IMDB Qualifying Festival

We are open for submissions and can’t wait to see the short films and music videos you’ve created.

Our locations are Cineworld, the largest cinema in Ireland, and The Sugar Club, one of the best venues for events.
Our 14th edition was amazing – most screenings were full, and everyone enjoyed our venues.

We are an independent festival dedicated to bringing together established musicians and filmmakers in a forum to celebrate short films. The Dublin International Short Film and Music Festival celebrates the artistic, educational, and historical importance of short films and music, giving independent artists a platform to share their work and create a dialogue with the community. It also promotes discussion and the study of filmmaking.

DISFMF is the largest independent short film festival in Ireland, and in 2026 we will celebrate our 15th anniversary.

In 2025, we selected 90 shorts from 30 different countries, bringing established, emerging, and award-winning filmmakers to public attention.

DISFMF is run from an independent filmmaker’s point of view.
Directors and producers of each selected film will enjoy free entry to all screenings and events.

We accept all kinds of short films. Examples include: Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Advertising, Animation, Art-house, Black Comedy, Children/Family, Comedy, Documentary, Drama, Experimental, Fantasy, Historical, Melodrama, Crime & Gangster, Biopics, Film-Noir, Road Films, Superheroes, Supernatural, Mockumentary, Independent, Music Video, Musical, Reality, Religious, Romance, Science Fiction, Silent, Sport, Student, Thriller/Suspense, TV and more.

Highlights from previous years.
https://youtu.be/vsgwOY20T2E

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhT9kagewS4

Follow us here...
https://www.facebook.com/DublinInternationalShortFilmAndMusicFestival/
https://www.instagram.com/disfmf/
https://x.com/DISFMF

Awards & Prizes

1. Best International Short Film
2. Best Tv Pilot
3. Best LGBTQ
4. Best Music Video
5. Best Horror
6. Best Comedy
7. Best Animation
8. Best Sci-Fi
9. Best Score/Music
10. Best Student
11. Best Irish Short
12. Best Actor
13. Best Actress
14. Best Documentary
15. Best AI

The actual awards are paintings made by very talented Dublin based artists and the value of each painting is priceless.

Rules & Terms

RULES AND REGULATIONS: You hereby grant the Dublin International Short Film and Music Festival all rights necessary to exhibit and promote the above-referenced film at the 2026 festival if the film is selected.
You represent that such exhibition will not violate or infringe upon any rights whatsoever (including copyright, trademark, musical or contract right) of any person or entity. You further represent that you are authorised to submit the above-referenced film. Additionally, you indemnify the Festival from any and all claims, demands, losses, costs, damages, and attorney's fees arising out of or in connection with third parties in regard to the screening of the film mentioned above.
General Rules 2026
Festival Dates 9th-11th October 2026
Films that have been produced after 1 January 2020
Submission Fees: 25€ Early Bird to 45€ Late Deadline.
All kinds of short films are accepted. Here are some examples: Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Advertising, Animation, Art-house, Black Comedy, Children/Family, Comedy, Documentary, Drama, Experimental, Fantasy, Historical, Melodrama, Crime & Gangster, Biopics, Film-Noir, Road Films, Super-Heroes, Super-Natural, Mockumentary, Independent, Music Video, Musical, Reality, Religious, Romance, Science Fiction, Silent, Sport, Student, Thriller/Suspanse, TV and more.
Projects may originate anywhere in the world, but either the dialogue OR the subtitles must be in English, with burned in subtitles if the film is selected.
No premiere requirements.
All filmmakers pay the same entry fee. No student discounts or waivers. All entry fees are non-refundable.
We will accept films of nearly every type and style, such as music videos, documentaries, horror, comedy, sci-fi, etc , with the following restrictions: No unfinished, in-progress, or rough cut projects will be accepted by our judges.
We will accept ONE VERSION of your entry only. We will NOT accept "updated" cuts such as "new sound mix", "new effects added", etc.
Entries must be received by 3 September 2026
Entries should not exceed 35 minutes in duration excluding titles provided the titles don't last for more than 1 extra minute.
The submitter agree that DISFMF can do up to 2 screening during the festival.
The Festival may use excerpts from competition films (up to 10% of the length of the film, but no more than two minutes) to promote the Festival on television, all social media such facebook, instagram etc, and the Internet.
The number of entries by one author is not limited.
Films that promote violence, race, and religion or gender discrimination or contain explicit drug advertisement are barred from the Festival Programme.
A film that has been applied cannot be withdrawn from the festival, unless the festival management decides otherwise.
Please not that we don’t provide feedback on films that are not selected.
Screening copy: MP4 or MOV in h264 codec.

ENTERING A FILM IN THIS FESTIVAL IMPLIES THE ACCEPTANCE OF THESE REGULATIONS!
273 Reviews
Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Zlata Filipovic

    We have had work of ours screened at DISFMF for two consecutive years and it was a pleasure to deal with Florian and the team. Huge thanks for having our work (and giving us an award!) and we are looking forward to hopefully many more screenings in the future.

    January 2026
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  • Anna Czarska

    Pleased to be part of the DISFMF 2025! We've enjoyed this festival for years now -- always full of interesting new content and great opportunities for socialising. Thanks so for having us and we look forward to the years ahead!

    November 2025
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  • Maxim Bunea-Jivanescu

    It was an amazing experience for the crew and cast to see very diverse films being displayed! Organisation was well planned and we have been very pleased to be nominated!

    November 2025
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  • Dorothy Duffy

    Delighted to have been selected for the Festival. Sadly I couldn't make it but thank you so much to the organisers for including our film in the line up and will hope to make it next year.

    November 2025
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  • Donncha O'Dea

    Thank you so much for having Swept Off His Feet part of your wonderful festival. It was an honour to be programmed among such wonderful work, and a real privialge to be nominated.

    November 2025
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