1. Subject
The Municipality of Genoa encourages the interest of the city and the citizens towards dance, in its multiple expressions, and with renewed attention to creativity, to the languages, and to the experimentations proper of the contemporary world.
FuoriFormato – International Festival of contemporary dance and video dance is an international festival dedicated to Contemporary Dance shows, performances, and screen dance films. It is organized by Comune di Genova (Genoa Municipality), curated by Compagnia Teatro Akropolis, Associazione culturale RETE Danzacontempoligure and Associazione culturale Augenblick, in collaboration with Società per Cornigliano Spa. The festival will take place in Genoa will take place from Tuesday the 30th of June to Friday the 3rd of July 2026, in various locations of the city: the city center, Palazzo Ducale foundation, Villa Durazzo Bombrini and the cinemas of Circuito Cinema Genova.
FuoriFormato hosts two different sections: live performance and video dance (Stories We Dance). If you’re looking for the live performances application, click here.
2. Mission
The goal of this notice is to select meaningful dance films to be screened during Stories We Dance, the video dance section of FuoriFormato 2026. Stories We Dance is curated by Augenblick Associazione culturale and focuses on the deep connection and wide interplay between dance, audiovisual languages, and dramaturgy. Stories We Dance promotes dance films that develop a movement-based storytelling, experimentation, and research toward new technologies, without any constraints on genre or format.
The selected films will be screened in Genoa at Villa Durazzo Bombrini and in a cinema hall of the Circuito Cinema Genova (yet to be definfed).
3. Eligible Participants
Stories We Dance accepts the submission of short films under 25 min. (opening titles and final credits included), produced worldwide after the 1st of January 2025, without any theme limitation.
4. Conditions of Participation
The sections available for submission are three:
-Stories We Dance - International Videodance: for works produced worldwide;
-Stories We Dance - International Videodance Under 35: for works produced by worldwide by filmmakers under the age of 35;
-Stories We Dance - Laboratorio Italia: For works produced or co-produced in Italy, at least 30% of the selected films will be by directors under 35.
The selection committee reserves the right to promote the most outstanding Italian works to the International section.
Submission is entirely free and must be completed via FilmFreeway (https://filmfreeway.com/FuoriFormatoStoriesWeDance) no later than 11:59 PM (Italian time) on May 18th, 2026.
When submitting, ensure that you provide the film link and indicate the password, if required.
films with dialogues in languages other than Italian or English must include Italian or English subtitles.
Each director (individual or collective) may submit a maximum of two works.
A film implies that the filmmaker holds all necessary rights for its screening (conceptual, choreography, screenplay, music, image rights, and any other proprietary elements contained in the work).
The Municipality of Genoa and the other organizing entities of FuoriFormato assume no responsibility for false or inaccurate declarations.
By submitting their film, selected filmmakers authorize:
-The inclusion of their film in the archives of the Municipality of Genoa, FuoriFormato, and the Cultural Association Augenblick;
-single screening of their film in Genoa during FuoriFormato (June 30 - July 3, 2026);
-that an extract of their work (up to a maximum of 30 seconds) may be used by Comune di Genova and Associazione culturale Augenblick with the aim of promoting FuoriFormato, in any context and language, by traditional and new media platforms, prior to and following the closing night of the festival. Please note that the video or photographic materials provided will be subject to current regulations on data processing and privacy.
Applicants will receive a notification confirming the receipt of their submission. If not, or in case of any technical issues, they can contact storieswedance@gmail.com
5. Grounds for Exclusion
No films that had been sent to or selected in the previous editions of FuoriFormato will be accepted.
Stories We Dance will not accept recorded live performances and music video clips.
6. Selection procedures
The selection process will be made by Associazione culturale Augenblick which will analyze every work using the following criteria:
- choreographic research;
- narrative creativity;
- audiovisual quality.
7. Official Selection
Things to do :
Finalists will be notified privately via the FilmFreeway platform and email. They must send the following files and links to storieswedance@gmail.com by May 31st, 2026:
- a DCP of the film (if available), in a downloadable version;
- a .mov or .mp4 file of the film, with a resolution of 2840x2160 or 1920x1080, H.264 codec, and a maximum file size of 10 GB;
- two stills from the film in .jpg format with a resolution of 300 dpi;
- a link to the film's trailer
- for finalist films not in Italian, a complete English dialogue list must be submitted in .srt or .ass format.
- for directors under 35, a copy of their ID to verify their birth year.
8. Awards
The public announcement of the finalists will be made on the FuoriFormato website (https://www.fuoriformatofestival.it) and the Municipality of Genoa website on June 3rd, 2026.
The finalist films will be presented to a Jury composed of dance experts, performers, filmmakers, audiovisual artists, critics, writers, and communication professionals. The Jury will award a prize for the best Stories We Dance film (€500), a prize for the best Stories We Dance Under 35 film (€300) and the Futura Award to the best film of Laboratorio Italia (€250) at the conclusion of the festival, at its sole discretion. Additional recognitions and special mentions may be awarded.
The names of the Jury members will be revealed after the submission deadline. During the screening nights, the audience will be invited to vote for the winner of the Audience Award.
9. Clarification
The Municipality of Genoa and the curators reserve the right to suspend, interrupt, modify, or annul this procedure, without applicants having any right to claim compensation or indemnity from the Municipality or other organizers. Submitting an application does not grant the right to participation. False statements, the creation and/or use of falsified documents, or the presentation of a document containing data that is no longer accurate will result in the forfeiture of any benefits granted, as well as the application of the penalties provided for under Article 76 of Presidential Decree No. 445/2000.
The festival organizers, in agreement with each other, also reserve the right to suspend, interrupt, postpone, cancel, or reschedule the festival, as well as to redefine, suspend, or cancel the prizes mentioned above due to causes beyond their control, without applicants having any right to claim compensation or indemnity from the Municipality or other organizers.
10. Personal Data
Pursuant to Article 13 of EU Regulation No. 2016/679, you are hereby informed that personal data, including those relating to criminal convictions or offences, are processed by the Municipality of Genoa, acting as Data Controller, for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest, in particular for the management and execution of the procedure for granting contributions.
The processing of data provided directly by the data subjects or otherwise acquired for the above-mentioned purposes is carried out at the Municipality of Genoa, including through the use of computerized procedures, by authorized persons bound by confidentiality. The provision of data is mandatory, and refusal to provide such data will result in the impossibility of proceeding with the evaluation of the application submitted under this public notice, as well as with the related and consequent administrative procedures.
The data will be retained for the time necessary to complete the administrative procedure and, in any case, for the period required by the applicable regulations on the retention of administrative acts and documents.
Data subjects may exercise the rights provided for in Article 15 and following of EU Regulation 2016/679, and in particular the right to access their personal data, to request rectification or restriction of processing, updating where incomplete or inaccurate, and erasure where the conditions are met, as well as the right to object to their processing.
The Data Protection Officer of the Municipality of Genoa can be contacted at the following addresses:
e-mail: rpd@comune.genova.it
certified email (PEC): dpo.comge@postecert.it
For additional info on Stories We Dance – video dance:
E-mail: storieswedance@gmail.com
FuoriFormato: https://www.fuoriformatofestival.it/
