Hill Film Festival, established in 2014, mainly promotes Indigenous language films of Bangladesh as well as accepts films in all languages and genres from Bangladesh and foreign countries. In the last 10 years, five editions of the Hill Film Festival was held and this year, in 2024, the 6th edition of the Hill Film Festival is scheduled to take place on Dec 26-28, 2024.

Generally the festival is held in every two years and it is held in Rangamati, Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bangladesh. Following the tradition of the previous editions, a portion of the festival's curated films will be showcased in Dhaka, the capital city of Bangladesh.

The Chittagong Hill Tracts is located in the south-eastern part of Bangladesh, home to more than ten Indigenous communities living for centuries with distinct beliefs, languages, and traditions. Films are being made since the 1990s in the Chittagong Hill Tracts by the language of the hill Indigenous communities but there was no regular platform for the film screening.

Since its inception, Hill Film Festival is serving as one of the biggest public platforms to screen Indigenous films from the Chittagong Hill Tracts as well as other regions of Bangladesh.

Note on defining indigenous peoples: Considering only the people living prior to the colonization or people living from the ‍ancient times to a particular place does not give the full picture of the indigenous identity. If it is the case, then, defining indigenous peoples becomes difficult in spaces, like Asia and Africa, where the population remains the same before and after the colonial intervention as well as where communities/ethnicities have been living in the same space. So, a self-identification approach, based on the specific space, time and context, is kept in first place in place of strict universal definition in considering/defining indigenous identity. However, just to give an idea, generally, the indigenous peoples are identified as, but not limited to, the people who have close attachment to their ancestral land and its natural resources and live in conformity with their traditional social, economic, political and cultural practices and institutions which are sharply distinct from the dominant peoples/communities/ethnicities/groups. Bangladesh Indigenous Peoples Forum (BIPF) has identified/listed more than 50 indigenous communities in Bangladesh. Bangladesh government defines them as tribal, minor race, ethnic sect and communities.

The 6th Hill Film Festival will be organized by the HFF School of Film and Visual Arts.

Awards & Prizes

Best Short Fiction
Best Feature Fiction
Best Short Documentary
Best Feature Documentary
Best Mid-Length ( Documentary & Fiction)
Best Experimental (Any Length)
Best Student Film (any length)
Honorable Mention

Rules & Terms

Rules and Regulation

1. The festival conducts competitive sections through online submission along with some non-competitive sections through curation.
2. We accept submissions in the digital format only. We also screen films in the digital format only. Films of any resolution or aspect ratio in digital format are accepted.
3. Submit your film through HFF’s FilmFreeway portal. However, Bangladeshi filmmakers can also submit their film through a form available in the website www.hff-cht.com.
4. Submitted films must have English subtitles burned on the video.
5. Films completed after October, 2021 are eligible for submission to the 6th Hill Film Festival.
6. Multiple entries are allowed in the same category or different categories. However, a separate application and entry fee must be submitted with each film/different submissions.
7. In case of selection, the submitters must send publicity materials like posters, trailers, photos of the director and producer etc. The festival does not bear travel, accommodation and other fees.
8. The festival may use still photos, trailers, and one-minute clips as publicity materials for the purpose of promotion prior to, during, and following the festival.
9. There will be no refund once the transaction is confirmed. The festival does not give analysis or explanation in case of non-selection of any films.
10. The submitters must have clearance of copyright issues. The festival will not be responsible if any incidents of copyright infringement happen.
11. The festival reserves the right to change the date and screening schedules in case of unavoidable circumstances. It also reserves the right to take any decision upon any given circumstances.

Categories for Film Submission

1. The festival accepts films based on length. These may be fiction or documentary or experimental or any kind of film. It considers films more than 60 minutes as Feature Length Films, films with length between 40-60 minutes as Mid Length Films and films less than 40 minutes as Short Length Films, irrespective of genre, style and format. Vlogging (unpublished), Essay film, Diary film, experimental film can be submitted alongside regular documentary and fiction films. Facebook and Youtube based content, must be unpublished, having a well storytelling element can also be submitted. Students' films made as part of coursework in a university or film school or any film made by a student, can also be submitted. All of the submitted films will be considered in different award categories.

2. Indigenous Short Length Film (Bangladesh): All Indigenous language short length films directed or produced by indigenous or non-indigenous filmmakers of Bangladesh, irrespective of genre and format, are accepted in this category.

3. Indigenous Mid Length Film (Bangladesh): All Indigenous language mid-length films directed or produced by indigenous or non-indigenous filmmakers of Bangladesh, irrespective of genre and format, are accepted in this category.

4.Indigenous Feature Length Film (Bangladesh): All Indigenous language feature length films directed or produced by indigenous or non-indigenous filmmakers of Bangladesh, irrespective of genre and format, are accepted in this category.

5.Indigenous Short Length Film (International): International Indigenous language short length films, irrespective of genre and format, will be accepted in this category.

6.Indigenous Mid-length Film (International): International Indigenous language mid-length films, irrespective of genre and format, will be accepted in this category.

7.Indigenous Feature Length Film (International): International Indigenous language feature length films, irrespective of genre and format, will be accepted in this category.

8.Short Length Film (Bangladesh): Bangladeshi short length films, irrespective of genre and format, will be accepted in this category. Any short length films directed or produced by indigenous filmmakers, but not in indigenous language of Bangladesh, are also accepted in this category.

9.Mid Length Film (Bangladesh): Bangladeshi mid-length films, irrespective of genre and format, will be accepted in this category. Any mid length films directed or produced by indigenous filmmakers, but not in indigenous language of Bangladesh, are also accepted in this category.

10.Feature Length Film (Bangladesh): Bangladeshi feature length film, irrespective of genre and format, will be accepted in this category. Any feature length films directed or produced by indigenous filmmakers, but not in indigenous language of Bangladesh, are also accepted in this category.

11.Short Length Film (International): International short length films, irrespective of genre and format, will be accepted in this category.

12.Mid Length Film (International): International mid-length films, irrespective of genre and format, will be accepted in this category.

13.Feature Length Film (International): International feature length film, irrespective of genre and format, will be accepted in this category.

14.Student Category (Bangladesh): Any film directed or produced by any student of Bangladesh will be accepted in this category.