained preservation and development of the region's rich cultural heritage and the work of contemporary artists. It provides a platform for the empowerment and economic well being of the people of Zanzibar and it has strengthened and defined activities, which respond to issues of gender development, democracy, peace and marginalization. Zanzibar fires the imagination with exotic intrigue, oriental promise and romantic imagery. The aims 

and ideas of Ziff reflect this fasnating island in the spirit of humanism and sharing, by showcasing the best artistic talent from the region and its global diaspora.