The LBM Group, La Scatola Blu, Armata Brancaleone APS and On Docks proudly present the sixth edition of the CORTOCIRCUITI Short Film Festival!

π…π„π’π“πˆπ•π€π‹ 𝐃𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐒 & 𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐔𝐄

The competitive screenings will take place in Summer 2026 at ExpostModerno (Via Napoli, 264, 70123 Bari BA, Italy) at the end of July, as part of the "Festa del Cinema in LibertΓ " Festival organized by Armata Brancaleone APS.

π€ππŽπ”π“ 𝐓𝐇𝐄 πŽπ‘π†π€ππˆπ™π„π‘π’

The LBM Group, La Scatola Blu and Armata Brancaleone APS are cultural associations based in Bari, Italy.

The LBM Group was born from the desire to involve young physics students in cinema-related activities, cultivating their passion for film culture by promoting filmmaking contests.

La Scatola Blu is a well-known association that organizes events aimed at encouraging the observation, listening and enjoyment of the art of filmmaking.

Armata Brancaleone APS is composed of workers and students engaged in urban regeneration, cultural and artistic research, social activism, cinema and architecture. Together they are bringing the Arena Moderno back to its vocation as a popular reference point, a place for community-building and making culture more accessible for both creators and audiences.

On Docks is an association dedicated to promoting documentary and audiovisual culture in Apulia and at the national level.

Awards & Prizes

π–π„π’π‡πŽπ‘π“ 𝐀𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐃
Short films selected for screening are eligible to compete for the WeShort Award, chosen by more than 50 festivals worldwide. WeShort's Senior Committee of film industry professionals selects the short film most capable of renewing the world of great short cinema through experimental languages and authentic storytelling.
The winner receives:

● The WeShort branded laurel
● Two 4Life subscriptions to the platform
● A distribution contract on the platform by preferential route
● Promotional posts on WeShort's official channels, expanding visibility to a highly engaged short film audience

ππ‘πŽπ…π„π’π’πˆπŽππ€π‹ π…πˆπ‹πŒπŒπ€πŠπ„π‘'𝐒 𝐀𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐃 - πŸ“πŸŽπŸŽβ‚¬
A jury of experts will select the best short film across all competitive categories.

𝐒𝐓𝐔𝐃𝐄𝐍𝐓 π…πˆπ‹πŒπŒπ€πŠπ„π‘'𝐒 𝐀𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐃 - πŸπŸ“πŸŽβ‚¬
A jury of students from the University of Bari "Aldo Moro" will select the best short film across all competitive categories.

𝐁𝐄𝐒𝐓 π’π‡πŽπ‘π“ πŒπ€πƒπ„ 𝐁𝐘 𝐒𝐓𝐔𝐃𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐒 π…π‘πŽπŒ π€ππ”π‹πˆπ€
A jury of experts will select the best short film in the Students from Apulia category. The winner will receive a one-year subscription to a cinema magazine.

π‚π€π“π„π†πŽπ‘π˜ 𝐀𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐃𝐒
The best short film in each submission category will receive a custom-made award (if the author is present at the screening).

𝐆𝐄𝐍𝐑𝐄 π’ππ„π‚πˆπ€π‹ πŒπ„ππ“πˆπŽππ’
Special mentions will be awarded for the best short films in each genre: π‘ͺπ’π’Žπ’†π’…π’š, π‘«π’“π’‚π’Žπ’‚, π‘«π’“π’‚π’Žπ’†π’…π’š, π‘»π’‰π’“π’Šπ’π’π’†π’“, π‘΄π’π’„π’Œπ’–π’Žπ’†π’π’•π’‚π’“π’š.

πŒπ„πƒπˆπ“π„π‘π‘π€ππ„π€π 𝐀𝐑𝐄𝐀 π’ππ„π‚πˆπ€π‹ πŒπ„ππ“πˆπŽπ
A special mention will be awarded to an outstanding short film from the Mediterranean area.

π„ππ•πˆπ‘πŽππŒπ„ππ“π€π‹ π“π‡π„πŒπ„ π’ππ„π‚πˆπ€π‹ πŒπ„ππ“πˆπŽπ
A special mention will be awarded to an outstanding short film with an environmental theme.

π€π’πˆπ€π 𝐖𝐀𝐕𝐄 π’ππ„π‚πˆπ€π‹ πŒπ„ππ“πˆπŽπ
A special mention will be awarded to an outstanding short film from Asia.

πŽπ“π‡π„π‘ π–πŽπ‘π‹πƒπ’ π’ππ„π‚πˆπ€π‹ πŒπ„ππ“πˆπŽπ
A special mention will be awarded to an outstanding short film in the Sci-Fi, Fantasy, or Horror genres.

π‘¨π’…π’…π’Šπ’•π’Šπ’π’π’‚π’ π’‘π’“π’Šπ’›π’†π’” π’˜π’Šπ’π’ 𝒃𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒅 𝒔𝒐𝒐𝒏!

π’π”ππŒπˆπ’π’πˆπŽπ π‚π€π“π„π†πŽπ‘πˆπ„π’
𝐸𝐼𝐺𝐻𝑇 𝐢𝑂𝑀𝑃𝐸𝑇𝐼𝑇𝐼𝑉𝐸 𝐢𝐴𝑇𝐸𝐺𝑂𝑅𝐼𝐸𝑆:

β–  ANIMATED SHORTS (PROFESSIONALS)
β–  ANIMATED SHORTS (FILM STUDENTS)
β–  LIVE ACTION SHORTS (PROFESSIONALS)
β–  LIVE ACTION SHORTS (FILM STUDENTS)
β–  DOCUMENTARIES (PROFESSIONALS)
β–  DOCUMENTARIES (FILM STUDENTS)
β–  ANIMATED SHORTS FOR KIDS (ages 3-10, without dialogues)
β–  STUDENTS FROM APULIA (exclusive to students enrolled in schools and universities in Apulia, Italy - key roles such as director and screenwriter must be held by students)

𝑂𝑁𝐸 𝑁𝑂𝑁-𝐢𝑂𝑀𝑃𝐸𝑇𝐼𝑇𝐼𝑉𝐸 πΆπ΄π‘‡πΈπΊπ‘‚π‘…π‘Œ:

β–  AI - NON COMPETITIVE SCREENING (AI-generated short films for a special screening preceding the festival opening)

Rules & Terms

𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐑𝐞 𝐟𝐨π₯π₯𝐨𝐰𝐒𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐨𝐫𝐒𝐞𝐬:
ANIMATED SHORTS (PROFESSIONALS and FILM STUDENTS)
LIVE ACTION SHORTS (PROFESSIONALS and FILM STUDENTS)
DOCUMENTARIES (PROFESSIONALS and FILM STUDENTS)
ANIMATED SHORTS FOR KIDS (ages 3-10, without dialogues)
AI - NON COMPETITIVE SCREENING

● Production date: after January 1st, 2025
● Maximum length: 20 minutes (including opening and end credits)

𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐑𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐨𝐫𝐲:
STUDENTS FROM APULIA

● Production date: after January 1st, 2024
● Maximum length: 20 minutes (including opening and end credits)

𝐆𝐄𝐍𝐄𝐑𝐀𝐋 π‘π„ππ”πˆπ‘π„πŒπ„ππ“π’:
● Anyone can submit
● Multiple submissions allowed (separate entry form and fee for each)
● Films must be original works
● Submitters must hold full rights to the film and all its components
● Any filmmaking technique is accepted
● Films may address any subject, provided they do not include:
hate speech or incitement to violence, discriminatory or unlawful content, explicit sexual content involving minors. The festival reserves full curatorial discretion in the selection of works.
● π‘Ίπ’–π’ƒπ’•π’Šπ’•π’π’†π’” π’Šπ’ π‘¬π’π’ˆπ’π’Šπ’”π’‰ 𝒐𝒓 π‘°π’•π’‚π’π’Šπ’‚π’ 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝑹𝑬𝑸𝑼𝑰𝑹𝑬𝑫 (must NOT be hardcoded; .srt files preferred)

π…π„π’π“πˆπ•π€π‹ π’π‚π‘π„π„ππˆππ†π’ 𝐀𝐍𝐃 π‘πˆπ†π‡π“π’ 𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐃
By submitting a film, the applicant grants Cortocircuiti Short Film Festival a non-exclusive, royalty-free license to:
● publicly screen the film during the festival,
● use stills, trailers, posters, and excerpts (up to 60 seconds) for promotional and archival purposes related to the festival.

Any additional non-commercial screenings after the festival will be subject to prior authorization by the rights holders.

π€πˆ – 𝐍𝐎𝐍-π‚πŽπŒππ„π“πˆπ“πˆπ•π„ π’π‚π‘π„π„ππˆππ† (π€πƒπƒπˆπ“πˆπŽππ€π‹ 𝐑𝐔𝐋𝐄𝐒)
Films submitted to the AI category must:
● clearly disclose the use of artificial intelligence tools (software and level of use);
● guarantee that no AI-generated content unlawfully reproduces or imitates identifiable individuals without consent;
● ensure that all voices, likenesses, music, and datasets used comply with applicable rights and regulations.

Deepfake or voice-cloning content involving real persons without explicit authorization is not permitted.

π’π”ππŒπˆπ’π’πˆπŽπ 𝐅𝐄𝐄𝐒
The following categories require a non-refundable submission fee paid directly on FilmFreeway (covers organization and platform costs):

● ANIMATED SHORTS (PROFESSIONALS and FILM STUDENTS)
● LIVE ACTION SHORTS (PROFESSIONALS and FILM STUDENTS)
● DOCUMENTARIES (PROFESSIONALS and FILM STUDENTS)
● ANIMATED SHORTS FOR KIDS (ages 3-10, without dialogues)
● AI - NON COMPETITIVE SCREENING

The category STUDENTS FROM APULIA is 𝐅𝐑𝐄𝐄. Proof of enrollment in a school or university in Apulia must be emailed to cortocircuiti.festival@gmail.com

π’π„π‹π„π‚π“πˆπŽπ & π’π‚π‘π„π„ππˆππ† ππ‘πŽπ‚π„π’π’
● Pre-selection by members of LBM Group, La Scatola Blu, Armata Brancaleone and On Docks;
● Notification of selected films: by June 20th, 2026;
● Public screenings: end of July 2026 at ExpostModerno, Bari (exact date TBA);
● After the screenings, a jury of experts will declare the winners of each category;
● Special mentions awarded by the organizing associations and the audience;
● Selected filmmakers may be contacted for additional non-commercial screenings after the festival.

π’π”ππŒπˆπ’π’πˆπŽπ πƒπ„π€πƒπ‹πˆππ„: πŒπ€π˜ πŸ‘πŸπ¬π­, πŸπŸŽπŸπŸ”
For questions or additional information:
cortocircuiti.festival@gmail.com
14 Reviews
Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Gisela Chicolino

    A festival like this is really a necessary one. Please keep working on creating this exquisite programming for the audience. Thank you for selecting our Latin American film! @films.to.festivals

    October 2025
    Helpful
  • MADAKTO PICTURES

    On behalf of Madakto Pictures, we are honored to be a part of this prestigious film festival. It is truly inspiring to see so much talent and creativity gathered in one place. Thank you to the organizers and everyone involved for providing such a wonderful platform to share our work and connect with fellow filmmakers. We wish all participants the best and look forward to celebrating the art of cinema together.

    August 2025
    Helpful
  • Carolina Cruz

    Unfortunately I couldn't attend, I would have liked to have had the opportunity to be there, Thank you for the award

    August 2025
    Helpful
  • Allegorie film

    Thank you for selecting Lovers' Story: fragment(s) and for awarding it. A wonderful festival.❀️

    August 2025
    Helpful
  • Lucia Rita Di Bari

    Belle proiezioni. Staff accogliente. Service da migliorare.

    July 2025
    Helpful