Founded in 1977, KORTFILMFESTIVALEN / THE NORWEGIAN SHORT FILM FESTIVAL is Norway's largest short film festival, and the only Academy Award® qualifying film festival, with competition sections for Norwegian and International short films and documentaries, and Norwegian music videos.

The Festival is an essential platform for both emerging and established filmmakers, and an important showcase for the free, independent film industry in Norway. The competition programme for international short films attracts industry people from all over the world to Grimstad, and the festival facilitates industry events such as panels and presentations, masterclasses, talks and open forums, as well as daily mixers and social events connecting Norwegian and international film professionals.

Set in the small, idyllic seaside town of Grimstad, the Festival offers unique and exciting opportunities to help expand your personal and professional network. Whether you're a well established professional or fresh out of film school, what makes the Festival so special is how accessible everyone is, and how we come together as a community. We can safely say that when you leave Grimstad, you will know what being in a true "festival bubble" feels like, inspired by the possibilities and opportunities that can come from this experience.

All this, plus of course the hundreds of films we are so proud and grateful to be able to present every year, in our competition sections and special programs.

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The Norwegian Short Film Festival is Norway's only Academy Award® qualifying festival, and recipients of the Golden Chair Award in the following categories will be eligible for Oscar® consideration:

*Best Norwegian Short Film
*Best Short Documentary, International or Norwegian
*Best International Short Film

Awards & Prizes

Our Grand Jury Award is THE GOLDEN CHAIR, which four international juries of film professionals will hand out in four main competition categories:

- NK: Norwegian Short Film
- IK: International Short Film
- KD: Short Documentary, International or Norwegian
- MV: Norwegian Music Video

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- THE GOLDEN CHAIR for Best Norwegian Short Film is awarded 50 000 NOK, presented by Agder County.
The winning film qualifies to be considered for an Oscar® nomination for Best Short Film, Live Action or Animated, as long as it meets the requirements set by The Academy® for all nominated films.

- THE GOLDEN CHAIR for Best International Short Film is awarded 50 000 NOK and qualifies to be considered for an Oscar® nomination for Best Short Film, Live Action or Animated, as long as it meets the requirements set by The Academy® for all nominated films.

- THE GOLDEN CHAIR for Best Documentary Short Film is awarded 50 000 NOK.
Norwegian and International films are in the same category. The winning film qualifies to be considered for an Oscar® nomination for Best Short Film, Documentary Subject, as long as it meets the requirements set by The Academy® for all nominated films.

- THE GOLDEN CHAIR for Best Norwegian Music Video is awarded 50 000 NOK, presented by Oslo fotokunstskole.

- THE TERJE VIGEN AWARD is presented by the Municipality of Grimstad to a Norwegian Short Film or Norwegian Short Documentary in competition. The award consists of a bronze statuette by artist Harald Oredam and 10 000 NOK.
The jury for Norwegian Short Film will decide and hand out this award.

- THE NORWEGIAN FILM WORKERS ASSOCIATION'S TECHNICAL AWARD / FAGPRISEN is given to one (or more) individual(s) displaying excellence in their profession and contribution to a Norwegian Short Film in competition. Fagprisen comes with a cash prize of 15 000 NOK.

- THE HOURGLASS AWARD / TIMEGLASSET is presented by the Writers' Guild of Norway to the screenwriter(s) of a film in the Norwegian Short Film competition. It comes with a cash prize of 15 000 NOK.

- THE NORWEGIAN FILM CRITICS' AWARD / FILMKRITIKERPRISEN goes to a Norwegian Short Film or Norwegian Short Documentary in competition. The award comes with a selected artwork by a Norwegian artist.

- KORTFILMFESTIVALEN'S YOUTH AWARD is presented by a student jury from Dahlske Upper Secondary School in Grimstad and goes to a film in the International Short Film competition. The award comes with a cash prize of 5 000 NOK.

In addition, three Norwegian short films or short documentaries will be shortlisted for the Norwegian film award, Amandaprisen.

Rules & Terms

**IMPORTANT - PLEASE READ**
TO QUALIFY FOR COMPETITION 2025:
*International films must be completed AFTER 15th February 2024.
*Norwegian films must be completed AFTER 15th March 2024.
And films completed prior to this date risk disqualification.

- Submission deadline for International films:
1st February, 2025 at 23:59:59 CET.
Late deadline: 15th February 2025 at 23:59:59 CET.

- Submission deadline for Norwegian films and music videos:
15th March, 2025 at 23:59:59 CET.

Short films must not exceed 35 minutes running time, including credits.
Short documentary films must not exceed 40 minutes running time, including credits.

To qualify for competition, international films must be completed after 15th February 2024 and Norwegian films after 15th March 2024.
Films completed prior to this date risk disqualification.

For International submissions:
Only completed films are eligible for consideration, works in progress or unfinished films will not be considered.

For Norwegian submissions:
The festival might consider a work in progress or an uncompleted film. What remains in post must be clearly stated on your film's page.

If selected, the completed film must be ready for delivery by 25th April, 2025.
Feel free to contact us if you have any questions.

To qualify for Norwegian competition, the film's director or main producer must hold a Norwegian citizenship or be a permanent resident.
If in doubt, please contact us at submission@kortfilmfestivalen.no

IMPORTANT! We only accept entries on FilmFreeway. Your film must be either uploaded directly to the platform, or embedded via Vimeo / YouTube. We will not visit or download material from external links (WeTransfer, Google drive, Dropbox, etc).

Make sure you submit in the right category as submission fees differ and are non-refundable.

Also, it is important that your film's page has essential information such as running time, country of origin, synopsis, stills, credits, technical specifications, and directors' headshot and short bio.
We receive thousands of films, so see your page as a tool to make your film stand out.
Also, as screening committee members will go back to their reviews before making their final decisions, a good presentation makes a big difference.

FilmFreeway is the main source for content we use online and in the catalog, so please make sure you upload high-res stills (min. 300 dpi). Behind the scenes photos will not be used.

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A pre-selection committee, appointed by the festival for each category, will watch all submitted films and make the final selections. We are not able to give feedback on films or reasons for the committee’s decisions.

Films selected must be delivered / transferred by April 25th, 2025.

Standard format is DCP, but we accept other high-res files such as .h264, .mov, .mp4.
IMPORTANT: Make sure the DCP have the correct file name so it can be easily identified. Wraptor-made DCPs are not compatible with cinema servers, and will not be accepted.

All competition films will be included on our digital platform, so in addition to a DCP, we also require a high-res .h264 file.

All selected films must have English subtitles either burnt in or delivered as .srt.
(Except Music Videos)

Selection notifications will be sent all filmmakers in the beginning of April 2025.

Submission fees by category:
*Norwegian Short Films: 280 NOK
*International Short Films: 200 NOK / Late fee 250 NOK
*Short Documentaries, International: 200 NOK / Late fee 250 NOK
*Short Documentaries, Norwegian: 280 NOK
*Norwegian Music Video: 200 NOK

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:

Q: Do you accept works-in-progress?
A: We accept Norwegian work-in-progress cuts that are picture locked and includes an
opening slate listing what still needs to be completed (color-correction, sound mix,
special effects, etc.). We will only review one cut, so please contact us if you have any
questions.

Q: If my short could fit into two categories, such as an animated documentary, how do I
choose which category to submit to?
A: Listen to your gut feeling. Choose the category you feel best represents your film. If in doubt, get in touch with us. If we're in doubt, we will contact you.

Q: Can I submit in several categories?
A: Yes, but see above. Contact us before if in doubt.

Q: My film is shot in Norway, but it's a Swedish production. Am I eligible for the Norwegian
competition?
A: No. The film's main producer and/or director must be a Norwegian citizen or permanent resident.

Q: Are student films eligible for awards?
A: Yes, student films are eligible for all awards.
21 Reviews
Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Kasper Becker-Andersen

    The Norwegian film festival was a great experience. The fact that they are a small and intimate festival creates a good atmosphere for networking and talks. We were also invited to a pitch round with international short film festivals.

    They interview every director after their shortfilm and has a lot of panel talks and workshops. Here you can meet hollywood producers and newly cannes awarded directors like "Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel".

    July 2024
    Helpful
  • Junyan Gao

    Excellent communication, great programme selection and engagement opportunities.

    July 2024
    Helpful
  • Shengwei Zhou

    This is an amazing recognition for me!

    July 2024
    Helpful
  • Annie Sakkab

    Just amazing! welcoming, diverse, compassionate and open. Met great people tool

    June 2024
    Helpful
  • Tarannà Films

    We had such a great time in Grimstad. The team was so nice and we had great networking. And the selection of short films was amazing. Such an honour to be part of it!

    June 2024
    Helpful