An intimate short film festival, listed on IMDb, the San Diego Short Film Festival celebrates the art of storytelling through short films, showcasing the work of talented filmmakers from around the world. From thought-provoking dramas to captivating animations, the festival presents a rich tapestry of storytelling, offering a platform for emerging and established filmmakers to showcase their craft for fellow film enthusiasts.

SDSFF is an annual festival unlike any other! We accept "early-bird" submissions months in advance of our live screening festival date, like any other festival. We are different, we hope superior, in that we actually stream early submissions online quarterly to provide the most possible exposure for our filmmakers while waiting for the actual live festival date. This also allows for early "Fan favorite / Audience Choice" votes -- potentially resulting in a "Wild Card" official selection for some lucky submission! It is also how our nominees for our annual genre awards are chosen (as quarter finalists winners).

March 28, 2026 -- (1Q/2026) Spring Season Quarterly Film Virtual Screening Qualifier

June 27, 2026 -- (2Q/2026) Summer Season Quarterly Film Virtual Screening Qualifier

September 26, 2026 -- (3Q/2026) Autumn Season Quarterly Film Virtual Screening Qualifier

December 26, 2026 -- (4Q/2026) Winter Season Quarterly Film Virtual Screening Qualifier

January 16, 2027 -- Annual San Diego Short Film Festival (In-Person screening and awards presentation) Best Films of the Year (2026)
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Awards & Prizes

ONLY ONE film will be named the BEST PICTURE OF THE SEASON, voted on from Quarter Finalist from all of the genre categories winners. Quarterfinal / Seasonal best "genre" films become Quarter Finalists for Best Picture of the Season and are automatically submitted for the genre competition in the annual festival. Annual SDSFF winners are eligible to receive the MARIPOSA DORADA (Golden Butterfly) trophy. ONLY ONE film annually will be awarded the GRAND PRIX and named BEST PICTURE OF THE YEAR.

All quarter final winners will receive a Certificate of Cinematic Achievement with a sealed blue ribbon. Starting with September 2023, winners are also eligible to receive a trophy: The PALMA DORADA (Golden Palm) for quarterfinal winners (at individual expense). All selected films will receive the official SDSFF festival laurel (Official Selection, Nominee, Quarter Finalist or Winner). All winners will receive an award certificate (via mail if not present). Trophy winners must be present at festival screening to receive their trophy or must pay shipping & handling cost. Honorable Mentions are also eligible to purchase a trophy.

Rules & Terms

All films submitted will be watched and selected or not selected for inclusion in the festival by an impartial selection committee of festival programmers, filmmakers, industry professionals, cinephiles and short film aficionados. Not all selections will be screened for the live audience at the festival.

NOT SELECTED - We thank you for submitting but your film was not selected at this time.

SELECTED - Your film was chosen by our selection judges but may not be chosen for screening or an award. You are authorized use of the SDSFF Official Selection laurel.

NOMINEE - Your film was chosen for inclusion and is eligible for an award(s) but may not be screened at the festival. You are authorized use of the SDSFF Nominee laurel.

HONORABLE MENTION - Your film scored among the top films without winning an award and may or may not be screened at the festival. You are authorized use of the SDSFF Honorable Mention laurel.

QUARTER FINALIST - Your film has won an award in quarterfinal qualifier and may be screened at the festival. You are authorized use of the SDSFF finalist laurel.

WINNER - Your film has won an award and may be screened at our festival. You will receive a Winner certificate (via U.S. post) and authorized use of the SDSFF winner laurel.

Winners will be announced the following the screening at the annual awards presentation ceremony. Official Selection will authorize and permit SDSFF to use excerpts of the submission, including film trailers, stills, promotional materials for promotion activities related to the festival.

SDSFF accepts Short Films: up to 40 minutes in length. All entries must be in English or have English subtitles.

There may not be a winner or even a selection for any particular category. The decisions of our judges are final and unappealable --So PLEASE DO NOT ASK!

Any film genre category submission includes 1 free technical category submission (your choice) per filmmaker, if desired. To submit, email your desired selections to the SDSFF after your genre category submission fees are paid. Additional technical categories may be selected for regular submission fees.

Pornographic entries will be disqualified without return of submission fees.

All entries MUST have an online screener via the FilmFreeway platform. FilmFreeway is the ONLY way to submit your film. If selected for screening, it will be required for the filmmaker to submit a DCP for exhibition purposes upon request. Great care and precautions are taken when handling your DCP film once submitted to SDSFF, but SDSFF accepts no liability nor responsibility for lost or damaged files that are submitted to us. Delivery cost will be paid by the filmmaker, including the cost of shipping the DCP back to the filmmaker. If DCP is not specifically requested filmmakers are responsible to provide an appropriate MOV or MP4 file (download on FilmFreeway is usually acceptable).
54 Reviews
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  • Clarke Smith

    Excellent and fairly new festival. I am so grateful that our film Greyson 2.0 recognized actor Randy Davison for his great work. Greyson 2,0 is a sequel to a film that starred Randy, called You Are Me. It was largely ignored in the local film community at the time, so it was such an important award to have Randy win for the same character here in the sequel. Really appreciated that, and the awards show was very well put together,

    March 2026
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  • James Wicks

    I am so grateful to be a part of SDSFF in the heart of San Diego! The curation of films by James Kirby and his team is exceptional. Thank you so much to all who make this community event so special and that "Coastal Consciousness: San Diego" could find its way to this incredible community of filmmakers and film aficionados.

    March 2026
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  • Warren Workman

    Thank you for accepting our film into the festival. Our entire team is incredibly grateful for the opportunity.

    March 2026
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  • Michelle Muldoon

    My thanks to James and the team at San Diego Short Film Festival for being a truly filmmaker focused festival. Great communication. Great support. And a passion for film that shines through.

    January 2026
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  • Jamon Holmes

    Man!!! O' Man!!! This festival has now become one of my fave film festival. James and his team did a fantastic job with this event. The screenings were on point. The red carpet was awesome. The food and drinks were what it should be. The award ceremony was amazing and well organized.

    James brought so much energy to the award ceremony. But most importantly I love has a quarterley screening system. Which 4 days of film festivals throughout the year leading up to the big dance. Not to mention my film receiving an Honorable Mention award. I will submit again for sure.

    Jamon

    January 2026
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