CALL FOR ENTRIES
From July 8th 2025 to September 8th 2025.
Do you remember the first film you saw on the big screen when you were a child?
For thousands of Mexican children in vulnerable situations this question has no answer. This is why Churumbela Children's Film Festival was created, inviting all Mexican and Spanish-speaking children to experience cinema in an inclusive, completely playful and entertaining environment.
The 9th Churumbela Children's Film Festival will take place in a hybrid format; where some of the activities, workshops and talks with industry professionals will occur online and some others onsite including film screenings in Mexico City and Merida City, Yucatan. It brings film culture to children and their families, specially those who are in any kind of disadvantage due to economic situation, or physical disability. The Festival enhance film as an expression tool, sense of self identity and cultural enrichment through an accesible and inclusive program.
"Colourful Mosaic" is the thematic axis of this edition, as an invitation for children to discover how the use of colour evokes feelings and sensations by building different atmospheres and unravel messages in every scene. Just like an actual mosaic art piece it is made by a variety of visual narrative elements , exploring film from a creative and sensorial perspective full of symbolisms.
This 2025 Churumbela Children's Film Festival will take place in Mexico City in October and Yucatán December Friday 5 - Sunday 7, with the support of the General Office of Cultural Promotion and Festivals of the Ministry of Culture, PROFEST 2025, The Mexican TV Cultural Channel, Canal 22 and other entities and the Mexican private initiative as well as nonprofit organizations.
The 9th Churumbela Children's Film Festival promotes creativity, dialogue, the seventh art and artistic expression as tools for social transformation, and all activities are completely free of charge.
Thanks to all the support we have received, it is possible to bring cinema to all children free of charge so that they can immerse themselves in the wonderful world of filmmaking.
1. Brain Film Fest
The Brain Film Fest (BFF) is an international film festival dedicated to highlighting and promoting the creation and dissemination of feature films and short films about any aspect of the brain, from its amazing abilities and conditions to its pathologies. The BFF is jointly organized by the Pasqual Maragall Foundation and Minimal Films. In addition to being a film competition, the BFF will also organize throughout the festival other in-person and online social, cultural and/or scientific events that focus on the brain.
The 9th edition of the Brain Film Fest will be held from March 11 to 15, 2026.
Here & Elsewhere is a three-day short film festival and fundraiser celebrating Arab voices on screen. We invite filmmakers whose work explores resistance through joy and humor.
Curated in partnership with Palestinian-Canadian director Fateema Al-Hamaydeh Miller, the festival draws inspiration from her signature “oh no, should I laugh?” comedic style, as seen in her award-winning short Mawtini, which will be screened during the event.
Selected films will be featured alongside curated community conversations, director Q&As.
Your submission fee supports two initiatives grounded in joy and resilience:
50% will fund Amwaj, Fateema’s debut feature film.
50% will go to Gaza Skate Team, a grassroots project cultivating movement, play and hope amid displacement.
“On this earth, there is that which deserves life.” — Mahmoud Darwish
To submit a film is an act of narrative resistance.
Submissions are open internationally. Fee exemptions available to filmmakers from Lebanon or Palestine, contact us at culturagroovy@gmail.com to request a waiver.
17th HAYAH International Short Film Festival of Panama
The oldest and most significant short film festival in Central America, dedicated to the promotion of cinematic talent in the short film format.
Our mission is to foster the growth of Panama's audiovisual industry by connecting its filmmakers with the global film community and providing a premier exhibition platform for local and international works.
AIFFI® – International Festival for AI-Generated Short Films
The inaugural edition of AIFFI® will take place on November 15–16, 2025, on the Caribbean island of Roatán, Honduras, marking the first international film festival in Central America exclusively dedicated to cinema created with artificial intelligence.
Conceived as a hybrid cinematic experience, AIFFI® merges physical screenings with global digital access. The festival is a celebration of the evolving language of cinema in the era of emerging technologies—bringing together filmmakers, technologists, visual artists, and visionary creators who explore storytelling through generative tools and AI-enhanced workflows.
From Central America to the world, AIFFI® positions the region as a growing epicenter of artificial cinema. With a forward-looking mission to collaborate with global film and tech leaders, the festival becomes a launchpad for groundbreaking creators and bold experimentation at the intersection of art, code, and narrative.
The curated program will include official competition selections, industry roundtables, immersive showcases, and open dialogues between artists, developers, and cultural institutions. Framed by the vibrant identity and natural beauty of Roatán, AIFFI® offers an inclusive, decentralized space to reimagine the future of filmmaking.
Over $10,000 USD in awards will be granted across the official categories, celebrating artistic merit, technological innovation, and narrative excellence in AI-powered short films.
For full details, visit: www.aiffi.org
MÓSTOLES FANTERROR SHORTFEST
Calabaza Films, in collaboration with the Department of Culture, Development, and Tourism Promotion of the Móstoles City Council, announces the First Short Film Festival called “Móstoles FanTerror ShortFest,” aimed at promoting the short film as a cinematic format and the genres of horror and fantasy.
Requirements:
Fiction, animation, or documentary short films produced from January 1, 2024, whose theme is related to fantasy and horror cinema.
Short films must not have a duration of less than one minute (1 min.), including end credits, nor a duration exceeding twenty minutes (20 min.).
Filmmakers from anywhere in the world may participate in this Festival; however, short films shot in a language other than Spanish must include Spanish subtitles.
This is an excerpt from the rules. Please consult the official call for more information.
The Central India International Children & Youth Film Festival (CIICYFF) stands as a beacon of cinematic excellence in the heart of India, celebrating the diverse voices and stories that define contemporary filmmaking.
Nestled in the cultural heartland of India, CIFF has emerged as a premier platform that bridges the gap between emerging talent and established filmmakers, fostering a vibrant ecosystem of creative expression.
XI Short Festival El Palo for short filmmakers born / as and / or residents in Málaga (Spain).
ONLY FOR SPANISH FILMMAKERS (Malaga) // Solo podrán presentarse al concurso cortometrajistas nacidos y/o residentes en la provincia de Málaga.
"Identity and Cultural Diversity".
We understand identity as a process of change and constant search, which nurtures cultural diversity and questions traditional icons. And we understand cinema as a reflection of peoples, their cultures and identities.
We understand cultural diversity as a force that promotes community empathy and enriches people's daily lives.
Galápagos International Film Festival – GIFF
Islands that tell stories. Cinema that connects.
The Galápagos International Film Festival – GIFF is a platform born from the heart of the archipelago, with the purpose of positioning cinema as a tool for dialogue, reflection, and transformation in insular contexts. More than just a film showcase, GIFF is a space for connection that highlights the narratives emerging from island territories, shedding light on social, environmental, and cultural realities that are often left out of the dominant audiovisual discourse.
In its second edition, GIFF reaffirms its commitment to audience development, the strengthening of local capacities, and the circulation of both national and international works, generating opportunities for emerging filmmakers, creative communities, and cultural actors at the local, national, and international levels.
Perspectives – Montluçon International Film Festival is an international feature film festival dedicated to emerging cinematic creation. We are looking for bold and innovative films from both France and abroad.
The festival will take place at the Le Palace cinema in Montluçon, in the Allier region of France.
In addition to the competition, the festival also features two retrospective sections, showcasing films produced between the 1990s and 2010s.
The BLEU PARIS Short Film Festival is an international festival open to all filmmakers, of all ages and backgrounds, whether professional or amateur. It aims to highlight the cinema themed by the blue color. And thus bring together all the aficionados of this wonderful shade.
Africa’s Voices of Change Film Festival (AVOCFF) is an impact-driven film festival based in Nigeria, with a focus on children’s rights, disability inclusion, and public health. Through carefully selected films, live discussions, and youth-led workshops, AVOCFF uses cinema as a tool for Social and Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC) and community engagement.
Launched in 2024 by Tropism Ideas Ltd, AVOCFF brings together filmmakers, advocates, and policy actors to highlight overlooked issues and drive constructive dialogue. The festival centres human stories that prompt reflection, encourage civic action, and contribute to conversations that shape future advocacy and policy work.
Visões do Mar – Niterói International Documentary Festival is an event dedicated to the screening, reflection, and celebration of documentaries that explore the relationships between the oceans, coastal communities, identity, and culture within traditional ways of life connected to the sea.
The first edition will take place from November 17 to 22, 2025, in various cultural venues across the city of Niterói (RJ), Brazil.
1. OBJECTIVES
Festival goals:
Promote documentary cinema as a tool for social and environmental transformation;
Highlight the role of artisanal extractive communities as guardians of coastal biomes;
Give visibility to diverse narratives about the sea, its urgencies, cosmovisions, and the territories that depend on it;
Encourage the production and circulation of Latin American documentaries focused on socio-environmental justice.
2. TRAINING ACTIVITIES
As a core commitment of Visões do Mar, we will carry out a series of educational activities with both audiovisual students from Niterói’s public schools and professional filmmakers from the city.
School Screenings
Mediated screenings for public school students, promoting dialogue on environmental education and coastal cultures.
Documentary Lab – Niterói-Based Filmmakers
Exclusive training for audiovisual professionals from Niterói:
Project Development
Pitching and Project Presentation
Distribution with Social Impact
The Luz del Desierto International Festival is an audiovisual Festival that aims to promote cinema within the country and abroad. The festival will take place in october with competition for feature films and short films, both fiction, animation and documentary. There will also be talks and workshops.
Muestra de Cine Social
Luminiscence.
Presentation
The Social Film Festival organized by Luminiscence Studio since 2013 has no competitive character, our intention is to screen projects with a clear social commitment, bringing the works presented to the public closer so that a link can be created between filmmakers, the public and organizers.
