Luminous Frames is an international film and photography festival that is based in Denmark and held annually in one of the three countries of Armenia, Denmark, and Georgia.

After two years of holding the festival with three successful seasons in Denmark, In line with its primary goal of supporting short films around the world by creating more physical screening opportunities, the festival succeeded in expanding the screening of its films in other countries as well.

Armenia and Georgia were home to the fourth and fifth editions of the festival. Now we are proud to announce that the sixth edition of the Luminous Frames Film Festival will be held at NPAK Experimental Arts Center from May 1 to 5, 2024 in Yerevan, Armenia.

Luminous Frames is looking for independent short films in all genres, especially those which have been historically underrepresented. Our priority is not only on Gender and ethnic diversity, human rights, and environmental issues, but also on good ideas and coherent cinematic structure.

Discover our unique and interesting categories: Seasonal Theme, Minority Report (short film review), The Bounty (feature film review), and Memento.

Luminous Frames is one of the few festivals that accepts submissions in each sub-category independently.

We also have a Photography Contest with various categories for passionate and professional photographers, whose work will be judged by an explicit jury panel.

Luminous Frames is a home for independent photographers who are looking for an international platform to showcase their artwork.

Check the Rules & Terms on this page and for more information visit the festival website.

All applicants are eligible to submit their work for multiple categories.

Luminous Frames aims to start its Academy of Education and Film Clubs in Canada, Denmark, Brazil, South Africa, Turkey, Armenia and Georgia.

By attracting university lecturers and creative artists as our professional critics, Luminous Frames intends to establish itself as a reputable web magazine in the field of film and photography reviews.

We have special promotions for our official selections and the winners at the end of each edition.

All officially selected films will have a live screening at the end of each edition.

All accepted entries are promoted through our social media and website.

All the winners will have a Q&A interview session on our website.

All officially selected projects of each edition will receive the Luminous Frames laurel.

All the winners of each edition will receive the Luminous Frames certificate.

All the winners of each edition will receive the Luminous Frames special trophy.

We pay special tribute to our winners in the Luminous Frames, annual winners of the festival may be selected as honorary members of the jury panel for the next edition, and in addition to judging the films, they will receive a festival's special jury badge.

We believe that good films should be watched many times. Therefore, all the winning films in each edition of the festival may be selected for special screening in the following editions as well.

We also have various awards for Photography Contest:

Winners are promoted through our social media and website.
Winners of each genre will be promoted with an introduction post on Luminous Frames social networks.
Winners of each genre will receive the Luminous Frames certificates.
Winners are showcased at the online Winners Gallery.
Winners of each genre will receive a review of their picture which will publish on the Luminous Frames website.
The winners of each edition of the photography contest may be chosen as honorary members of the jury of the next edition of the festival, and in addition to judging the photos, they will receive a festival's special jury badge.

The categories of awards for movies:

Best Narrative Short
Best Documentary Short
Best Animation Short
Best Experimental Short
Best Music Video
Best Director
Best Short Script
Best Actor
Best Actress
Best Supporting Actor
Best Supporting Actress
Best Actor-Under the Age of 16
Best Actress-Under the Age of 16
Best Cinematography
Best Editing
Best Sound Design
Best Original Score
Best Original Song
Best Visual FX
Best Production Design
Best Custom Design
Best Makeup

All submitted films should have English subtitles.
All films must have been produced in or after 2020.
Only in the "Memento" category, you can submit shorts from the year 2000-2019.
All genres are accepted with a maximum length of 40 minutes.
You can submit your short film in the sub-category sections independently.
Filmmakers are responsible for the copyright on their own materials and must have the rights to the material (e.g music) used in the film.
By submitting to Luminous Frames, you give us the right to screen your film in front of a live audience.
By submitting to Luminous Frames, you grant us the right to screen your film at any time in any country and only at the official festival venue. In order to support the filmmakers, we may screen selected films from previous editions of the festival in subsequent editions without the intention of generating revenue for the festival.
Luminous Frames have the right to promote clips from your film on social media, based on the press kits you provide us with and excerpts of the original movie.
Luminous Frames retains the right to change the date and venue of the festival under special circumstances. All filmmakers will be informed about any changes through our online platforms.
Entry fees are non-refundable.
Filmmakers own all the rights to their films.
By submitting your projects to the festival you agree to our terms and conditions and you are giving consent to receiving marketing newsletters and discounts about the festival in the form of emails. We will never sell your information to third parties.
We reserve the right to update our terms and conditions.

PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST:
The Luminous Frames Photography Festival has a particular judging panel, which is completely run by a professional jury with proficiency in each category.
You must choose a category on a submission form from the list below.
Categories:
Abstract & Conceptual Photography, Architectural Photography, Black and White Photography, Commercial Photography, Drone Photography, Fashion Photography, Fine Art Photography, Landscape Photography, Macro Photography, Night Photography, Pet Photography, Photojournalism, Portrait Photography, Sports Photography, Still-Life Photography, Surreal Photography, Street Photography, Underwater Photography, and Wildlife Photography.
The individual photographers retain all copyrights to their creative property.
Image Size: Photos must be in JPEG, RGB file format, maximum 2 MB.
Maximum Dimensions: 1920 pix. Horizontal side and 1080 pix. Vertical side.
File Naming: Files must be renamed to the photo title when submitting an entry.
Photos with any watermark or title on it will not be judged.
Visit the festival's website for more information.

Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Andreas Aicka Thomsen

    It was a pleasure to participate in Luminous Frames festival, all communication was clear and well organised, I shall return.

    September 2023
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    Response from festival:

    Dear Andreas, we are very happy to host your exceptional film Momentum at the festival and we congratulate you on your achievement at the festival!
    We look forward to watching your next films at Luminous Frames.

  • Awesome experience and great communication! A great festival with a great identity. My partner Craig Murray and I feel sincerely honored and grateful for the best experimental short film award our project "Dead Dreams Falling" has been granted with. Definitely looking forward to applying again with a new project in the near future!

    May 2023
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    Response from festival:

    Dear Amine, Dead Dreams Falling is a work that deserves admiration because of the combination of your strong music and director Craig Murray's magnificently experimental approach.
    Congratulations on your achievement at the festival!

  • Boudra Ali

    We are very happy that our film was selected for the competition for the festival. We hope that this edition will be wonderful. Thank you very much to everyone and the jury.

    January 2023
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    Response from festival:

    Thanks Boudra, we look forward to watching your next films.

  • Wheeler Winston Dixon

    Excellent festival - happy to be a part of this.

    January 2023
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    Response from festival:

    Dear Wheeler, we were happy to have your work at the festival, thanks!

  • Vanessa Powers

    This festival not only is host to many incredible films, they also do a wonderful job of communication, promotion, and social media presence. They make you feel like your film is really a part of something special, and if you win an award, you feel like you earned it. Would recommend.

    June 2022
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    Response from festival:

    Dear Vanessa, congratulations on your achievement at the festival! We really enjoyed the atmosphere in your film, and the chemistry of the performances.