Accepting short films, music videos, animations and documentaries in any genre.
THE FESTIVAL
Exit 6 Film Festival is a week-long celebration of short films, showcasing films and filmmakers online before culminating in a one-day physical event taking place at multiple venues in the heart of Basingstoke, UK.
Now a staple on the UK short film festival circuit, Exit 6 was created by filmmakers, for filmmakers, that in 2021 will be celebrating it's 6th edition.
As filmmakers ourselves, we know how important it is to share your work with new audiences, and to have the opportunity to share insights into how that work was brought to life. That's why we invite representatives of each selected film to take part in Q&A's online, and in person with those who are able to join us on the physical festival day.
Across the festival week, we will have a range special industry guests giving talks on different aspects of filmmaking, from funding, pre-production, post-production and beyond. We will also host online and in-person networking events, making sure every filmmaker selected for Exit 6 has the chance to meet with their peers and feel part of the festival even if they're unable to attend in person.
We keep submission and ticket fees as low as possible because we understand raising the money to make your film 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 will be selected by our special guest judges for each category, who in recent years have included Burn Gorman (Pacific Rim, Torchwood), Jeffrey Ford (Avengers: Endgame), Nanu Segal (The Levelling), Shelley Conn (Liar) and Angela Workman (The Zookeeper's Wife).
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.
AFTERPARTY
After watching some wonderful work (or sweating over what audiences may have thought of yours) it’s time to let your hair down. As well as hosting some fun online party sessions during the week, we especially look forward to welcoming all festival attendees able to join us for our legendary afterparty and celebrating with them throughout the night.
Best Film
Best Cinematography
Best Performance
Best Editing
Best Screenplay
Audience Choice
2020 Best Film winning co-director Steven Chatterton (Adnan):
"Exit 6 Film Festival sets a high bar for how welcoming it is to filmmakers and also for the overall content that is provided. Every single person in the Exit 6 team was completely standout in just how lovely and friendly they were and I left this virtual festival feeling like I’d made some new friends. In terms of content, every day provided something useful via masterclasses and industry talks. The calibre of films is very high and the select number of 45 makes the festival feel very accessible. This comparatively smaller number also makes you feel very special for being chosen in the first place. To have been selected for the Judges 6 put us in fine company, the other 5 films were outstanding. To have won best film was just amazing! Exit 6 is a GREAT festival."
2019 Best Film winning director Zoe Dobson (The Cunning Man):
"This incredibly friendly and professional run festival is a real gem, that we were chuffed to be part of. The standard of films was truly impressive. Huge congratulations to the selection team, every film I watched in the festival was superbly crafted and executed. It’s a truly inclusive festival with a great atmosphere. The Awards night party was a perfect opportunity to meet the both the audience and fellow filmmakers. Whether you are a film maker or film buff, I highly recommend Exit 6, it’s one of the best around and may it go from strength to strength."
2018 Best Film winning director Christopher Haydon (In Wonderland):
"We had such a great time at Exit 6. It was thrilling to see our film in such a strong line up, and winning the Best Film award judged by Burn Gorman was a huge vote of confidence in our work."
2017 Best Film winning director Liam Harris (Perched):
"Exit 6 was a really wonderful day for us. There was a great vibe about the festival coming from both the Exit 6 team and also the attendees. We were extremely fortunate to come away with the 'Best Film' award which was truly humbling, especially as we were screening alongside some extremely professional filmmakers and talented visual artists, all of which you will certainly be hearing from again in the future!"
