Blog: Film festivals

Only German submissions allowed.

The 5th International Documentary Festival of Epirus or as it became known WEST SIDE MOUNTAINS DOC FEST started in 2017 with its first edition in 2018 and the second in 2019 in the Municipality of Karaiskaki of Orini Arta. The main thought and intention of those of us who were involved in the establishment of the Festival, was the creation of an important cultural event, in one of the poorest, but also most inaccessible areas of Europe. An area of ​​incredible natural beauty, which starts from Agrafa and the valley of Acheloos and reaches almost to Arta. The festival completely achieved its goals and so its third edition in 2020 was the one that established it, that developed spatially and spread throughout almost all of Epirus. A spread that became a reality with the participation of the Municipalities of Karaiskaki, Central Tzoumerka, North Tzoumerka, Pogoni, Preveza and Arta. The support of the Society of Greek Directors, many associations, Brotherhoods, local Federations, the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival, but also other organizations contributed to this, with the most important development being the granting of the Ministry of Culture for this fourth period.

So we can be proud that in four seasons our Festival has managed to attract more than a thousand films from more than 120 countries. And we still have a lot to do. Finally, it should be noted that with hard work and minimal resources we managed to make the festival loved by the people and every day more and more, to be established as an internationally renowned cultural event, away from the big urban centres. We have managed to strengthen the view that even the most remote areas could appropriate and integrate the culture of cinema and especially documentaries. We managed to prove that on the occasion of this festival, opportunities can be created for the development of cultural institutions, as well as alternative tourism in our country. A place that needs to take a step forward and free itself from the degraded cultural "status" that haunts it and holds it hostage to bad taste and the commercialization of absolutely nothing.

The Children's Film Festival aims to expand the boundaries of creativity for children, establish international cooperation and discover new talents. We want to unite all children and teenagers who love movies, shooting and dream of connecting their lives with this kind of art. We have been going to launch this film festival for a long time and postponed it all the time for various reasons, but now we are ready! It is when the world is going through difficult times that we want to bring a little positivity and concentrate children in a creative direction. Dream and shoot!

The tiniest bee hummingbird flits up to five hundred miles in its one continuous flight. Our festival, Hummingbird International Short Film Festival, represents this small bird's ardent determination of transcending boundaries, cooing over the confluences of divergent cultures. Our predominant motto is to seek out vehement, vogue, pertinent short films from across the globe and to showcase the narratives that resonate surpassing geographical lines.

In 2021 - 1st edition, Hummingbird officially collaborated with the British Council and received a BFI Flare package. The festival accepted 150+ films from 30+ countries across the globe. Last year, the festival authorities focused on the LGBTQ category including curated children's films, a few premiers, and a BFI Flare Package but this year they brought more than just one category on the platter.

2nd edition (2022) the film festival has officially partnered with Alliance Française to showcase the best of cinematic narratives for the viewers. It received 200+ films from more than 43 different countries in various categories. The film festival has officially selected 50+ films in exclusive categories including Fiction, LGBTQ+, Animation, Documentary, Video Art, and Human Rights. In 2022 we screened Nauha at the opening which was officially selected at La Cinef of the Cannes Film Festival, 2022. Hummingbird ended with the Clermont Ferrand Special Jury award-winning closing film “La Traction Des Poles” curated by Alliance Française.

Much like the little migratory bird Hummingbird is determined to evolve into a platform for viewers and budding filmmakers. The Hummingbird’s vision is to create a space for all, as the festival founder/ director Rajan Nath said, “The festival’s vision is to strike a rich cultural exchange and give audiences access to global cinema and its subsequent cultural pandora. We also aim to support the representation of indigenous cinema and help young filmmakers understand how international audiences see it.”

HIFF is aware that cinema holds a universal language and that is why they are motivated to provide you with the purest experience of watching global narratives. At our Third edition, we're all set to welcome shorts from all over the world. Bring in your beautiful little wonders.

Antakya Film Festival, is an International, competitive festival. (AFF) is a major destination on the Festival circuit and recognized by the sinema Academy as a Qualifying Festival in all film categories. Antakya Film Festival, It is the first meeting point of this region for the international film and media industries.

Mission is to provide a public forum in Antakya in order to advance public interest in films and the independent production of films. To draw worldwide attention to Antakya as a center for cinema. To encourage the rights of all Antakya residents to access and experience the power of independent filmmaking, and to promote artistic excellence and the creative freedom of artists without censure.
In 2023, the Festival presented 800 films, representing work that was shot and produced in 45 countries. The event offers well rounded, and for many, career-establishing experiences. Submit your work before the final deadline!

The festival is for and by independent filmmakers. The organizers of Antakya Film Festival bring 10 years of festival experience to this annual event. Antakya Film Festival accepts submissions in six categories: Narrative Features, Documentary Features, Short Narrative, Short Documentary, Experimental, Short Student, and Animation.

Submissions are open from October to September of the year, the final selection of 150 + films is announced in September, and the film festival takes place in October. Selected films in each category are eligible for several awards. In addition to our lineup of films, the festival also hosts multiple filmmaker parties and networking events at venues around Antakya and Hatay.

Film-makers from all over the world are welcome to partcipate.

Rueda Libre (Freewheel) is the official call of shortFilms to Cine Libre FilmFestival, we take for symbol THE WHEEL that evokes the hills of Fredonia where children running down with wheels and tires. Now cinema is taken Fredonia and the concept of roll changes cinematically .

**Become a part of one of the most popular IMDb annual Festivals!**

Welcome to the Bristol Independent Film Festival. We are one of the UK’s fastest-growing independent film festivals!

Since we started in 2016 we have had submissions from over 120 countries. We pride ourselves on being an international film festival. We aspire to promote, recognize, and support independent filmmakers throughout the world by hosting a variety of awards to provide the best opportunities for filmmakers and help them receive their deserved recognition. We welcome submissions from a range of genres including short films, documentaries, features, animations, and screenplays.

Why BIFF?

•We aim to create a community of independent film-makers and an environment where we can celebrate independent films and our submitters’ creations.
•For each event, we provide networking booklets that include information about each winner and ways to contact them. We also provide trophies and winners packs.

•Each season we offer cash prizes to our favorite submissions to help fund their future projects.

•Finally, we aim to establish personal relationships with our submitters. We always enjoy finally meeting with our filmmakers/ scriptwriters and being able to celebrate their accomplishments in person.

Why Bristol?

Bristol was recently recognized by UNESCO as a “City of Film” alongside the likes of Sydney, Rome, and Galway. We pride ourselves on being the largest celebration of independent film in Bristol and we aim to create a hub for independent film-makers.

Judging Process?

Our submissions are judged by a jury of international industry professionals. They rate each submission on 10 different categories including cinematography, writing, pacing, and creativity. This helps them decide which submissions make it to the final stage where there will be jury group viewings to make sure we only pick the best quality submissions.

We look forward to viewing your creations and hope to meet you at our 7th annual celebration of independent film.

Festival of short films related to functional diversity or featuring people with disabilities.

At the end of May 2025, the Florida neighbourhood will host the 7th edition of the FILMSERÈ – International Short Film Festival of La Florida.

This project is conceived by students from the Cinema course at the Eduard Fontserè Institute in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, with guidance from teachers and professionals linked to the film industry, alongside collaboration from local residents, social entities, and associations, among others.

This is an event organised by local people for local people, with everyone from L'Hospitalet, Barcelona, and beyond invited to attend! It is an international festival featuring short films submitted from around the world, supported by the Les Planes-Blocs Florida Integrated Plan from the L'Hospitalet City Council.

Short films of all kinds are selected, with a single criterion: they must be of the highest quality and highly entertaining. Fiction shorts, documentaries, animations, music videos, etc., are all welcome.
Various awards are presented, some of which are monetary.

In addition to a student jury made up of 4th secondary school year (Y11) students organising the festival, we also have an official jury comprising individuals connected to film and the arts, local residents, young people, seniors, and social associations from the neighbourhood.

The festival features outdoor screenings as well as events in indoor spaces across the La Florida area. Attendance in 2021 was 400 spectators over 5 sessions, 2022 saw over 500 attendees across 5 sessions, and in 2023 nearly 1,000 spectators attended across 5 sessions, with more than 1,000 expected in 2024!

This year, we hope to break the record again. We look forward to seeing you all there!

Ooty Short Film Festival is produced and executed by Nilgiris Film Club (nfc) a pioneering film club in the mountains of Western Ghats. NFC promises film buffs a rich fare of meaningful and entertaining films from across the world, Masterclasses and interactive sessions with Directors, Producers, Actors, Retrospectives and much more thougn our weekly screening and film festivals (Ooty Short Film Festival and John Abraham International Short Film Festival).

‘Ooty Short Film Festival’ is a platform for high-quality short films made by talented Short-film Film-makers from around the world.

This Short film festival is being instituted with a larger aim to:

# Recognize excellence in contemporary short film-making and production in the world.

# Provide opportunities to connect the short film-making community, through networking and collaborative projects.

# Provide an opportunity for Indians to experience the best work of International, Indian & local film-making talent.

# To build an audience for the work of short filmmakers.

# Increase opportunities for filmmakers and provide a place to meet and share ideas and resources.

The purpose of the festival refers to awareness of both the external filters on the screen, including censorship (commercial, ideological, aesthetic), and the internal filters of screen perception and projection, including self-censorship. NEFILTRAVANAE KINO is an exploration of aestheticization and commodification in art. The next aim of the festival is to expose the complexity, manysidedness, and variety of filmmaking.

NEFILTRAVANAE KINO is a film festival that is held by the Short Movie Club, the platform for cinematic projects. NEFILTRAVANAE KINO is ADAMI Media Prize qualified festival. The International Film Studies Conference is held at the same time as the film festival. In this way, film theory and practice are integrated together at the NEFILTRAVANAE KINO.

Originally the festival was held in Belarus, but because of political repression and publicly stated anti-war stance, screenings and events can be held in different countries. First of all in Lithuania (Vilnius). For example, the 10th Nefiltravanae Kino took place in Berlin, Vilnius and Helsinki last year. There were selected 63 films for 12 film programmes. https://shortmovie.club/programmes/10-2024/

The concept of the NEFILTRAVANAE KINO (Unfiltered Cinema):

ALIENATION PROBLEM

We live in a world of malls and cinema multiplexes. We see that indie cinema and non-commodity art go to the periphery of public attention. Primitive attractions replace the cinematography. The escape audience is alienated behind the big screen. So modern mainstream cinema is part of a manipulating tool that leads to the society of alienation. Thus the tendency is that indie cinema becomes more unreadable for the wide audience. We should understand the context of the filmmaker to understand the independent cinema. That is why the NEFILTRAVANAE KINO concept implies the physical presence of filmmakers.

FILM SELECTION PROBLEM
Filmmakers shoot millions of movies. And thousands of short film festivals organize screenings all over the world every year. On average, several thousand films are submitted to a film festival. So various good films can be neglected for whatever reason. Often selecting probability is like winning a lottery. As a result, filmmakers are left with no feedback. It is a paradox that no one can hear you in the age of the Internet! The mainstream culture prefers attractions and casual viewing.

Also, this idea is based on the film selection problem. Perhaps it’s no surprise one person, i.e. programme director at best, or even students of film schools make a preliminary decision to select a movie. Сoncordance of judges or previewers is more seldom thing than the difference of background, tastes. So selection or judging can be one-sided or perfunctory. It is not bad as the programme director has a good taste and aesthetic sensitivity, of course. But we’ve discovered another conception of “unfiltered cinema”. We matched it against “the best of the best” way. This way aids to perceive cinematic idiom without the dictate of art-curators.

CELEBRATION OF INDIE CINEMA
So the Unfiltered Cinema Film Festival tries to avoid “the best of the best” way but it does not ignore it completely, sure. The festival selects fiction, animation, documentary, experimental and virtual reality sections. A jury awards the best film in every section. The festival holds the screenings at cinema theatres, the National Centre for Contemporary Arts, and art-spaces.

Our aim is to gather people in art, to have a dialogue to be happy with smart communication. Cinema is art but not sport. The key point of our project is to establish communication between the filmmaker and the audience.

Please, read about the festival history through the link to the festival's website. http://shortmovie.club/history/

The Short Movie Club provides constructing of CinemaVan ( see https://www.behance.net/gallery/33392769/Cinema-van-Mobile-library-Amphibia ).

CORTADA FESTIVAL DE CORTOMETRAJES DE VITORIA-GASTEIZ
UPV/EHU Campus de Álava
Vitoria-Gasteiz

Welcome to fear-a-thon!

Are you geared up to gorge on a nerve-jangling glut of ferociousness, disconcerting shocks, and bestial enjoyment? Come, get onboard for a diabolically tense ride, as India’s First and Only Horror Short Film Festival is back with its second edition.

Sixth Sense Horror Short Film Festival, the brainchild of Shaunak Sirrole – a filmmaker, was conceived with the ambition to congregate all horror filmmakers from pole to pole under one haunted roof and provide them the dais to unmask their talent in a genre which is less explored in a country like India.

Last year, the writer of “Final Destination”, Mr. Jeffrey Reddick was the “Guest of Honor” and Mr. Apurva Asrani, National Award Winning Indian filmmaker (Best Editing for Snip!) was the “Chief Guest” of the event. In the inaugural year, we received an outstanding 250 entries from which we screened 50 best films selected by the esteemed panel.

Making a horror film is only half the battle, it still needs to get in front of an audience, and that’s where Sixth Sense Horror Short Film Festival enters the picture. The dream behind inducting this festival in India is not only to prop up Horror Genre, but also present an exceptional juncture for filmmakers to generate enough ballyhoo and eyeballs to get sold — optimistically to a distributor that can put an adequate amount of marketing moolah behind it to transform to box office returns and even awards season buzz. When a film gets selected for Sixth Sense Horror Short Film Festival, its chances of being brought by a distribution arm shoots up.

So, what are you waiting for? Tighten your seatbelts and indulge in a global fête of an adrenaline-fueled genre. Be afraid. Be very, very afraid. Welcome to fear-a-thon!

Nature, wildlife, mountaineering, climbing, landscape, underwater world, biodiversity, flora, extreme and adventure sports, historical places, heritage, expeditions & routes, food and drinks etc. will be the reference of the first edition in Travel Fest Albania contest , on the big screen where a large audience will enjoy videos, films and documentaries as well.

Travel Fest will take place in Tirana, capital city of Albania, on July 18-24, 2022. During festival days the participants can register for day trips in the museum city of Berat, National Park of Divjaka, anceint fortress of Petrela and the historical city of Kruja – all expenses are covered by the festival.

Winners will be awarded at a special ceremony on the last day of the Festival and can register for a three days trip in Valbona valley to enjoy a beautiful experience in Albanian Alps and showing their films in front of tourists visiting the area. Full details of registration will be announced soon.

Submit your entry now!

The 12th International Documentary Festival of Ierapetra & Awards, offers you the opportunity to submit your documentaries now, in order to compete in the monthly awards of the Festival for February. Winners will automatically qualify to compete for the annual Festival awards, taking place from August 2nd to 24th, 2025.

This year the IDFI, is dedicated to Climate Change. It is worth noting that films from all thematic sections will be eligible at the end of each month to compete for the annual awards in August. The rich thematic sections of the Festival include: human rights, recordings of memory, docudrama, young directors, true stories, climate change, environment, the role of women, Greek Panorama, views of the world, human portrait, violence, war threat, diversity, socio-political discrimination, religious conflicts, racism, migration, as well as themes related to all forms of art and culture, such as folklore, customs, mythology, history, biographies, ethnographies, journeys, and travel-tourist documentaries.

The 12th International Documentary Festival of Ierapetra & Awards, promotes the best documentaries from Greece and around the world for screening in its’ competitive section. Ierapetra, the southernmost city in Europe, a crossroads of cultures and continents, will once again host a plethora of films and artists from the ends of the earth. The judging panels consist of international recognition personalities.

The film files must be in mp4 format and must have embedded English and Greek subtitles (in case of foreign dialogue).

Our 5-star and Gold-rated festival holds the EFFE quality seal.

Trailer of the 11th International Documentary Festival of Ierapetra & Awards:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZAQStCWPFA&t=27s

CutreCon, Madrid International Cutre Film Festival.

The worst movies in the world on the big screen, where nonsense and bad taste are the protagonists.

THE HUECC FESTIVAL is a film festival that seeks through itself a space for the construction of new community film schools. It was born from the Homonimo project carried out in 2018 TO MAKE A FILM SCHOOL, a space where different Latin American audiovisual groups came together to lay the foundations to create a film school in Solano/Quilmes.

Currently, this initial experience and through the festival could give shape to the ARROYO SCHOOL, which brings together 40 boys, girls and young people from the neighborhoods on one side of the Las Piedras stream.

Everything raised by this festival is intended to continue with the community film experience and the future construction of the first community film school in Argentina.

All genres, formats and durations are accepted. A selection will be made for the best organization and programming of the Festival. We will take into account formal experimentation and aesthetic risk

We freely accept all kinds of short and feature films without restriction on the production date.

Russia starts to run the first ever for our country film festival dedicated to all sorts of design art!

Our annual genre offline LIVE film event will take place in early fall (last week of September) at the Foster cinema theatre, which is located in the big design trading center in the very heart of Moscow city at Frunzenskaya embankment, 30, building 19.

Within the framework of the film festival, the following events are envisaged:

-competition program films screenings

-author’s master classes from movie stars and representatives of various spheres of design art

-the opening and closing ceremonies of the festival

The festival management:

Festival President – Boris Khobod (design specialist, owner of Foster cinema theatre, owner and CEO of Foster Group)

Festival Programming Director and Curator – Victor Boulankin (movie producer)

Contact data: +7 495 724 05 93

The essence of design exists for ages. Most people think that design is about making things look pretty – just a decoration. But design is as much an art as it is a science. The design is not allowed to fail. Design is for everyone and no one in particular.

In collaboration with the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, the festival is dedicated to films on the subjects of architecture and landscape, design of toys, jewellery and items, furniture, interior and various technical equipment.

The films may be fiction, documentaries, feature films, or short films. The purpose of the festival is to encourage the production of cinematographic works on these subjects, and to encourage and motivate architects in the use of audiovisual language as a means of communication.

Sections of the festival’s competition program:

ARCHITECTURE AND LANDSCAPE DESIGN

Feature and short films about ancient, modern, contemporary architecture and landscape

CLOTHES DESIGN AND FASHION

Feature and short films about design of clothes all aspects fashion industry

INTERIOR DESIGN

Feature and short films about internal world of locations and all sorts of theatrical and home scenery

OTHER TYPES OF DESIGN

Feature and short films about any other types of design, i.e.: toys, technical equipment, jewelry, handmade items, web design etc.

We are the U.S. west coast premier destination festival for films such as fest favorites like Damsel starring Robert Pattinson and Mia Wasikowska, to world premiere new discoveries like Netflix favorite Abducted in Plain Sight and many more.

We are dedicated to discovering and supporting the next generation of filmmakers. There’s a reason MovieMaker magazine has named Mammoth Lakes Film Festival as one of the “Top 50 Film Festival’s Worth Your Entry Fee” for the last nine years in a row: We put our filmmakers first!

We focus on bringing top-level press and industry professionals to the festival to get maximum exposure for our filmmakers. Past attendees included Variety, Hollywood Reporter, The LA Times, A24, Greenwich Entertainment, MovieMaker Magazine, and more.

The 11th annual Mammoth Lakes Film Festival will screen features and shorts for five days in the spectacular setting of Mammoth Lakes—California’s premier mountain resort, high in the Eastern Sierra. It will take place on Wednesday through Sunday, May. 21-25, 2025.

MLFF captures the imagination of audiences and contributes to the vitality of film culture by providing emerging filmmakers with an opportunity to show their latest work in a vibrant and nurturing atmosphere. Visitors are drawn to the area to experience exciting new films by both new and established independent artists, and for the opportunity to mingle with them at fun and friendly daily events. The festival is also a forum for filmmakers to have their work seen by industry professionals who have the potential to provide mentorship and propel their careers.

We are committed to promoting film as an art form by focusing on personal, innovative, imaginative films by writers and directors with a unique style and point of view. We present these films in the beautiful natural setting of Mammoth Lakes—a perfect backdrop for an independent film festival and a premier tourist destination in its own right. Because we are a destination resort, just a 4 to 5-hour drive or a quick flight from Los Angeles, we have strong allies within the entertainment industry. Our jury members are acclaimed artists and professionals from the world of independent film. We give out multiple awards in the categories of Narrative Features, Documentary Features, and Short Films. In 2024 we awarded cash and prizes valued at more than $40,000.00. We also provide travel stipends, housing, and festival passes for our filmmakers. Our juries have included Andrew Lazar (Producer of AMERICAN SNIPER), Allison Amon (Producer of THE QUEEN OF VERSAILLES), Rachel Winter (Academy Award winning producer DALLAS BUYERS CLUB),and John Feidler (Producer of SERIAL MOM and PECKER). 2024 sponsors included Panavision, Light Iron, Town of Mammoth Lakes, among many others.

The Mammoth Lakes Film Festival, a DBA 501(c)3, is committed to showcasing the talent and imagination of emerging filmmakers and nurturing their efforts to follow their dreams.