With the recent merger of the Feminale and femme totale - the two famous film festivals originally set up in Cologne and Dortmund in the 1980s - one of the most significant women's film festivals in the world has now come into being: the International Women's Film Festival Dortmund|Cologne. Unique in Germany, the IWFF provides a perfect platform for the presentation of the latest film developments and trends as they relate to women working in all areas of film production. Not just women film directors but women cinematographers, film-music composers and other women film-makers are given an unrivalled opportunity to showcase their latest work.

Based in the Rhine & Ruhr area, one of the world's largest metropolitan regions, the festival is open to all genres and styles. It takes place once a year, with the location alternating between two major and cultural important cities in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Cologne and Dortmund. The structures there that have organically grown over the last twenty years will guarantee that the tradition of expertly presenting the work of women involved in film production will be continued.

In addition, the International Women's Film Festival Dortmund|Cologne sees itself as a forum for networking activities, sharing experience and training opportunities. Questions bearing on production conditions, rights of use, the role of international women's film networks, copyright issues and innovative channels of distribution regularly come under the spotlight. Also permanently on the agenda: workshops about film theory and composition of image.