Drim Short Film Festival was founded in 2017 in Struga, on the shore of the Ohrid Lake, and is one of the few festivals in North Macedonia that treats specifically the short film form. In addition, Drim Short aims to promote and affirm young filmmakers from North Macedonia and all over the world through their short achievements that deliver powerful messages. Apart from the film program, we remain committed to the intention of bringing film art to the audience by expanding the program and holding master classes and workshops by renowned filmmakers from all around the globe. Beside the film program, we are hosting the exceptional electronic parties, which is also one of the festival's most authentic landmarks.

Awards & Prizes

Drim Short Film Festival gives five awards to the films in four competitive programs:

-Trophy 'The Muse' for best short film in the International Competitive program
-Trophy 'The Muse' for best short film in the Regional Competitive program
-Trophy 'The Muse' for best short film in the Student Competitive program
-Trophy 'The Muse' for best short film in the 'Dealing with the past' Competitive program
-Trophy 'The Muse' for the audience award for the best short film in the whole competitive program

The trophy is an artisan-made statue by a the local artist Milko Nestoroski. Each Muse is different and unique piece of art. In addition all the winners get a distribution award through the VOD platform Cinesquare.

Rules & Terms

GENERAL RULES AND TERMS FOR 2024 SUBMISSION

The following is an explanation of the Rules and Terms governing film submissions to the 2025 Drim Short Film Festival. Compliance with these Rules and Guidelines is necessary in order to participate in the Film Festival. Submission of a film implies unconditional acceptance of the Rules & Guidelines, therefore, please carefully read through the Rules prior to submitting your film. If you have any questions, please contact the team of Drim Short Film Festival : drimshort@gmail.com.

1. Drim Short Film Festival accepts submissions for films in the following categories:

Shorts Films under 45 minutes: Fiction, Documentary, Animated, Hybrid, Experimental, National, Regional, International, Student.

2. The Entrant/s submitting the film must hold all legal rights for the submission, as well as all necessary clearances for public exhibition.
3. The Filmmaker/s retain/s all submission and intellectual property rights.
4. Drim Short doesn't require premieres.
5. Films may be submitted electronically via FilmFreeway or the films can be invited by the main festival selector.
6. The Filmmaker/s is/are responsible for making sure all submission materials are submitted by the submission deadline indicated. If your film does not arrive or is not uploaded by the deadline for which you have registered, you may be required to pay the higher submission fee or withdrawn.
7. The following concerns submission deadlines and submission fees. Note, the deadlines are not the postmark dates, but the dates by which the submission must be registered with FilmFreeway. Each submission must be accompanied by the appropriate fee. Submission fees are EUROS per submission and are non-refundable. Please submit your film via the online submission platform, FilmFreeway. We do not accept films other than via this platform.
7.1 Please note that the festival doesn't pay screening fees to the films in the competitive programs.
8. Subtitles must be in English.
9. Screening files should be sent in H264 format or ProRes
10. Please test your media prior to submission to make sure they run properly and are not damaged. Please keep screener links and passwords up-to-date and notify the DSFF office promptly with any changes.
11. Filmmakers are allowed to submit more than one film for the Festival provided that each film is submitted separately and meet DSFF guidelines.
12. Filmmakers are allowed to re-submit a film that was previously submitted provided significant changes were made and all eligibility requirements are met. When re-submitting the film, include a brief letter detailing the changes made.
13. Entrants may contact the DSFF to find out if the Festival received the submission: drimshort@gmail.com. Filmmakers submitting through FilmFreeway can check their status through the website.
14. All personal contact information is to remain confidential and not to be shared with any third parties.
15. DSFF reserves the right to use images from films selected in the Festival for marketing purposes.
17. All decisions regarding award winners are considered final and incontestable.
18. All films submitted for the competition program must have been completed between January 2024 and June 2025.
19. Applicants acknowledge that DSFF reserves the right to change the nature of screenings and events due to circumstances related to public health and welfare. In such cases, no submission refunds shall be issued.