Aiming to showcase emerging talents and address social issues of today, Budapest Independent Film Festival always features a diverse and fresh screening programme.

The selection runs the gamut of fiction and documentary films, shorts, animated films and music videos. Our vision is to serve as a connecting platform for upcoming filmmakers and artists featuring films that spark conversations and give birth to new ideas. Many of the films screened at BIFF have premiered or screened in internationally acclaimed film festivals while others make their premiere here.

Our mission is to support local cultural venues, bring people back to our beloved cinema dark halls and bring independent cinema and filmmakers to the spotlight. The Festival’s 2023 edition at Kino Aero was a great success. Attracting a mixed audience of locals and foreigners, #BIFF23 served as a meeting point sparking conversations and debates among students, cinephiles, actors and film industry professionals.

The Budapest Independent Film Festival is organised by HFP, a pioneer organisation that runs Film Festivals and other events showcasing and championing ideas of diversity. Through our global series of film Festivals that spread over 13 countries, we open the path to voices with a compelling story to share. Our main mission is to honour independent cinema and establish a network of artists eager to join forces and spread their work across all nations. HFP runs 25 film Festivals worldwide.

Winners will be awarded with Award Certificates.

Press and photographers will be invited to the festival.

✓ All films must be submitted in English or with English subtitles (if in a different language).

✓ All films must have been made in or after 2023.

✓ Short films must not exceed 45 minutes.

✓ Filmmakers are responsible for sorting out the copyright on their own materials.

✓ By submitting to us, you give us consent and right to screen your film in front of a live audience, and, under special circumstances, online screening.

✓ Nominations: These are all the films that have been nominated for an award in a category. Not all nominated films will be screened.

Official Selection: These are all the nominated films selected for screening, which will be notified via email. If you received a Nomination email, but no Official Selection email, it means your film will not be screened, but is still a contender for an award in its category.

Award Winners: Chosen from the Nominations (which includes the Official Selection).

✓ We may promote clips from your film on social media, based on the press kits you provide us with.

✓ We retain the right to change the date and venue of the festival under special circumstances. All filmmakers will be informed about any changes through email and our online platforms.

✓ We place no restrictions on your work in terms of premiere status or whether your work has been made available online.

✓ We do not accept partial screeners, trailers, or screener links that require access other than password protected links.

✓ Any technical issues with the submitted films are 100% the responsibility of the filmmakers. If, at the time of judging, your video file doesn’t work or doesn’t have English subtitles (if in a language other than English), it will be automatically rejected, without a refund. Please contact the festival team ASAP if there are any issues with the submission process, and a solution will be found.

✓ We cannot provide refunds.

✓ If you have submitted your project in the previous year, please do not resubmit the same project to the current edition.

✓ By submitting to us you agree to our terms and conditions and to receiving marketing newsletters and discounts about film festivals in the form of emails. We will never sell your information to third parties.

✓ We reserve the right to update our terms and conditions.

Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Really great and enthusiastic team and an amazing filmmaker oriented festival in the heart of Budapest. It was an honor to have my animated short screened. I'm already looking forward to next year's edition!

    February 2024
  • Ana Lazarevic

    I'm so grateful our filmed screened for audiences in Budapest and that and actor and I got the opportunity to attend. The audience the festival attracts is great and I had some wonderful conversations with audience members. The theater was really cool and in a great part of town. Overall it was a unique and special experience.

    February 2023
  • Gina Hara

    Our film got nominated for an award and when we offered to come with the crew (director, producer, etc) they turned us down. We actually have our own festival travel budget, so that was a first. I'm not gonna lie that was confusing. Haha. But we hope the festival went well. Budapest is great and Hungarian films are awesome. We wish we could have been there. Congrats to all the winners :)

    February 2020
    Logo
    Response from festival:

    Hi Gina,
    We are really sorry you couldn't attend the festival. As we mentioned in our email conversation, we would have been very happy to welcome you to the event. Even if your film was not part of our Official Screening Selection, it was nominated for an award. I understand that your promotional budget is limited to screenings, but unfortunately, the screening selection is decided independently of filmmakers' ability to attend. I hope we'll have a chance to see your other projects in the future.

    Best,
    Festival Team

  • Warsaw Film School is so greatful that our production Nuclear Shadows was in official selection. A highly professional, well organized and communicative festival! Thank you so much! We can't wait to send you some new shorts for the next edition. Keep up the amazing work!

    March 2019
  • sophie Gueydon

    Felt so blessed to be part of the festival and win 'Best Director' for our short 'Emma'. The films were powerful, the team really kind and passionate about cinema, the venue amazing and it was a great excuse to see Budapest! I would defo submit again and come back!

    January 2019