We are proud to celebrate the 21edition of the Early Bird International Student Film Festival, the biggest Bulgarian forum dedicated to support the creation of student short films. For two decades, the Festival has remained steadfast in its mission to empower emerging filmmakers, providing them with platform to showcase their work and connect with audiences around the world.

Awards & Prizes

Grand Prize Early Bird - original sculpture, diploma and financing of the next film project – 1000$.
Best Bulgarian film - original sculpture, diploma and financing of the next film project - 500$.
Best Foreign film - diploma and financing of the next film project - 500$.
President of the Jury Award - diploma and financing of the next film project – 300$.
Best Fiction - diploma and financing of the next film project – 300$.
Best Animation - diploma and financing of the next film project – 300$.
Best Documentary -diploma and financing of the next film project – 300$.
Best Directing - diploma and financing of the next film project – 300$.
Best Screenplay - diploma and financing of the next film project – 300$.
Best Cinematography - diploma and financing of the next film project – 300$.
Best Editing - diploma and financing of the next film project – 300$.
SEECS Award - diploma and financing of the next film project – 300$.
Special Mention - diploma

Rules & Terms

The competition is open to international and Bulgarian student short films that meet the following criteria:

The film should be in one of the categories - fiction, animation or documentary.

Тhe director must be a student at the time of the filming. A document – stamped and signed by the University, showing the student status of the applicant, is required.

The duration of each film must not surpass 30 minutes.

The Festival accepts HD digital screening copies with English subtitles (if the dialog is not in English). The file formats are AVI - Microsoft DV codec, MOV - Apple QuickTime ProRes 422 codec, MPEG-4 - H.264 video codec.

For preliminary selection are admitted films completed after January 01, 2024.

Films that have been submitted to Early Bird ISFF in previous year are not eligible for entry again.

One director can participate with two films, if they are in two different categories and are submitted with separate entry forms.

One film is allowed to take part under one single category. Once the registration is done, no changes to the category of the film can be done.

There is no entry fee.
36 Reviews
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  • Yonatan Shabat

    It was truly an honor to screen my film at your festival alongside so many talented creators! What an incredible experience at this amazing festival. Thank you! I hope to see you again in the coming years with new projects! :)

    November 2025
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  • Adrián Sánchez

    Amazing experience, great to watch so much and get inspired by other peers, will be repeating next year for sure!

    November 2025
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    Response from festival:

    Thank you, Adrian — your presence, along with Arturo’s, made the festival even richer. Our goal is to provide a platform for passionate filmmakers like you, and we’re so glad you were part of it! Hope to welcome you back at future editions.

  • Andreea Stefanescu

    Amazing experience , thank you for having my film screened here in Sofia! And amazing film selection, I had the chance to meet great people!

    November 2025
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    Response from festival:

    Thank you for your kind words, Andreea — they truly mean a lot. Seeing young filmmakers support one another, exchange experiences, and build lasting connections is exactly why we do what we do. Thank you for being part of this year’s edition — we hope to see you again at future Early Birds!

  • 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.

    December 2024
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  • Stephanie Guest

    It was wonderful to be part of such a great festival and be awarded for best cinematography with our film "Looking Up"! We were sad we could not attend but greatly appreciate all the communications about the event.

    November 2024
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