We're so excited to welcome you to our first Dublin Independent Film Festival, in the home of Guinness and Irish cinema! An event organized for both independent filmmakers and cinema-goers who love to discover niche films and artists.

The festival’s judges and programmers are coming from different film backgrounds, and are eager to put together an exciting and truly high-quality program of indie films. Dublin Independent Film Festival’s aim is to discover new talent, films and filmmakers with potential, and to recognize the collaborative work this artform is funded on.

The program will focus on independent films of different genres, with no limitations on length, style or country of origin. The festival is open to everyone regardless of budget and experience. Submit your films if you would like to be screened in front of the audience of Lighthouse Cinema Dublin!

We are now open for submissions for our 2019 event! :-)

Awards & Prizes

The festival team will create an Official Selection of all the nominated films for each category. These projects will have a chance to win one of the many awards announced at the festival, and some will be screened in front of a live audience at the Lighthouse Cinema in Dublin. There will be laurels available for the nominated films and certificates for the winners.

The screenings will take place throughout the 1st of November 2018 followed by an awards ceremony and networking event.

The official selection will be published on the 1st of October and the full Festival Program will be released on the of 5th October 2018.

Rules & Terms

- All films must be submitted in English or with English subtitles.

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

- By submitting to us, you give us the right to screen your film in front of a live audience at the Lighthouse Cinema, Dublin.

- Official Selection: All films nominated for an award.
Screening Selection: Films selected for screening will be notified via email.
Award Winners: Chosen from the Official Selection.

- We may promote 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 our online platforms.

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

- 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.

- 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.