February updates

Hi all-
Currently working on the next round of updates. For now, these are the February listings.

best of luck,
{tmr}

Kristiansand International Childrens Film Festival (Norway) 2/1/24
Kristiansand International Children’s Film Festival (KICFF) is Norway’s largest film festival aimed at children and youth. The target group is age 3-19. The festival takes place in Kristiansand, Southern Norway. The festival accepts features, documentaries, animation films and short films from all over the world. Deadline is for: Norwegian short films (up to 30 min.), completed in 2023 or 2024. If you have a Norwegian short film that is not quite finished 1st of February please contact us at festival@bff.no. Submission is done via the festival platform Filmchief.

Transilvania International Film Festival (Romania) 2/1/24
(TIFF) is organized by Romanian Film Promotion and it is the first international feature film festival in Romania. The main objective of Transilvania IFF is to promote the cinematic art by presenting some of the most significant films of the moment, films which exhibit not only originality and independence of expression, but also unusual forms of cinematic language and modern trends of the young culture. Please note: *** no entry fee for Romanian films only

Animafest Zagreb 2/1/2024
World Festival of Animated Film – Animafest Zagreb invites you to submit your film. Short films (maximum running time 40 minutes) can be submitted to following competition categories: 1. Short Film Competition, 2. Student Film Competition – films produced in an educational institution (art schools and film schools), 3. Films for Children Competition< 4. Croatian Film Competition – films whose majority producer is Croatian and/or films by Croatian directors. Submission deadline for short films in all categories

Bilbao Fantasy Film Festival 2/4/24
Horror or Fantasy genre. Submit through Festhome or Moviebeta

Hamburg International Short Film Festival 02/7/24
Triple Axel Competition. The Triple Axel Competition is excluded from the fee. We are also accepting submissions for the Triple Axel Competition which have to be shorter than three minutes and need to deal with the topic “Salt“. The Axel is one of the most difficult jumps in figure skating. And in our competition, it’s a matter of getting a spin on a given theme in no more than three minutes. Whoever manages to do this goes into the race for the audience’s prize and 1.000 € in a legendary short night.

Annecy International Animated Film Festival (France) 02/15/24
Submit short films, commissioned films, TV series and specials and graduation films.

Dead by Dawn ongoing
Dead by Dawn is the UK’s longest running genre film festival, established in 1993. It is a unique festival, celebrating the finest independent film-making with a focus on emerging talent. Our approach to horror is broad; story is paramount, as are humour, suspense and atmosphere. We welcome lifelong fans and the genre-curious to discover the breadth of unusual stories lurking under the ‘horror’ banner! Note- festival is postponed so will continue to accept entries for now- check site.

Minute Festival (Brazil) 2/29/24 online submission
Various themes, categories. One Minute Festival was created in 1991 and has inspired the breeding of over 50 “one minute festivals” all around the world. One Minute Festival also could be called Ideas Festival, once idea is the most relevant criterion used in the vídeos evaluation.

Animayo  2/29/24
Animayo, first Spanish animation Festival names “Qualifying Festival” for the The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for the OSCAR® AWARDS. The winners of Animayo may be taken into account in the category of “Animation Short Film” will be eligible for consideration in the “Animated Short Film” of the Academy Awards® Exclusive for applying to works of 2d animation, 3d animation,special effects, experimental, advertising, animation spots, videoclips, video games cinematic, special effects series and animation series

January deadlines

Hi all-
Here are some updates for January.
As a reminder, the website is organized by month, and each post is sent out as an email newsletter, like this one.

best of luck,
{tmr}

Kristiansand International Childrens Film Festival (Norway) 1/1/24
Kristiansand International Children’s Film Festival (KICFF) is Norway’s largest film festival aimed at children and youth. The target group is age 3-19. The festival takes place in Kristiansand, Southern Norway. The festival accepts features, documentaries, animation films and short films from all over the world. Deadline is for:  International short films (up to 30 min.) All feature-length films (over 60 min.). With first official screening after January 1st 2023.

FirstCut Film Festival 1/19/24
First Cut! Youth Film Festival is open to short films with a running time of under 15 minutes made by filmmakers between the ages of 12 and 24. These films can be made by individual filmmakers, secondary schools, colleges or youth groups. Every type of film is welcome, including fiction, documentary, animation and music video. Prizes are awarded to open call films in several categories. Deadline on the closing date is 5pm.

Happy Valley Animation Festival 1/03/24
HVAF is an open international competition, and we encourage submissions by students, practicing, and aspiring animators and designers into any of the categories that include: Animation Films, Animated Motion Graphics & Design, and Experimental Animated works.

Crossing Europe (Linz, Austria) 1/08/24* European or Austrian only
The goal of CROSSING EUROPE Film Festival is to give various perspectives on contemporary European cinema. The program focuses on innovative European films, which reflect current political and social realities of Europe‘s changing societies. We want to trace a cinema that tells of regional peculiarities and different conditions for living on this continent. We aim to open up new cinematic territories, which are under-represented in everyday movie business.Flame First Cut 1/15/24
Welcome to FirstCut, one of India’s biggest international festivals of student films organized by FLAME University, Pune! Set up to provide an active platform for young filmmakers all over the world, FirstCut encourages them to explore the medium of film as a potential agent of change. Filmfreeway submission

December deadlines

Hi all-
I am working on updates to the blog. As usual, I am finding festivals that now charge a small fee, so I have removed those. I recommend you support festivals either way- if the festival is doing an amazing job, you understand how it works and believe in it, and the focus matches that of your work. For this blog, the focus is festivals that don’t charge a fee, but there will be times you may want to submit work to festivals that do. My advice is to choose carefully either way, but yes especially cautious of brand new festivals that charge a very high fee, or charge you for “awards”, or charge you to screen your work.
best of luck,
{tmr}

It’s all true: International Documentary Film Festival  12/07/23
International. This film festival was created to support the genre of documentary films. 

Premios Quirino de la Animacion Ibero Americana 12/14/23
ONLY FOR ANIMATED FILMS MADE BY IBERO-AMERICAN FILMMAKERS.The Quirino Awards are born out of the necessity of recognizing the talent of the Ibero-American animation industry, generating links and networks between both sides of the ocean. Therefore, the event gathers the blooming Latin-American industry along with the Portuguese, Andorran and Spanish industries, building a true brotherhood to develop the great market that is Ibero-America together. Apart from recognizing the best Ibero-American animation works in ten categories, the Quirino Awards is the framework for the Co-Production and Business Forum. One hundred companies from twenty countries participate each year in B2B meetings.

Short of the Year 12/21/23
PROMOFEST opens the call for entries of SHORT OF THE YEAR – AUTUMN. Every season 5worwill be selected. The winner of each season will be awarded with 250 submissions to film festivals (for free) and will directly become one of the films selected for The Short of the Year. Submission is through click for festivals.

DOCUDAYS UA 12/22/23
We are looking for creative documentaries which open a fresh perspective on the contemporary world, films which analyze it, making an important contribution to the discussion of human dignity, freedom and equality. You can submit your film to three sections: the international feature competition DOCU/WORLD, the international short competition DOCU/SHORT and the national feature competition DOCU/UKRAINE, which present documentary films created in Ukraine or in co-production with Ukraine, as well as by Ukrainian filmmakers in collaboration with international production companies. Submissions through Film Freeway. Note: Films produced in Ukraine or in co-production with Ukraine can be submitted for free.

ANIFILM – International Festival of Animated Films 12/31/23
Anifilm, the Liberec International Festival of Animated Films, will take place from 7th to 12th May 2024 and will celebrate its 23rd edition. Submit your films and games now and help us to present the best independent and auteur animation! Traditionally, you can choose from the following competition categories: International Competition- Feature Film, Short Film, Student Film, Abstract and Non-narrative Animation, Music Video, VR Film, Computer Game national competition.  Czech Horizon- Short and Feature Film, Student Film Series, Music Video, Commissioned Work. You should know that – Anifilm is OSCAR® qualifying festival (for Best Animated Short Film) 

Fest Anca Internacional Animation Festival 12/31/23*free entry deadline*
Fest Anča International Animation Festival is unique in being the only Slovak multimedia festival focused on animated film targeted mainly at a mature audience. The festival aims to raise awareness about animated film as an autonomous art form, and to educate about its multiple types and aspects. This year’s call for entries is open via Film Freeway

Neisse Film Festival 12/31/23
It’s that time of year again! Starting immediately, films can be submitted for consideration. Eligible films for the competitions include feature films, documentaries or short films that were produced in 2023 and 2024 and which were produced or co-produced in one of the three neighbor countries: Germany, Poland and/or the Czech Republic. Submit with form on website or through Film Freeway.

goEast film festival 12/31/23
Starting on September 1, goEast invites Central and Eastern European filmmakers, producers and distributors to submit their feature films and documentaries (60 min or longer) for the 24th edition of goEast – Festival of Central and Eastern European Film. Submit via Eventival or Film Freeway. Links on website.

Skeleton Keyframe Animation Festival 12/31/23
Skeleton Keyframe is a unique YouTube channel and virtual film festival dedicated to the promotion of independent animation. Year-round, we collect film submissions right here on our website. Our favorite submissions are uploaded to our YouTube channel and considered for awards come the end of the respective submission season. Our 2023 submission season is NOW OPEN! If you’re interested in submitting your animated film for award consideration, click here. The Skeleton Keyframe Animation Awards show premieres live on our YouTube channel in February. During the live show, we announce the winning films in various categories – including a “best picture” for the overall best in show. Other award categories include best 2D animated film, best 3D animated film, and best stop motion animated film.

UPIKE Film & Media Arts Festival 12/31/23
The goal of the UPIKE Film and Media Arts Festival is to promote the art of filmmaking in Eastern Kentucky. We accept films from across the country and across the world from filmmakers of all ages. We like narrative, documentary, animated, experimental, youth films, features, and shorts. In addition to our competitive film screenings, we also hold a screenplay contest. We accept paid submissions for films and screenplays from across the world, but all submissions from Kentucky, Virginia, and West Virginia can be submitted for free. Additionally, students can submit to the early deadline (this is the early deadline) of all our categories for free. This includes elementary level students all the way up the grad students in college. 

December updates

Here are some upcoming deadlines for December 2023.
best of luck,
{tmr}

Slim Cinema Film Festival currently accepting submissions, festival postponed
Create a visual piece shot in Vertical Composition that tells a narrative. Content can be shot using your equipment of choice (i.e. SLR, red, smartphone, etc.), but aspect ratio must be 9:16 for any submissions to be considered.  We want to challenge your creativity to tell an original narrative through vertical visual storytelling.

Stuttgart Festival of Animated Film (ITFS)12/01/23
ITFS is an Oscar-qualifying festival which offers directors, production companies and distributors as well as talent and all further professionals from the animation and games industries a platform to present their films, interactive and transmedia works as well as VR and AR projects to an interested, wide audience and a large number of industry representatives. Submission through shortfilmdepot- one “stamp” to send, but festival does not charge a fee. 

Internationales Frauen* Film Fest Dortmund+Köln 12/4/23
Germany’s largest forum for women in the film industry and presents outstanding films by women spanning all genres and styles. Eligible are fictional debuts or graduation pieces by women directors with a length of at least 65 minutes. Programme for International Debut Feature Film Competition deadline: 4th December 2023

It’s all true: International Documentary Film Festival  12/07/23
International. This film festival was created to support the genre of documentary films. 

Skeleton Keyframe Animation Festival 12/31/23
Skeleton Keyframe is a unique YouTube channel and virtual film festival dedicated to the promotion of independent animation. Year-round, we collect film submissions right here on our website. Our favorite submissions are uploaded to our YouTube channel and considered for awards come the end of the respective submission season. Our 2023 submission season is NOW OPEN! If you’re interested in submitting your animated film for award consideration, click here. The Skeleton Keyframe Animation Awards show premieres live on our YouTube channel in February. During the live show, we announce the winning films in various categories – including a “best picture” for the overall best in show. Other award categories include best 2D animated film, best 3D animated film, and best stop motion animated film.

Upcoming October Deadlines

Hi all-
I’m still here, sometimes updating every few months in a big sweep vs. continually. I’m posting some great film festivals as I update. I am also catching some that now charge fees. If I miss any- please let me know. I promise I am not trying to sneak anything by anyone.

Also, if you have an upcoming festival deadline, and don’t charge a fee to enter, please send the information my way. There is a form on the website that asks all the necessary info if that makes it easier. Basically I post the name, the deadline, a link to submit, and a synopsis.

best of luck,
(tmr)

NORTHWESTERN ANIMATION JAM 10/15/23
Calling all animators and Chicagoland cartoon creators! The Northwestern Animation Jam aims to celebrate the art of animation and the talents of student animators and the Chicagoland animation community as a whole. Our student-run festival is currently accepting submissions for animated shorts and features made by students and filmmakers living in the Midwest. Deadline for submissions is Sunday, October 15th, 2023. There is no entry fee, films don’t have to be recent productions. Selected filmmakers will also have the opportunity to participate in a panel or Q&A session.The festival will be held at Northwestern University’s Annie May Swift Hall at the Evanston Campus, IL on Tuesday, November 14th, 2023 at 7pm. Submit your work here: https://tinyurl.com/nuanimationjam If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to us at nuanijam@gmail.com.

Animac 10/15/23
Animac is the International Film Festival of Animation in Catalonia. Animac is a rigorous, dynamic and welcoming festival continually making efforts to improve, generating new audiences and attracting those who love animation. Animac is a non-competitive film festival aimed at artists who use animation as a tool for personal expression. We go beyond the limits of traditional narrative and we seek visionaries who make independent and daring works full of energy and who take their expressive potential to the limit. Animac is also a meeting place for artists, a laboratory in which ideas are generated and relations between the different artistic disciplines are established. It is a place to dream and screen stories of the future.

Short Short Story Film Festival 10/16/2023
The Short Short Story Film Festival is a competitive international festival of films that tell a story in under six minutes, celebrating brevity in filmmaking with both live-action and animated films. Two programs, Heartstrings and Headtrip, both showcase dozens of films tightly sequenced in under ninety minutes, each with a distinctive tone yet wide-ranging styles and topics. The festival has taken place every November since 2007 (except for a Covid hiatus in 2020), in cities and towns throughout the northeastern United States. More information on submission process is below, including online form, requirements, and secure WeTransfer link to send film files.

McGuffin Youth Film Festival (Moscow) 10/22/2023
Today all teenagers use video as the main communication tool and create ideas by means of camera and editing. That’s why every year since 2016 we hold Moscow International McGuffin film festival for teens and youngsters.

Tokyo Anime Award Festival 10/31/23 short film animation
Tokyo Anime Award Festival calls for feature and short animated films with high potential and strong messages from all over the world. Our aim is to screen high-quality animated films superior in originality, provide opportunities to inspire audience as well as creators, cultivate new talents, and contribute in the development and promotion of animation cultures and industry.

DocPoint – Helsinki Documentary Film Festival (Finland) 10/31/23
DocPoint doesn’t have an open call of submissions for foreign films. The international programme is entirely curated by our Head of Programming Inka Achté. If you wish to offer your film for consideration, please send a screener to Inka before the 31st of October 2023 at inka.achte@docpoint.fi.

Apedemak Sudan International Animation Film Festival 10/31/23
An annual festival in Sudan to display short animation films around the world and gradually encourage Sudanese short animation projects until spreading the culture of animation art in Sudan and supporting talents in that field

Upcoming deadlines

Hi all,
Hope your summer is going well. Happy to share two festivals that were sent to me. One is Womanimation, which I have posted for as long as I can remember. Seems like an amazing festival. Please share with any and all women animators you might know. The other festival is limited to Vietnamese and SEA (South East Asia).

More updates soon.
Best of luck,
{tmr}

Womanimation! Film Festival 6/12/2023
What is Womanimation!? As the name implies, it’s a festival showcasing acclaimed animated films telling stories created by women from around the world. From satire to drama, from the everyday to the surreal – in styles from traditional 2-d to stop-motion to computer animation – the festival features something for every taste.Fill out an entry form HERE (opens in new window).

Sài Gòn Experimental 8/1/23
Saigon Experimental is working to expand the interest in experimental video art in Vietnam, supporting local and international artists. We are focused on abstract, experimental, non-narrative, and documentary video work. Note: Free only for Vietnamese and SEA submissions. WAIVER CODE OFFERED UPON CONTACT VIA EMAIL to: saigonexperimental(at)gmail.com.

July updates

Hi all-
I just updated the July listings with a variety of options for short and feature films. Please note that some festivals have a specific category for free entries. I have noted this in the postings. In some cases, it may require a waiver code and documentation, such as for the VA film festival. Festivals may have their own submission platforms, use film freeway or other platforms for submissions, or have email submissions. 
best of luck,
{tmr}

Cinevo 2023 Short Film Grant Contest 7/1/23
We are excited to introduce to you to our first annual film grant competition. No submission fees required. Cinevo will be awarding a total of $20,000 in rental grants to students and professionals whose films are selected to win from fiction and nonfiction categories. Any subject matter can be submitted – journalistic, narrative, music video, branded content – but should serve as a proof-of-concept you’d use the award to accomplish.

Kassel Documentary Film and Video Festival 7/1/23
We now invite all filmmakers, artists, distributors, producers, gallerists, universities and institutions to submit their most current works and projects to the 39th Kassel Documentary Film and Video Festival. The entire film program as well as the works for the exhibition A jury nominates films from the program for the other festival awards. We do not charge an entry fee and pay – as far as possible – a screening fee for the films of the regular film program.

Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival (France) 7/3/23
Today, the Clermont-Ferrand Short Film Festival is the world’s largest film festival dedicated to short films. In term of audience and professional presence, it is the second largest film festival in France after Cannes. (Submissions open in May, deadline based on previous years)

Women Over 50 Film Festival 7/4/23
Everyone is eligible to submit a film to Women Over 50 Film Festival. There’s no upper or lower age limit and it’s not only open to women. As long as your film centres on a woman over 50 or part of your core creative team is female and over 50, your film is eligible. Free submissions in student category.

Virginia Film Festival 7/05/23* free to VA filmmakers
Every Fall, the VAFF showcases celebrated new narrative and documentary features, independent and international projects, fresh perspectives on timeless classics, and local filmmakers from throughout Virginia. Virginia residents (including students at VA schools) are eligible to have their entry fee waived. In order to receive the VA resident fee waiver, the address you list in your submission must be in Virginia, and you must enter the code 2023VA36VAFFresd when you complete your submission on FilmFreeway (the code is good for one submission per applicant). Proof of current residency may be requested by VAFF and is required if submitting using this code.

International Women’s Film Festival “KIN” (Armenia) 07/10/23
***Free submission only for Armenian Films*** «KIN» (kin means “a woman” in Armenian), will be held in Yerevan. The festival’s goal is promote women’s creativity, establish a network between women filmmakers from different parts of the world and give hand to a better understanding of different cultures and each other. The purpose of the festival is to address through films issues of violence, inequality, discrimination and other problems related to women’s rights and gender problems. genres: Documentary, Short, Animation. Duration of the films had to be less than 40 min. Film Freeway Submission.

Schlingel International Film Festival 7/15/23
SCHLINGEL is an independent film festival with international competitions and various additional events. It takes place annually. We conceive ourselves as a platform for international children’s and youth films in Germany. The festival gives an overview of current international productions and aims at motivating distributors and TV stations in Germany to integrate these films into their programmes. Only Feature Film category is free to enter. Film Freeway.

International Kurzfilmtage Winterthur 7/16/23
Internationale Kurzfilmtage Winterthur is Switzerland’s major short film festival, held annually in November. The six-day event is a popular public festival as well as an important hub for the international short film industry. Early submissions welcome.

Busan International Film Festival (Korea) 07/19/23
For the official selection of the 28th Busan International Film Festival, fiction films, documentaries, and animations that were produced after October 2022 are eligible for submission. Deadline is for Feature Film for films longer than 60 minutes.

Viennale 7/31/23
The Viennale International Film Festival Vienna – is a NON-COMPETITIVE FILM FESTIVAL. It is acknowledged by the International Federation of Film Producers Associations (FIAPF). The Viennale’s main program presents films of all genres and formats (presented in original version with English and/or German subtitles). The Viennale’s festival program mainly consists of films participating BY INVITATION. Please also note that in case of entries of short narratives (fiction films up to 40 minutes) the Viennale can only accept Austrian productions.

Farhang Foundation Short Film Festival 7/31/2023* opens May 2nd
The Festival caters to the art of short filmmaking that visualizes some aspect or aspects of Iranian “Heritage”, which includes the arts, culture, history, crafts geography, cuisine, and lifestyle. Calling on individuals from all backgrounds and walks of life to submit short films, less than 9 minutes in length, visualizing some aspect of Iranian art, culture, and heritage, that will inspire and spark the audience’s interest in learning more about Iranian culture.

Updates for August and September

Hi all,
Just added some deadlines for August and September. Also a reminder that REEL13 has an ongoing call for their short film contest- the winner receives a licensing fee, is featured on their site, and is screened on the PBS New York station with a classic and an indie feature film as part of their Saturday movie night. You don’t have to be from the NY area to enter, and the short can be any type, live action, animation, etc.
best of luck,
{tmr}

REEL 13 (ongoing)
Reel 13 Shorts is THIRTEEN’s weekly interactive on-line film competition celebrating the best in independent short film.

ANIMA, Córdoba International Animation Festival 5/14/23* extended deadline
The Festival is open to animation productions of every technique, genre, topic, format and screening media (film, video, television, Internet, smartphones, video games, VR, AR, fulldome, etc.). Special interest is granted to innovative works and also to student productions. Participation is open for productions from all over the world, with emphasis in those from Latin America. There is no limit to the number of entries that a participant can send.

Cinema Culturas 8/01/23
This competition seeks to encourage and enhance our K-12 students’ 4 C’s of 21st Century Skills: Critical Thinking, Creativity, Collaboration and Communication. Cinema Culturas expands on this learning model by incorporating two additional C’s in its educational program: Culture and Community. By providing fun and educational forums for all students to participate in, and having local communities come together via a digital platform, students’ storytelling skills are nurtured and promoted through the short films they create. Cinema Culturas invites all elementary, middle, and high school students to participate in its Storytelling, Music and Film Student Competition “Regeneration: how does adversity help you grow” 

Iranian Film Festival (San Francisco, CA) 8/1/23
San Francisco – Iranian Film Festival, a showcase for the independent feature and short films made by or about Iranians from around the world, is inviting filmmakers from all over the world to submit their films for the next edition. The films should be related to Iran by any filmmaker from any country, or made by any Iranian filmmaker on any subject. There is NO restriction on the topics or length of the films. The festival is open to all genres: fiction, documentary, short, animation, music video. To submit your film, please send a DVD, or email a secure link to: info@IranianFilmFestival.org, and send a press kit [synopsis, your bio, and photo, some stills from your film], and the following information,  or enter it on FilmFreeway.

CINEMAGIC YOUNG FILMMAKER (Belfast) 8/1/23
Cinemagic is looking for imaginative and original films made by young people (age 25 and younger, living in the UK and Ireland). The films can be about anything at all fact or fiction, comedy or drama, news program or documentary. Please email an online screening link to your film along with a completed entry form to chris@cinemagic.org.uk or filmfreeway

HECare Festival 09/21/23
The Human Environment Care Film Festival (HECFF) is Canada’s premier cultural event devoted exclusively to the exploration of Human-Environment care, Human rights issues, Environment protection through films. Film Freeway

 

Caminhos do Cinema Português Festival ddl 5/10/23

Hi all-
Just added this to the May deadlines. There is a limited time waiver code “CCPnoEntryFeeFestivals” for readers to use until May 10, 2023. Note the festival accepts international (world) and Portuguese.films in a range of categories (night shift!) that includes features and shorts.
best of luck,
tracy

Caminhos do Cinema Português Festival 5/10/23
The Caminhos do Cinema Português Festival has been, since 1988, one of the main references in the Portuguese cinematographic panorama. Presenting itself as the only festival dedicated to Portuguese cinema in all its aspects (final projects of schools of cinema, animation, documentary, short film and feature film), it shows itself as the ultimate showcase of cinematographic works that are annually produced in Portugal. This event is the opportunity to bring together creators and viewers in a single space for artistic interaction, a place where you can follow in the first person the evolution of the national film industry. Film Freeway Submission. Deadline for “no entry fee festival” readers using this waiver: CCPnoEntryFeeFestivals

June deadlines

Hi all,
I just updated the listing for June- but will include here as well. If you have any comments, please add them below. Any suggestions for festivals or other screening opportunities are welcome, just write in the comments.
best regards,
{tmr}

“Under the Radar” ongoing
Queer Cinema by, for or about Under-Represented People of Colour from Around the World. We are seeking films of all genres, under 30 minutes and in English or with English subtitles, to add to our on-going in person and online programming.  No entry fees.  No limit on year of production. Submissions should be of interest to the LGBTQ+ community and demonstrate innovation and creative originality.  Although we do not impose a particular theme to our programming, we ask that you explain your creative choices in the synopsis section below. 

ConnectHer Film Festival 06/01/23
Through ConnectHER, high school and college students submit original short films focused on critical women’s issues such as girls’ education, ending violence against women, poverty & economic independence, and authentic beauty/body image. We’re thrilled with how the film festival is turning students into filmmakers—and filmmakers into activists.

Portobello Film Festival (London, UK) 06/01/2023
UK’s biggest independent film competition. Films submitted through form. Movies can be sent via a link with password to raypff @ mac.com (ProRes or H264)

YOUKI 6/1/23
YOUKI is looking for your film! Filmmakers, school classes and content creators can submit their productions for the international film competition 2023. No matter if professional camera or smartphone – YOUKI is the place where new ideas, first attempts, films of all genres, wild experiments, social media clips and school projects find their way to the cinema. We support your start into the cinema universe. Be brave and submit your project! Submission password: HappyBirthdayYouki Film Freeway

Student Academy awards 6/1/23
The Student Academy Awards (SAA) recognizes and honors student filmmakers who demonstrate excellence in the creation of motion pictures. By awarding these outstanding achievements, the Academy strives to support and inspire emerging filmmakers and to foster growth and education in the art and science of motion pictures. FilmFreeway submission.

Supernova Digital Animation Festival “7th Dimension” 6/1/23
We are Denver Digerati, an innovative nonprofit organization dedicated to the support and amplification of digital motion art and animation. We are artist-centered and believe in the freedom to create without restrictions. Our organization endeavors to promote those fearless creators who aspire to express their unique visions through their art. Our platform is focused on inclusivity and the next generation of digital interdisciplinarity. We strive to break down accessibility barriers for EVERYONE through exhibition, education, community partnerships, an emphasis on play, idea development over skills-based repetition, and an unapologetic desire to foster artist success. We are committed to the open-minded, art-adventurous, rule-breakers, niche-focused, the independent artists, and all of you that are WEIRD and WONDERFUL.

World Festival of Animated Film Varna – WFAF 6/1/23
2023 is the year of the 19th edition of the World Festival of Animated Film, held in beautiful Varna- the sea capital of Bulgaria! Welcome onboard! This September once again filmmakers, students, artists- amateurs and professionals, will gather for 5 diverse days on the seaside to be part of screenings from around the world, masterclasses of animation talents, rich exhibitions, workshops and many more!

Canlandıranlar Film Festival 6/2/23
Canlandıranlar (Animators) focuses on talents and organizes various events through volunteering. We support short independent animation films and also organize the International Canlandıranlar Film Festival since 2013. Film Freeway.

Golden Lion Awards High School Film Festival 6/2/2023 *late submissions have fees
Entries must meet the following requirements to be eligible for competition. Please note that entries received outside of the Midwest and/or 500-mile radius of Cincinnati will not be eligible to compete. The Golden Lion Awards is a high school/middle school film festival based in Cincinnati. It is open to students in the 12 Midwest states (Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin) as well as areas within 500 miles of Cincinnati including parts of Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. The production team must have been in high school or younger while filming the project. Middle School students are eligible to submit. All music and other copyrighted material (images, videos, etc.) used in the films must be properly licensed. There are various resources that offer free music and images.

depicT! film festival (UK): 06/12/23
A reminder: • The duration of your film(s) must NOT exceed 90 seconds including titles and credits. • Depict is open to short films of all production techniques, including animation, documentary, drama, experimental or artist film and hybrid work. We do not accept advertisements. Whilst we do not have a premiere policy, we positively encourage entries made specifically for Depict. • The maximum number of entries per individual is three. Film Freeway Submission.

MOTELx – Lisbon International Horror Film Festival 6/15/23
Note: Two free categories, Horror Script and Portugese Films. MOTELX GUIÕES Award- MOTELX, in partnership with the Guiões Festival, opens its first Horror Script Competition for Portuguese feature films. Portuguese films. Portuguese feature and short films, including co-productions with a majority of Portuguese participation. All national productions or co-productions are exempt from paying submission fees. Submission password must be requested at films@motelx.org. Any film submitted to this category not fulfilling these requirements will be automatically disqualified. Film Freeway submission.

Princeton Student Film and Video Festival 06/15/23
The Princeton Student Film Festival is sponsored by the Princeton Public Library. The mission of the festival is to encourage and support the work of youth filmmakers (ages 14-25) in a range of genres and styles, with the opportunity and a venue for the filmmakers to show their work to a broad audience.

FILMETS Badalona Film Festival 06/15/23
An international short film festival that showcases fiction, animation and documentary films. The programme is selected on the basis of rigorous artistic, technical and screenwriting criteria. free submission for filmmakers from Badalona. The directors of films related to Badalona, participating in Badalona, must send a mail to filmets@festivalfilmets.cat (indicating their details and the link to access and view the film)

Brno Sixteen 6/15/23
BRNO16 is an international short film festival. It is one of the oldest film festivals in the Czech Republic and has been going on uninterrupted since 1960. At the same time, it is also one of the oldest short film festivals in the world. BRNO16 presents various kinds of short films – live action, animation, experimental, student, professional and also non-professional. We are curious about all the beautiful short films this year. Have you shot any in the last three years?The 16 in the name of our festival refers to 16mm film, in past one of most common film gauges in the industry and also at our festival. This film gauge is rarely used nowadays, since most films are now screened from digital formats (16mm appears exclusively in retrospective sections), the name however stuck as a tradition.

Golden Snail 6/15/23
Festival “Golden Snail” is a World Children Animated Film Festival which takes place in month September 2023. in Vranje, Serbia. “Golden Snail” gathers young filmmakers from all over the world. Any studio, club or school who works with children in a field of film animation are welcome to our festival. Films must be made BY CHILDREN not for children by professionals.

Countryside Animafest Cyprus 6/18/23
Cyprus films, is a category for national animated shorts created in Cyprus, this deadline is for that category only.

Anishort Festival 6/20/23
We are a team of young people engaged in animation, photography and camera, design, music and sound, technique and creative work as such. All these sectors together are included for us in the animated film. Versatile we are interested in this great art form. Whether each of us individually devote to something else, one thing unites us all. We love animated film and especially the short!!!

PRIMANIMA 6/20/23
Primanima Masters Competition: category for established filmmakers, all films are eligible which do not fit in the student, graduation film, first film or children’s film categories; including directors who previously competed in our festival and they are not first time filmmakers anymore are encouraged to submit their films to this category; if you are teaching animation in an institution, please note it in your bio. Submission link here. 

Busan International Film Festival (Korea) 06/21/23
For the official selection of the 28th Busan International Film Festival, fiction films, documentaries, and animations that were produced after October 2022 are eligible for submission. Deadline is for Short Film for films shorter than 60 minutes.

Short of the Year 06/21/23
The festival is open to international filmmakers.Festival is open to fiction, animation, documentary, experimental short films and music video with a maximum duration of 30 minutes. Entries must be submitted in English, Spanish subtitles are recommended though. Short of the Year will have four different editions: WINTER – SPRING – SUMMER – AUTUMN. Every season 50 works will be selected. The winner of each season will be awarded with 250 submissions to film festivals (for free) and will directly become one of the films selected for The Short of the Year. The grand prize consists in 1000 submissions to festivals (for free)

Tirana International Documentary Film Festival 6/23/23
Tirana International accepts films with no entry fee for their In Albanian category (films from all over the world in Albanian language). Only Feature & Short films that are in Albanian language will be accepted in this category. 

CINANIMA 6/26/23
CINANIMA 2023 – the 47th International Animated Film Festival of Espinho – will be held from the 13th to the 19th of November 2023. The oldest film festival in Portugal and the third oldest animation festival in the world CINANIMA is an Oscar™ Qualifying Film Festival in the category of Best Animated Short. Animation filmmakers from around the world are invited to submit their works in one of the international competition categories.

PRIMANIMA 6/30/23
Student film, Graduation film (BA, MA or DLA), First film = your first animated short film production made without an educational background, Children’s film = any animated short film made for children (age 3-12) if it falls in any of the above categories (Student Film, Graduation film, First Film) or it is made by an up-and-coming director under the age of 40. Films for teenagers = films suitable for teenagers (age 13–18) submitted for any of the above short film categories (Student film, Graduation film, First film) or made by an up-and-coming director under the age of 40 will also be considered by the programmers for the PrimaTeen competition category. Submission link here. 

Holebikort short film contest 6/30/23
‘Holebikort’, the biggest competition for queer short films is back. Submission link here. The winner of Holebikort is chosen by the public on the Opening night of the Holebifilmfestival in November. In addition, there are two extra awards: The “Bravery Award” and the “Theme Award”.

GRAND OFF World Independent Film Awards 6/30/23
Grand OFF – World Independent Film Awards is the most important initiative promoting independent cinema in Poland and one of the most important cultural events related to independent cinema in the world. The mission of Grand OFF is to put independent cinema in the spotlight that both films and their makers deserve. This goal is achieved by a meticulous process of nominating submitted movies by the members of Grand OFF Jury, representing cinema professionals from 24 countries. This procedure culminates in a festive award ceremony, taking place in Warsaw since 2006 and attended each time by 400 distinguished representatives of the cinema world. A week later the awarded films are presented in more than 50 Polish cities. Film Freeway

New Chitose Airport International Animation Festival 6/30/23
New Chitose Airport International Animation Festival is an animation festival dedicated to animated films held at the terminal building of New Chitose Airport (Hokkaido, Japan), which connects Hokkaido with the rest of the world as an entertainment airport. Deadline for short film, student film, VR / 360 works.

Bucheon International Animation Festival (BIAF)  6/30/23
International Animation Festival, which includes a general competition section. Animation Film Festival with a general competition section, which includes feature films, short films, graduation films, Korean short films, TV&Commissioned films. The festival is to spread the true charm of the animation genre and to grow as an expert animation film festival in Asia. Deadline for short films.

Fredrikstad Animation Festival 6/30/23
Fredrikstad Animation Festival (FAF) is organised by Norsk Animasjonsforum. The object of the festival is to promote the screening of animation and increase the awareness of animated expressions in the Nordic-Baltic countries.

AnimaSyros International Animation Festival & Agora 6/30/23
ANIMASYROS International Animation Festival, the largest festival of its kind in Greece and one of the largest in Europe, launched its journey into the world of animation on 19 September 2008 in the island of Syros, Greece. Since then, ANIMASYROS takes place annually in the capital of the Cyclades complex, having hosted more than 104,000 unique visitors. Film Freeway submission.

Doclisboa 6/30/23
A festival dedicated to documentary and to the new possible paths that are being opened for the genre. Free submission for Green Years category, films with portuguese production. The GREEN YEARS – PORTUGUESE FILM submission form is dedicated especially to students or authors who are taking the first steps on film direction. Films of Portuguese production or co-production. World premiere required. Film Freeway Submission

Etiuda and Anima Festival (Poland) 06/30/2023
ETIUDA COMPETITION – international film competition for student etudes made at film and fine art schools. ANIMA COMPETITION – international competition for professional, independent and student animation.