Retro International Film Festival is an annual international festival in Tirana, Albania, dedicated to cinema, archives, visual memory, and cultural heritage. Through screenings, discussions, exhibitions, and educational events, the festival showcases films that preserve, reinterpret, and celebrate history while fostering dialogue between filmmakers, archivists, researchers, and audiences worldwide.

Awards & Prizes

Retro International Film Festival recognizes outstanding achievements in filmmaking through an international jury composed of filmmakers, scholars, archivists, and cultural professionals.

Awards may include:

Best Retro Feature Film
Best Retro Documentary Feature
Best Retro Short Film
Best Retro Documentary Short
Best Film on Cultural Heritage
Best Archival or Found Footage Film
Jury Award
Audience Award

Additional special awards may be presented at the discretion of the festival jury.

Rules & Terms

Retro International Film Festival
Submission Regulations
1. Eligibility
Films completed before 2015, or contemporary films with a retro aesthetic, visual language, or
storytelling approach, are eligible for submission.
2. Accepted Categories
Feature Films, Short Films, Documentary Films, Experimental Films, and Animation Films.
-AI films will not be acecpted.
3. Submission Process
If you are selected all materials must be sent by email to:
retrointernationalfilmfestival@gmail.com
Please include the screening file (or a download link if the file is too large), a synopsis, director
biography, poster or film stills, and contact information.
4. Screening File Specifications
Container: MP4 (.mp4) Video Codec: H.264 Resolution: Full HD (1920 × 1080) maximum Maximum
Video Bitrate: 50 Mbps Frame Rate: Original production frame rate Audio: AAC, Stereo 48
kHz No watermarks or embedded subtitles unless required for screening.
5. Language & Subtitles
Films not in English must include English subtitles. English-language films are encouraged to
include subtitles for accessibility.
6. Rights
By submitting a film, the rights holder confirms that they own or control all necessary rights and
grants the festival permission to screen the film during the festival and to use excerpts, stills, and
promotional materials for publicity purposes.
7. Selection
The festival programming committee reserves the right to make all final selection decisions.
Selected filmmakers will be notified by email.
8. General
Submission of a film constitutes acceptance of these regulations.
9. Music videos are not allowed.