Next January brings together several deadlines for short film festivals that you should not miss in your festival strategy. All of them have in common some type of premiere requirement, whether national, international, or world premiere.
I have compiled 6 of them, some are on the Oscar-qualifying list, and others are not exclusively for short films, but have an official section that includes them.
If you are distributing your feature film, you can also consider them; these are IndieLisboa and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
These are the 6 festivals:
#1 International Short Film Festival Oberhausen
It is the oldest short film festival in the world; in 2017 it will celebrate its 63rd edition. It is accredited by FIAPF as a festival specialized in short films and documentaries. It is also part of the Oscar-qualifying list, so the award in the official competition allows qualification. Additionally, with this selection you could already participate in the Goya Awards.
The premiere requirement is national in Germany. Films up to 35 minutes are considered short films (for German productions the limit is 45 minutes).
In very exceptional cases they may accept films of longer duration, provided they are world premieres.
The deadline for the international competition is February 1 (I am counting it as if it were in January). The first submission deadline was October 15 and is done through their own form.
#2 VIS Vienna Shorts Festival
In this case there is no premiere requirement, but both national, international, and Austrian premieres are valued. Therefore, it is advisable to reserve some type of premiere to participate in the festival. It is one of the most important festivals in Austria.
It is also part of the Oscar-qualifying list and accepts short films up to 30 minutes.
The first submission deadline is January 4, with a fee of €12 for documentary and fiction, €8 for animation, and €5 for music videos. There is a late deadline for all sections until January 31 for €20.
#3 Curtas Vila de Conde
Once again we are looking at one of the most prominent short film festivals in its country; Vila do Conde is a true international reference and the most important Portuguese festival specialized in short films.
The minimum premiere requirement is national, although they have preference for world premieres, so it is advisable to reserve it. The maximum duration is 60 minutes.
For submission dates, for several years now they have used a model very similar to the American one, with three different deadlines. The first deadline is January 18 with a fee of €7, the second is March 16 at €9, and the last deadline is April 7 for €12. The music video section has a single deadline on May 22, with the same fee.
You can use their own form, although this year, as a novelty, they also use the FilmFreeway platform.
The festival takes place from July 8 to 16 and is also part of the Oscar-qualifying list.
#4 Krakow Film Festival
Like Oberhausen, Krakow is one of the longest-running festivals specialized in short films; the next edition will be number 57. In addition to short films, it accepts documentaries of any length. It is also accredited by FIAPF.
Short films must have a duration of up to 30 minutes. In the case of the section dedicated to feature-length documentaries, these must have a duration exceeding 30 minutes. There is a third competition for music documentaries with a duration exceeding 50 minutes.
To participate in this festival it is necessary that foreign productions have not been released before June 2016. Taking this into account, it is preferable to reserve the world premiere, although the minimum premiere requirement is national.
In line with previous festivals, it has two different deadlines; the first was November 30, 2016, and the last is January 31. Submission is free for the first 5 films; from there they charge a fee of €10 per submitted film.
It takes place from May 28 to June 4, 2017.
#5 IndieLisboa International Independent Film Festival
It is the reference independent film festival in Portugal. For its international competition it accepts both feature films and short films. In all cases they must be the director’s first, second, or third film.
Films with a maximum duration of up to 59 minutes are considered short films, and feature films from 60 minutes onward. Therefore, they also include medium-length films, although they are considered short films.
The premiere requirement is national. It takes place from May 3 to 14, before Curtas Vila de Conde, which takes place in July. You must take this into account when designing your distribution strategy. Both festivals are not compatible with each other, and you must choose one of them.
The submission deadline is January 16 with a fee of €6 for short films and €12 for feature films, but only for international films. For submission they use an online form.
#6 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria International Film Festival
After an edition without short films, the Las Palmas Festival returns with an official section that accepts both feature films and short films. In both cases with a national premiere requirement for films from 2016 and 2017.
The submission deadline is January 22. Productions up to 40 minutes are considered short films; from that duration onward they would be feature films. Like Vila de Conde, Krakow, and IndieLisboa, they accept the participation of medium-length films.
It takes place from March 2 to 13, days before Málaga (March 17 to 26) and Medina del Campo (March 10 to 18). This date structure would allow premiering a short film in Las Palmas, and in turn participating in these two festivals (in the case of Medina del Campo you must be careful, as they overlap for three days).
A Brief Summary
In this summary you can see the list of festivals ordered by submission deadline in January, premiere requirement, and fees:
- IndieLisboa – January 16 – Premiere in Portugal – €6
- Vila do Conde – January 18 (last deadline April 7) – Premiere in Portugal, preference for world premieres – €7
- Las Palmas – January 22 – Premiere in Spain – Free
- Krakow – January 31 – Premiere in Poland, preference for world premieres – Free up to 5 films.
- Vienna – January 31 (late deadline on January 4) – No premiere requirement, preference for national and international premieres – €12
- Oberhausen – February 1 – Premiere in Germany – Free
If you are now preparing the distribution strategy for your short film in Spain, you can consider the Medina del Campo Festival. It values national premieres and the most recent short films, even if they have been released.
The premiere requirements of festivals greatly complicate distribution, which is why I hope this post helps you design your festival strategy, and you can better evaluate festivals to premiere your short film.
Have you ever participated in these festivals? Do you know any other important festival for January? If you think I have missed something, just comment and I will add it to the post.
I look forward to your comments!