Is the Muestra de Cine de Lanzarote still going ahead?
The Asociación Tenique Cultural, the association that runs the festival, confirms that the Muestra de Cine de Lanzarote (Lanzarote film showcase) will go on. As things stand, there is no cancellation, postponement or new date.
According to the festival's call for entries, the 16th edition runs from 19 to 29 November 2026. The main programme was eleven days away when the news broke.
President Javier Fuentes Feo summed up the outcome: “Luckily, we were lucky, and everything goes on.” He describes the danger to the festival only as a possibility, since water damage to the electrical panel would have made carrying on practically impossible.
The word flood suggests storms, but rain played no part. Reports point to a technical fault, and no link to bad weather is documented.
What exactly happened in Arrecife?
On Saturday 7 November 2026, the offices of the Asociación Tenique Cultural in central Arrecife were completely under water. No source gives an exact address.
Several passers-by raised the alarm early in the morning because water was pouring out of the main entrance. When the president and other association officials arrived, the floor was fully covered.
The cause was an inlet hose (Spanish manguito) at the bathroom, its metal sheathing torn and frayed. According to the association, water ran steadily into the rooms and put the electrics and computers at risk.
There was no stopcock at that point, which made the first response harder. Only the building's owner could shut off the water, and then the team cleared it away.
Who is behind the festival?
Tenique Cultural is a non-profit association from Arrecife that organises the Muestra and the La Pantalla Chinija programme. The Muestra has existed since 2011, and Javier Fuentes Feo has been artistic and production director since 2018.
By its own account, the festival has no red carpet and holds its jury deliberations in public. A youth jury also awards its own prize.
In 2026 the Trasfoco section takes the theme Pueblos (villages). Earlier themes included salt in 2019, wind in 2021 and emigration in 2023.
What is on the 2026 programme?
The Sección Oficial (official section) shows five international feature films, and the jury deliberates in public. The Cruce de Caminos series adds film-makers from the Canary Islands.
The supporting programme includes courses on film photography with Mauro Herce and on sound with Eva Valiño and Belén López. The association also plans a meeting for people over 90 at the Bodegas El Grifo and a workshop using recycled materials.
According to the published programme, venues span all seven municipalities of Lanzarote and La Graciosa. On the pages of the festival website that were checked, only Playa Honda, Yaiza and Tinajo appear.
Unless stated otherwise, Trasfoco screenings start at 19:00. Tombstone shows on 10 November at the Casa Benito Pérez Armas in Yaiza, and Los Chicos del Maíz on 14 November at the Teatro Municipal in Tinajo.
What should visitors keep in mind now?
Anyone planning a visit should check the programme and venues on the festival website or its channels before travelling. That matters especially because Camino has no date or time, and Lejano on 20 November has no time or venue yet.
Going by the information available, the organisers have not published whether entry costs anything. Travel details are missing too, and the festival site most recently showed only Próximamente (coming soon).
The Muestra is not the Festival Internacional de Cine de Lanzarote (FICL), whose 26th edition ran until 23 May 2026. The incident also has nothing to do with the floods of April 2025 in Arrecife and Teguise.
What is still unclear?
The association has not named a damage figure in euros. It is unclear whether computers or equipment were actually damaged.
Fuentes Feo announced a close analysis of the incident and checks on other installations. The association also thanked everyone who offered help.
Preparations for the Muestra and for La Pantalla Chinija continue, the association says. According to Fuentes Feo, many challenges remain before the central programme opens on 19 November.