Mission

The mission of the ARISTIDES DE SOUSA MENDES FILM FESTIVALis to promote Human Rights through cinema, affirming it as an instrument of living memory, ethical awareness, civic education and social transformation.

The Festival presents itself as a space for critical reflection, denunciation, care, reparation and imagination of more just futures, inspired by the legacy of Aristides de Sousa Mendes, valuing the primacy of moral conscience over unjust laws and oppressive systems, and placing human dignity at the center of cultural creation and public debate.

Vision

The vision of ARISTIDES DE SOUSA MENDES FILM FESTIVAL is to establish itself as a leading international festival in the field of cinema and Human Rights, recognized for its cultural excellence, educational impact, ethical relevance, and commitment to a culture of peace.

The Festival aims to become:
• An international platform for intercultural dialogue and global citizenship;
• A world-renowned event that consolidates Aristides de Sousa Mendes as a universal historical reference of moral courage;
• A permanent space for articulation between cinema, education, historical memory, and social justice, aligned with the principles of UNESCO and the 2030 Agenda.

Values

The ARISTIDES DE SOUSA MENDES FILM FESTIVAL is based on a set of ethical and humanistic values ​​clearly expressed throughout the document:
• Human Dignity – recognition of the inalienable rights of all human beings.
• Ethical Awareness and Moral Courage – primacy of individual conscience in the face of unjust laws.
• Memory and Historical Responsibility – preservation of memory as a civic and pedagogical duty.
• Justice, Reparation and Reconciliation – promotion of individual and collective healing processes.
• Inclusion, Diversity and Equality – respect for cultural, identity and gender differences.
• Hospitality and Solidarity – defense of the rights of migrants, refugees and vulnerable populations.
• Care and Well-being – valuing mental, emotional and social health as a human right.
• Sustainability and Climate Justice – ethical responsibility towards the Earth and future generations.
• Education and Civic Participation – development of critical thinking, especially among young people.

CATEGORIES:
Memory, Justice and Peace
Processes of repression, historical memory (including the 25 April Revolution), genocides, armed conflicts, mechanisms of justice, truth and reconciliation, and the struggle against impunity.

Migration and Borders
The refugee crisis, forced displacement, asylum, undocumented migration, hospitality, reception policies, and the defense of human dignity in migratory contexts.

Youth and Education
Works created by or for young people, promoting active citizenship, critical thinking, media literacy, and education for Human Rights through cinema.

Identity and Gender
Exploration of cultural diversity, gender equality, identity, otherness, interculturality, and the rights of LGBTQIA+ people.

Land and Environment
Environmental cinema, climate justice, protection of natural resources, the rights of Indigenous peoples and traditional communities, sustainability, and the defense of territories.

Mental Health and Well-being
The rights of people experiencing psychological distress, combating stigma, and emotional health in contexts of exclusion, war, or displacement.

Living with Dignity (overarching theme of the 2026 edition)
Addressing hatred, structural inequalities, poverty, and social exclusion, while promoting more just and inclusive societies.

Care, Reparation and Reconciliation
A cross-cutting axis dedicated to processes of individual and collective healing after violence, exile, colonialism, war, or exclusion. It includes restorative justice, historical and symbolic reparation, community reconciliation, rebuilding lives, and care as a political act and a fundamental human right.

Bodies in Resistance
The body as a political and symbolic territory: migrant, racialized, dissident, ill, or silenced bodies. Bodily languages as forms of resistance, memory, and affirmation of human dignity.

Spirituality, Ethics and Conscience
The inner dimension of Human Rights: conscientious objection, moral courage, secular faith, compassion and ethical decision-making in Extreme Contexts, in dialogue with the legacy of Aristides de Sousa Mendes.

Rights of Nature and Future Generations
Recognition of nature as a subject of rights and reflection on ethical responsibility toward future generations, through cinematic narratives that question the present and imagine possible—or avoidable—futures.

Awards & Prizes

The international jury is made up of professionals and specialists from the areas of Audiovisual and Human Rights issues. In the Competition, the jury awards prizes (1st and 2nd place) to the 2 best films in each thematic category. It also awards the Grand Prize.

Prizes awarded at the festival:
• Grand Prizes:
• Sousa Mendes Grand Prize 2026
• Grand Prize in the Promotional Films Section
• Grand Prize in the Educational Films Section
• Grand Prize in the Documentaries & Television Reports Section

Technical Prizes:
• Best Promotional Film at. 15’
• Best Animated Film
• Best Documentary up to 30’
• Best Documentary up to 90’
• Best Television Program
• Best Independent Film
• Best WebDoc
• Best Original Soundtrack

Awards in thematic categories: If 6 or more films enter a given thematic category, the awards will be given to the 2 best films (1st and 2nd place according to the jury’s evaluation).
If only 3 to 5 films enter a given category, only 1st place will be awarded.
When a thematic category has only 1 or 2 films, no award will be given (however, depending on the content of the film, the jury may recategorize the change if it is beneficial to the participant).
The Jury evaluates films between June 30th and August 31st.

Rules & Terms

By submitting a film to the festival, the participant ensures ownership of all rights inherent to the submission and access to these same rights during the festival period. Registration guarantees that the usage rights held by the authors, copyright owners and other agents involved in the production of the registered film, with the exception of the rights safeguarded by the societies holding exhibition rights, were acquired legitimately and the Festival reserves the right to use them, without being impeded by copyright or other third party rights, whatever they may be.

When a participant submits a film, he/she transfers to the festival the rights to use the entry, specifically the right to show the film in public, either in whole or in part, or to distribute it in whole or in part in “shows” or equivalent events. This also applies to photographs/images provided to the festival.

All transfers of use mentioned above are valid internationally.

NOTIFICATION TO WINNERS
The entries submitted to the competition will be evaluated in advance and the winners will be notified in advance. The presence of the winning participants at the Awards Ceremony is strongly encouraged. The decisions of the jury are not subject to appeal. The decisions of the jury and the festival organization are final and are not subject to any legal recourse.

LIABILITY OF THE FESTIVAL
The festival reserves the right to reclassify the films by forwarding them to other categories when deemed appropriate. The festival declines any responsibility for film entries that are classified in the wrong category or are entered into the festival register after the deadline stipulated for this purpose.

The festival’s liability is limited to circumstances of intentional or negligent conduct and applies solely to the loss or damage of a submitted work. The Festival organizers accept no liability for the cancellation of the Festival due to force majeure and beyond their control.

OTHER PROVISIONS
The festival reserves the right to exhibit the submitted works at a “show” or equivalent event and to disseminate them in a medium deemed appropriate by the festival. This also applies to photographs/images provided to the festival. Participants transfer to the festival all rights applicable to the initiatives when submitting their film. The festival reserves the right to use all sound and image recordings made during the festival for advertising purposes in any media deemed appropriate by the festival. The festival reserves the right to exclude film entries from the competitions.

By submitting a film to the festival, the participant accepts the competition rules and all its rules, and the participant is entirely responsible for any damages to their own rights or to third parties, whether caused by the use of their entry or by false information provided. The exclusive place of jurisdiction for any disputes arising from or related to these rules will be Leiria, Portugal. The personal data provided will not be disclosed or transferred to third parties.