📢 NOW SUBMITITNG FOR THE 5th EDITION!

The Metropolis Film Festival is a unique international film competition with a public screening in 2026 in the modern European metropolis of Milan.
One of the few festivals to screen short films in theaters!
MFF is a short and feature film awards program dedicated to supporting filmmakers around the world by recognizing excellence in filmmaking.
We know that the film festival is still the perfect environment for the cultural, communal celebration of cinema, and therefore our mission is to support the film industry by showcasing the best short films from all over the world, creating the possibility of networking between authors and producers/distributors.

🎞️ THE LIVE EVENT OF THE FIFTH EDITION WILL BE ON MAY 15 2026 AT THE "ANTEO PALAZZO DEL CINEMA" (MILAN)

🏆🎉 ONE FEE FOR EVERY AWARDS!!

It is only fair that every author should have the satisfaction of seeing his or her efforts paid off, so with the thought of expanding and sharing the short film market as much as possible. A jury of experts made up of international award-winning directors, screenwriters, DoPs and editors, will rate with care every project and will reward the best 8/10 short films of the year that will be screened in the event night, but also several honourable mentions will be awarded to those works that distinguished themselves.

The annual event (in May 2026) includes the showcase of the best of the best short films across all categories, among which will be proclaimed: “Best Short Film”, “Best Director”, “Best Screenplay” and “Best Performance", as well as possible "Special mention".

The overall winner, awarded in the annual event, will receive "The Skyscraper", a trophy of great value, specifically created for the festival by Society Awards, the world's best designer and manufacturer of awards (Golden Globe, Emmy Award, MTV Movie Award...)

All short films selected and winners will receive our laurels. Everything will also be listed on our website and social media.

PLEASE READ CAREFULLY PRIOR TO SUBMITTING OR MAKING ENQUIRIES REGARDING SUBMISSIONS
(il regolamento in italiano segue quello in inglese)

Art. 1 - Filmmakers from around the world are invited to submit films.
Art. 2 - EVERY SHORT FILM MUST INCLUDE ENGLISH SUBTITLES, IT'S MANDATORY. (unless the spoken language is Italian).
Art. 3 - Entry fees are non-refundable.
Art. 4 - We do discount codes for distribution companies. To request, please contact us by e-mail.
Art. 5 - Entries are accepted exclusively through FilmFreeway.
Art. 6 - Films must have been produced after January 1st, 2023.
Art. 7 - We know that the terminology of project-related "status" can be ambiguous, so we want to be clear from the start: FINALIST does NOT mean it will be screened in the gala cerimony, we are using this FilmFreeway automated system to notify you that your work is on the shortlist. if you are among the short films to be screened, you will receive a NOMINEE notification. If you win, you will receive the status of AWARD WINNER at the time when the winners of the current session are announced on the specified dates (event dates). In case of non-winning, there will be no notification.
Art. 8 - Omissis
Art. 9 - All filmmakers will be notified by email.
Art. 10 - All winners, official selections and finalists will be contacted and receive laurels. Everything will also be listed on our social media.
Art. 11 - Short films must not exceed 52 minutes in length, including credits.
Art. 12 - Feature films must be at minimum of 52 minutes in length.
Art. 13 - Submitting in Students category must provide and ID that certifies student status.
Art. 14 - There is no strict rule for premieres. All works are accepted, as long as they are not already available online.
Art. 15 - Metropolis Film Festival will not be held responsible for any unauthorised inclusion of: any copyrighted and/or trademarked content or materials within or relating to the submitted project, including any content or materials that are or may become the basis for any Third Party Claim/s for copyright infringement and/or trademark infringement, trademark dilution or unfair competition. It’s the sole responsibility of the Submitter to secure permission from the rights holders of any and all copyrighted and/or trademarked content or materials included within the film.
Art. 16 - The festival has the rights to utilize excerpts of it (trailer / teaser / poster / stills) for promotional purposes only. We will not in any circumstances make your movie available online.
Art. 17 - They grant full and unrestricted permission for MFF, Inc. to screen the film/video at times of the festivals.
Art. 18 - The director, or producer, accepts and understands that the festival will do everything possible to present the video in the best possible manner but the festival is not responsible for any malfunctions during the presentation of the production at its festival screening.
Art. 19 - By submitting your project you declare that you have read, understood and accepted all rules & terms.
Art. 20 - Main categories:

Best Live Action Short Film
Best Doc Short Film
Best Student Short Film
Micro Short Film (Up to 5 minutes, credits included)
Best Animated Short Film
Best Feature Film
Best Experimental Short Film

Art. 21 - The annual event includes the showcase of the best 8/10 short films, among which will be proclaimed: “Best Short Film”, “Best Director”, “Best Screenplay”, “Best Performance", as well as possible "Special Mention".

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SI PREGA DI LEGGERE ATTENTAMENTE PRIMA DI ISCRIVERSI

Art. 1 - I registi di tutto il mondo sono invitati a presentare le proprie opere.
Art. 2 - Tutte le opere devono contenere sottotitoli in inglese a meno che la lingua parlata non sia l'italiano.
Art. 3 - Le quote di iscrizione non sono rimborsabili.
Art. 4 - Offriamo codici sconto alle societĂ  di distribuzione. Per richiederli si prega di contattare via e-mail.
Art. 5 - Le iscrizioni sono accettate esclusivamente tramite la piattaforma FilmFreeway.
Art. 6 - Le opere devono essere state prodotte dopo il 1 gennaio 2023.
Art. 7 - Sappiamo che la terminologia degli "status" relativi ai progetti può essere ambigua, quindi vogliamo essere chiari fin dall'inizio: FINALIST non significa che verrà proiettato, ma che stiamo usando il sistema automatico di FilmFreeway per notificarvi che il vostro lavoro è nella rosa dei candidati. Se rientrerai tra i corti che verranno proiettati riceverai la notifica NOMINEE. In caso di vittoria, riceverete lo status di AWARD WINNER al momento dell'annuncio dei vincitori della sessione in corso nelle date indicate (event date). In caso di mancata vittoria, non ci sarà alcuna comunicazione.
Art. 8 - Omissis
Art. 9 - Tutti i registi riceveranno una notifica via e-mail.
Art. 10 - Tutti i vincitori, le selezioni ufficiali e i finalisti saranno contattati e riceveranno gli allori promozionali. Tutto sarĂ  anche elencato sui nostri social media.
Art. 11 - I cortometraggi non devono superare i 52 minuti, inclusi i titoli di coda.
Art. 12 - I lungometraggi devono avere una durata minima di 52 minuti.
Art. 13 - Gli studenti devono inviare via e-mail un documento dell’università, Accademia o qualsiasi altra istituzione scolastica.
Art. 14 - Sono accettate tutte le opere, purché non siano già disponibili online. Non ci sono restrizioni di premiere.
Art. 15 - Il Metropolis Film Festival non sarà ritenuto responsabile per eventuali inclusioni non autorizzate di: qualsiasi contenuto o materiale protetto da copyright e / o marchio registrato all'interno o relativo al progetto presentato, incluso qualsiasi contenuto o materiale che sia o possa diventare la base per qualsiasi reclamo / i di terzi per violazione del copyright e / o violazione del marchio, concorrenza sleale. Quindi è esclusiva responsabilità del mittente ottenere l'autorizzazione dai titolari dei diritti di qualsiasi contenuto o materiale protetto da copyright e / o marchio registrato incluso nel film.
Art. 16 - Il festival ha il diritto di utilizzarne alcuni estratti (trailer / teaser / poster / stills) solo a scopo promozionale. In nessun caso l’opera sarà resa disponibile online.
Art. 17 - Si concede l'autorizzazione al MFF di proiettare l’opera durante il festival.
Art. 18 - Il regista, o produttore, accetta e comprende che il festival, in collaborazione con l'Anteo Palazzo del Cinema (MI) farà tutto il possibile per presentare il video nel miglior modo possibile; il festival non è responsabile per eventuali malfunzionamenti durante la presentazione della produzione a la sua proiezione al festival.
Art. 19 - Inviando il progetto dichiari di aver letto, compreso e accettato tutte le regole e i termini qui presentati.
Art. 20 - Categorie principali:

Best Live Action Short Film
Best Doc Short Film
Best Student Short Film
Micro Short Film (fino a 5 minuti, crediti inclusi)
Best Animated Short Film
Best Feature Film
Best Experimental Short Filml
Best Feature Film

Art. 21 - L'evento annuale prevede la proiezione dei migliori cortometraggi tra tutte le categorie, tra questi verranno proclamati i premi: “Miglior Cortometraggio”, “Miglior Regista”, “Miglior Sceneggiatura”, “Miglior Performance”, insieme alle possibili "Menzioni d'onore"

Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • thanks fo the selection. Metropolist film festival

    June 2025
  • Erick Vidal

    Thank you so much! We’re truly grateful to be recognized among such an inspiring group of creators. It means a lot to our entire team to have our work acknowledged on an international stage like yours.

    Thank you for supporting independent artists and celebrating music through film.

    June 2025
  • michele bia

    Da parte di tutto il cast: felici di essere stati selezionati al Vostro festival. E' stato un vero piacere.

    June 2025
  • Thank you for selecting my film for the award for best feature documentary.

    June 2025
  • Marcia kimpton

    scam of a festivl...nothing happened..meaning I emailed them..nothing...there is nothing current on the website..not sure why I gave them my money

    June 2025