πŸ’₯πŸ’₯πŸ’₯ LIVE EVENT - FROM JUNE 12TH TO JUNE 14TH πŸ’₯πŸ’₯πŸ’₯
πŸ’₯πŸ’₯πŸ’₯ MULTISALA RIVOLI, VERONA πŸ’₯πŸ’₯πŸ’₯

🌎We are delighted to announce the return of our Live Event to the timeless city of Verona. Taking place from June 12–14, the program will unfold across three dynamic days and eight curated screening blocks, showcasing an outstanding selection of short films from around the globe.
We celebrate our 7th consecutive season in the Veneto region, bringing the best international short films to local audiences. VISF has become a hub for independent filmmakers from around the world.

All OFFICIAL SELECTION films will be screened at our public Live Event.πŸ“½ At the Live Event the Audience will vote for their favorite film and the winner will be granted the AUDIENCE PICK AWARD, a cash prize award of USD 1000.

All the Winners will receive the Official Laurels and the winning-category achievement certificate after the Live Event. Jury will choose from the Official Selection a film that will receive the JURY'S DISTINCTION AWARD with a cash prize of USD 1.000.πŸ† This winner will be revealed at the Live Event in the city of Verona.

The region of Veneto is well known for its loving relationship with cinema. From the romantic streets of Verona to the timeless canals of Venice, Veneto is a region steeped in history, beauty, and cinematic inspiration. Its landscapes β€” from the rolling vineyards of Valpolicella to the dramatic Dolomites β€” have served as the backdrop for countless films.

Verona breathes life into timeless stories of love and drama.
This festival, in a few years, has become part of the 15 most popular, and the 100 best reviewed worldwide and IMDb qualifying.

We are committed to screening the full Official Selection at our Live Event, where filmmakers and guests come together for Q&As and panelsβ€”creating meaningful connections with directors, cast, crew, and industry professionals.
It’s a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in the work of fellow visual artists and celebrate storytelling from around the world.

πŸ† Awards include cash prizes for the best films.
πŸ† Celebrating Our Recent Winners! 🎬

We’re proud to spotlight some of the remarkable directors recognized at our festivalβ€”part of a new wave of bold and visionary storytelling.
✨ International Talents
Dani Feixas Roka, Cindy Lee, AΕ›ka Faron, Aaron Blaise, Dale Leadon-Bolger, Heather Greer, Alison Cornyn, Minkyu Kang, PΓ©ter KarΓ‘csony, Michael Patrick Clarkson, Aleksandr Irinarkhov, A. Lauren Lee, Fabien Ara
πŸŽ₯ Emerging Italian Filmmakers
Nicola Bianchi, Claudio Braccini, Vernante Pallotti, Daniele Zen, Alexander Frizzera, Luca Guanci
πŸ… Student Academy Award Winners
Pilar Garcia-Fernandezsesma (USA), Pascal Schelbli (Germany), Maren Klakegg (Norway), Percival ArgΓΌero Mendoza (Mexico), German Golub (Estonia), Lachlan Pendragon (Australia), Tamara DeniΔ‡ (Germany), Martin Strange-Hansen (Denmark)…and many more. Stay tuned as we continue to spotlight outstanding talent from across the globe 🌍🎞️
Furthermore, the festival will select a number of films as semifinalists. All semifinalist projects will be invited to our Virtual Screening Events, where they will be awarded semifinalist laurels.
After the Virtual Event wraps up, we’ll announce the winner of the VISF Virtual Edition Award β€” and that film will be screened at our Live Event!
We will hold 3 Virtual events per year and 1 live event.

Awards & Prizes

JURY
To keep the Awards fair and transparent, we invite independent judges from all around the world who enjoy the experience and assess each category.

Each short film will be reviewed at least for five judges after the film is scored by our screening team. Our judges team includes artists from all around the world.

We proudly announce our MAIN COMPETITIONS and our TECHNICAL AND PERFORMANCE COMPETITIONS:

πŸ“½ Main Competitions:
NARRATIVE SHORTS COMPETITION
FOREIGN SHORTS COMPETITION
DOCUMENTARY SHORTS COMPETITION
ANIMATION SHORTS COMPETITION
NEWFILMMAKERS SHORTS COMPETITION
EXPERIMENTAL SHORTS COMPETITION
STUDENT SHORTS COMPETITION
HORROR SHORTS COMPETITION
MUSIC VIDEOS COMPETITION
COMEDY SHORTS COMPETITION

πŸ† Technical & Performance Awards:
Best Producer
Best Female Director
Best Male Director
Best Female Student Director
Best Male Student Director
Best Actress
Best Actor
Best Acting Ensemble
Best Cinematography
Best Editing
Best Production Design
Best Sound Design
Best Original Score
Best Screenwriting

Rules & Terms

* In order to submit a film, you must own the rights or have permission from the owner.
* The VISF relationship will exclusively be related to the film submitter.
Any film that is not in English must have English subtitles.
* All fees are non-refundable.
* VERONA INTERNATIONAL SHORT FILM FESTIVAL will not be responsible for damaged copies.
* A DCP of the film is required in case the movie is selected to be screened with English and Italian subtitles embedded if needed.
* Not all the submissions are selected for the official competition. Our Judges are free to make their own choices and no feedback will be given about not selected films.
* VERONA INTERNATIONAL SHORT FILM FESTIVAL can consider any film to be disqualified if the festival considers the content inappropriate. If you have any question regarding this decision you might contact us at our email address
* A fee is required for all the Competitions. For payment structure visit FilmFreeway
* The applicants (submitters) must accept VISF Rules and Terms.
* By submitting your movie, you authorize VISF to use, distribute and share the film poster, trailer, synopsis and movie stills in our social media.
* Maximum length allowed is 40 minutes.
* We do not require premiere status.
* When submitting your film, you are consenting to our Privacy Policy. We are committed to respecting each filmmaker's preferences. We might contact you through your email or social media provided in the submission page to communicate updates on your submission status, screening and DCP requirements, events ticket confirmation, as well as to provide information about events, services, promotions that we think you might be interested in. You can unsubscribe from any marketing or advertising newsletter from us or any partner festival simply by clicking unsubscribe.
Even when unsubscribing from a marketing newsletter, you can still receive any communication regarding your submission status through the FilmFreeway system. For more information about our associated event, please refer to veneziashorts.com. If you need further information, please contact us via contact@veneziashorts.org, and we will be happy to help you.

Not all the submissions are selected for the official competition. Our Judges are free to make their own choices and no feedback will be given about not selected films.
* VISF can consider any film to be disqualified if the festival considers the content inappropriate. If you have any question regarding this decision you might contact us at our email address
* A fee is required for all the Competitions. For payment structure visit FilmFreeway
* The applicants (submitters) must accept VISF Rules and Terms.
* By submitting your movie, you authorize VISF to use, distribute and share the film poster, trailer, synopsis and movie stills in our social media.
* Maximum length allowed is 40 minutes.
* We do not require premiere status.
* When submitting your film, you are consenting to our Privacy Policy. We are committed to respecting each filmmaker's preferences. We might contact you through your email or social media provided in the submission page to communicate updates on your submission status, screening and DCP requirements, events ticket confirmation, as well as to provide information about events, services, promotions that we think you might be interested in. You can unsubscribe from any marketing or advertising newsletter from us or any partner festival simply by clicking unsubscribe.
Even when unsubscribing from a marketing newsletter, you can still receive any communication regarding your submission status through the FilmFreeway system. For more information about our associated event, please refer to veneziashorts.com. If you need further information, please contact us via contact@veneziashorts.org, and we will be happy to help you.
184 Reviews
Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Anne Beyer Turner

    Being part of the Verona International Short Film Festival has been an absolute honor and joy. Everything about this festival was exceptionally professional and of the highest quality. I especially appreciated the kind, prompt, and resourceful communication between the festival team and us filmmakers throughout the process.
    Thank you so much for creating such a wonderful experience and for supporting independent cinema. I am truly grateful to have been included.

    June 2026
    Helpful
    Response from festival:

    Dear Anne, thank you so much for these beautiful words! It was truly a joy to have your film as part of VISF. Comments like yours remind us why we do this. We hope to welcome you back very soon! 🎬

  • Choukri Rouha

    Thanks for the selection and the semi finalist award πŸ₯‰
    Incredible . We are so happy ! Thanks to the team !

    June 2026
    Helpful
    Response from festival:

    Dear Choukri, your happiness is ours too! We are so glad to have your film among our Semifinalists and the honor is truly ours. Thank you for sharing your work with VISF.

  • Henry Moore Selder

    I was not present but I am happy with my participation in the festival and also with winning a prize!

    June 2026
    Helpful
    Response from festival:

    Thank you so much for your kind words, Henry! We are thrilled you are happy with your participation and your prize β€” you truly earned it! We hope to have you with us in person at a future edition.

  • John Wang

    The team at VISF was professional and communicative throughout the process.

    June 2026
    Helpful
    Response from festival:

    John, Thank you so much for the kind words! Being professional and supportive with every filmmaker is something we truly care about. We hope to welcome you and your work back to VISF very soon

  • Izak Berman

    This festival was an amazing experience for us. Everything was so well organized, and the team was more than warm and welcoming. They truly care about filmmakers, and it shows. The questions during the Q&A's were thoughtful and detailled, the venua and location was very convenient and we were well taken care of. I'd love to come back to this festival someday. Thank you to the wonderful team for this experience! Can't recommend it enough.

    June 2026
    Helpful
    Response from festival:

    Dear Izak, this truly made our hearts full! Having you and Emmi, Rocco and your family at VISF was an absolute pleasure and your presence and energy made the experience even more special for all of us. Your kind words mean the world to our entire team. Verona will always have a place for you, and we cannot wait to welcome you back!