Astoria Film Festival is devoted to providing as much exposure for our selected filmmakers as possible, to our community via events and social media, and to industry professionals that judge the works and attend the festival. Our screening panel is made up of former festival winners and independent filmmakers and our VIP Judges are curated to present your films to as many Industry Professionals as possible. They come from domestic and international streamers and traditional media outlets including PBS, Netflix, Samansa (which offers a distribution deal for a project of their choosing), SONY, NatGeo, Viacom, and specialty organizations such as Gotham Sound.

Each year, we produce a Main Festival and a Youth Festival , focused on live action shorts, animated shorts, and podcasts, and highlight our Student Programming, where we teach filmmaking workshops to ages 8-adult in schools, after schools, and community centers. In addition, we train high-school and college age youth in our Media Production and Social Media Labs where we provide instruction in media production skills, real-world experiences, and connections to industry professionals.

Please follow us on Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, or Facebook for more info.
You can also visit astoriafilmfestival.org

This year the festival will take place May 29-31 at Kaufman Astoria Studios with an Opening Night Party on May 28 at Heart of Gold

Awards & Prizes

There are separate awards and prizes for filmmakers in the Youth Festival and Main Festival.

MAIN FESTIVAL:
Best International Short
Best Drama Short
Best Comedy Short
Best Experimental/Dance Short
Best Documentary Short
Best Horror Short
Best Animated Short
Best International Animated Short
Best Directing
Best Editing
Best Cinematography
Best Sound Mixing
Best Performances
Best Podcast

YOUTH FESTIVAL
Best Middle School Film
Best High School Film
Best Youth International Short
Best Youth Drama Short
Best Youth Comedy Short
Best Youth Experimental/Dance Short
Best Youth Documentary Short
Best Youth Horror Short
Best Youth Animated Short
Best Youth International Animated Short
Best Youth Directing
Best Youth Editing
Best Youth Cinematography
Best Youth Sound Mixing
Best Youth Performances
Best Youth Podcast

AWARDS include gift certificates and free subscriptions from our sponsors which vary each year. 2026 sponsors include NYWIFT, Samansa (which offers a distribution deal for a project of their choosing), Lux Lighting, Marketing Macabre, Queens Botanical Garden, MOMI, Bareburger, Tootles and French, as well as Astoria Film Festival swag and monetary prizes. This year, there is also a prize meeting with an Agent at Sweater and a prize HMU session from Local 798 HMU Ruth Fernandez.

Rules & Terms

Submissions must be made in an mp4 format via FilmFreeway ONLY and should contain subtitles for accessibility purposes.

Please do not email or DM us films. They will not be part of the judged films.

Projects should not be more than 2 years old at time of submission.

Projects need to have the rights to use included music or use royalty-free music.

Projects cannot be screened in any other Queens-based festival in May/June 2026.

Short films and short animated films: 20 mins or less.
Exception: Documentary Shorts can be up to 40 mins.
Podcasts - submit ONE episode. MAX 30 mins.
68 Reviews
Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Connor Tyler Gray

    Astoria was a blast, a great team of people who love film, their community and focus on making every filmmaker feel valued and important. Highly, highly recommended.

    June 2026
    Helpful
    Response from festival:

    Thank you so much. It was our pleasure to have you and your beautiful film at the festival and I’m so glad we were able to get across how much we value having you with us. Thank you!

  • Sultan Ali Jr.

    Shout out to Astoria Film Festival!
    This marks my second year being selected—and my first year winning an award! 🎉

    The work they do truly uplifts young and innovative filmmakers, giving us a space to feel seen, valued, and celebrated. It means a lot to be recognized by a festival so committed to community and creativity. I’d be honored to return again in the future. Huge thanks to the AFF team for the love and support!

    June 2025
    Helpful
    Response from festival:

    Thank you very much Sultan! I'm so glad you came back and it was our pleasure to be able to screen your film. I look forward to seeing more of your work in the future.

  • Alice Shin

    As the director of A Nikkei Canadian Story, I was honored to be part of the Astoria Film Festival. Although I couldn’t attend in person, the Virtual Panel Discussion for remote filmmakers was a great opportunity. It allowed me to connect with other creators, exchange ideas, and gain new inspiration for future projects. I’m truly grateful for the festival’s thoughtful inclusion!

    June 2025
    Helpful
    Response from festival:

    Thank you so much Alice! For your kind words and for sharing your beautiful film with us. It was our honor to screen it.

  • Maurice Lightfoot

    "What can I say? This festival exceeded my expectations—great atmosphere, amazing people, and incredible films. I'm beyond grateful to have been invited and to have had my short film The Demon in the Motherboard screened. Thank you!"

    June 2025
    Helpful
    Response from festival:

    I'm so glad you submitted your wonderful film - and that you enjoyed attending :) Thank you for being a part of the festival!

  • Goran Šporčić

    Great Festival with a very nice selection and friendly people!

    June 2025
    Helpful
    Response from festival:

    Thank you very much for finding us and submitting your film! We were thrilled to be able to include it in the festival.