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Since the rise of independent cinema in the 1990’s, the art of making movies is no longer a tool to make your (day)dreams come to life. It has evolved, strongly, into a mind-shaking, eye-opening, revolution-starter machine; a call for action, a way to document the current state of society or to shed a new light on past events. Never have independent films been as important to us as they are today; we are no longer blown away with cute “rom-coms” and other “Hollywood-esque” attempts of entertainment. Everything just got real, and we have been constantly searching for off mainstream works of art, the tough movies to find, the flicks that will never make it to the multiplexes. All that leaves us two choices (that don’t exactly rule out one another): online streaming and independent film festivals.

From the hundreds of independent film festivals happening every year around the world, some are more unmissable than others. They have been around for quite a while (some even before the indie film hype), they have proven themselves as strong players in the industry, and they continue to attract followers and fans year after year. Without any particular order, these are the 10 top independent film festivals not to miss in your lifetime.

#1 Fantasporto

What: Frequently seen as the first film festival completely dedicated to sci-fi and horror in Portugal, “Fantas” has proven it can go beyond that genre with its two other competition sections: Director’s Week and Orient Express (entirely dedicated to Asian cinema). In a country hit by austerity measures, where cultural events are struggling for funding, it is remarkable that the festival founders never stop fighting and are unwilling to let Fantasporto die. We attended the festival’s last edition and I didn’t see any signs of a dying event (unlike most media would like you to believe).

Since: 1981

When: February/March

Where: Porto, Portugal

Some of last edition’s winners: Best Direction, Romain Basset, Horsehead*(France); Best Actor, Rupert Evans, The Canal*(Ireland); Best Actress, Georgia Bradley, Hungerford (England); Best Screenplay, LEE Jong-Ho, Mourning Grave* (South Korea); Best Special Effects and Best Film Award, Liza, the Fox Fairy (Hungary); Best Short Film, Habana (France/Cuba); Jury’s Special Award, Wolfcop* (USA); Jury’s Special Mention, Hungerford (England).