THE FESTIVAL

Exit 6 Film Festival is an international, BIFA-qualifying celebration of short film, showcasing films and filmmakers at a two-day festival in the heart of Basingstoke, UK.

Our volunteer-led event is now a staple on the UK short film festival circuit and a mainstay on FilmFreeway's Top 100 Best Reviewed Festivals list, created by filmmakers, for filmmakers. In 2026 we will be celebrating our 11th edition with a two-day event featuring industry talks as well as screenings.

Our Industry Day boasts a full programme of specially curated industry panels and talks, aimed at offering insight and advice to filmmakers with what comes next after short film. Previous talks have covered topics such as the commissioning and development process with development execs and producers, BFI Early Development Fund discussion, festival strategy with Festival Formula, life beyond festivals with Directors Notes, and financials, legalities, and insurance on independent feature films with Triple Exposure.

Our Screening Day sees our curated programme of shorts play at two screens in VUE. As well as sharing your work with new audiences, we know the value of having a platform to share insights into how it was made. That's why we invite representatives of each selected film to take part in both pre-recorded online Q&As, as well as live Q&A's for those able to join us on the festival day - right after your end credits roll!

We also invite all selected filmmakers and alumni to join us for our Pre Festival Bash in London a couple of weeks before the festival, as a chance to get together and meet ahead of the main event in Basingstoke.

At Exit 6 we keep our submission and ticket fees as low as possible. We understand that raising the money to both make your film and then take it on a festival run is hard enough, and we want you to enjoy your achievement with us!

RECOGNITION & REWARD

The Exit 6 judging panel will decide the Official Selection, plus the nominations for each of our special award categories, including those that will form the much-coveted JUDGE'S 6 - the 6 films in contention to win Best Film.

Nominees for our special award categories - Best Cinematography, Best Screenplay, Best Performance and Best Editing - will be chosen from the entire Official Selection, and notified as such during the festival week.

The winners are selected by our special guest judges for each category, who in recent years have included Dean Cundey (The Thing), James Callis (Battlestar Galactica), Burn Gorman (Pacific Rim), Jeffrey Ford (Avengers: Endgame), Nanu Segal (Emma), Benedict Spence (The End of the F***ing World), Shelley Conn (Good Omens), Angela Workman (The Zookeeper's Wife), David Rom (Ted Lasso), Mark Towns (Love Lies Bleeding), Ben Willbond (Ghosts), and Jennifer Sheridan (Extraordinary).

In addition, our 6th award of the festival is the Audience Choice award, for which all of the films in the festival programme can be voted for by ballot across the week. All winners will be announced during our live awards ceremony.

AWARDS PARTY

After a day watching some wonderful work, it’s time to let your hair down. We especially look forward to welcoming all festival attendees to our legendary awards party where all awards will be announced/presented, celebrations continue throughout the night.

CHARITY PARTNER

Exit 6 Film Festival is proud to partner with local charity St. Michael's Hospice, which means a donation from every single film submitted is sent directly to this worthy cause - so by supporting us, you're also supporting them.

Find out more about their important work at www.stmichaelshospice.org.uk.

Awards & Prizes

Best Film
Best Cinematography
Best Performance
Best Editing
Best Screenplay
Audience Choice

Rules & Terms

Completion Date
* Each Film must have been completed on or after 1st October 2024.

Running Time
* The maximum running time including credits is 20 minutes.

Premiere Status
* We do not require Premiere status, but please let us know if we are the first to show your film. Films available online are admissible.

Waivers
* We do not offer waiver codes (although there are a limited number of waiver codes for Iranian films using the code: E6IRan26

Language
*If the film is not in English, subtitles in English must be embedded onscreen. If this is not provided at time of submission, we will disqualify the entry.

Copyright
* By entering the EXIT 6 FILM FESTIVAL you are confirming you are the owner of the submitted project and hold copyright to all material used in the film.

Genre
* We accept films of any genre.

Promotional
* You agree to give the EXIT 6 FILM FESTIVAL permission to link/display your project's FB/Twitter page/Poster/Stills on all of the EXIT 6 FILM FESTIVAL's various social media outlets.

Submission
* Submissions will be accepted via FilmFreeway only. Entry Fees are non-refundable.

Entry
* We do not limit the number of films you can enter.

Country of Origin
* Exit 6 is an International Festival, we will accept films from anywhere in the world.

Media
* We only accept digital submissions, do not send us any DVDs or Blu-Rays.

You
* Filmmakers of any age, experience, gender, race, religion or sexual orientation are welcome to submit.

FESTIVAL RULES

* All entries will be watched by AT LEAST three members of the Exit 6 judging panel. The panel will select the final festival programme and also the top 6 films (Judges 6), from which the Best Film will be chosen by our independent guest judge(s). The selection panel will also select 6 nominees for the Best Cinematography, Best Performance, Best Screenplay and Best Editing awards, the winner of each will be chosen by a guest judge.

* The Audience Choice Award will be voted for throughout the day and the winner announced at the Afterparty.

* If your film is selected for the programme, a representative of the film will be invited to take part in a Q&A on stage immediately after your film has screened.

*Selected films will be sent official selection laurels. Judges 6 films will receive special laurels.

We reserve the right to change the festival to a virtual online festival if for reasons of public health it is not possible to host the event in a physical venue.
98 Reviews
Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Ben Hyland

    What can say about Exit 6? It’s such a great festival. I’ve attended 6 times which is the same number of times I’ve been to Basingstoke. Brilliantly curated films. Q&As after every film (other fests take note) and run by some absolute legends. It’s a really special festival.

    January 2026
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  • Aksil Short Film

    Such a fantastic festival! They curate incredible programmes, communicate brilliantly, and foster one of the best communities and atmospheres we’ve experienced at any event. We owe the privilege of being BIFA-longlisted to festivals like this.

    October 2025
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  • Tom turner

    A brilliant festival. We had a great experience screening our film. Would definitely recommend submitting.

    October 2025
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  • Steven Boyle

    Exit 6 have taken all the best bits of short film festivals and merged them into one. Every part of the festival was very carefully considered, from the very warm welcome, the excellent programming and very useful lanyards! The welcome drinks in London gave us the opportunity to meet some fellow filmmakers before the festival so that when we headed to Basingstoke we saw some familiar faces.

    The Industry Day was a series of talks from some great guest speakers and the screenings were all scheduled for day two at the VUE cinema across two screens. Each block was carefully curated and the standard of short films was very high, particularly in the Judges 6 category. A lovely touch from the Exit 6 team was that after each film was screened it was immediately followed by a Q&A with the filmmakers. This gave everyone a chance to process and appreciate each short for its own merit.

    Although Basingstoke itself is easy to navigate around, the team worked hard to create a central hub by keeping events, screenings, and social events in close proximity to each other. Some festivals can be soulless, impersonal experiences but Exit 6 felt like a close-knit family gathering - they really care and work extremely hard to look after the filmmakers. All in all, this is an excellent film festival and one of our top festival experiences. Thank you for having us Exit 6. x

    September 2025
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  • Daniel England

    Exit 6 was a fantastic festival.
    The entire team are so welcoming and had a real passion for not only our film but all the films being shown. Very obviously curated by people who love what they do.

    Really clear communication before and during that meant during the day we could relax, enjoy the films, be part of a lively Q&A and meet fellow film makers in a low pressure setting.
    Plus the closing awards party is worth coming down for itself! Thanks everyone!

    September 2025
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