Zero To Hero Short Film Festival is a short film festival for filmmakers who have dreams and stories to tell but do not have access to vast resources or expensive equipment. In fact, we do not accept films that costed more than 100,000 USD or EUR. This is a festival for movies made with little to no budget.

This festival is a celebration of talented filmmakers who, despite limited resources, boldly pursue their passion for storytelling.

Winners will be presented with their awards during the live screening, which will take place at the festival in September 2026 in Valletta (Malta). There will be prior notification of winners.

Awards & Prizes

We give out a physical award to all of the winners of the categories below:

BEST HERO SHORT FILM (best overall)

BEST LOCAL HERO SHORT FILM (for filmmakers based in Malta)

BEST NO BUDGET SHORT FILM (made for 0 to 1,000 EUR/USD)

BEST MICRO BUDGET SHORT FILM (made for 1,000 to 10,000 EUR/USD)

BEST LOW BUDGET SHORT FILM (made for 10,000 to 100,000 EUR/USD)

BEST COMEDY SHORT

BEST DRAMA SHORT

BEST FANTASY SHORT

BEST ANIMATION SHORT

BEST HORROR SHORT

Rules & Terms

Each film must:

have a budget of no more than 100,000 EUR/USD

have been produced with the five years preceding the year of the festival (so for the 2026 edition, we accept movies created since 2021)

have English subtitles if the language is anything other than English

be not longer than 20 minutes (including credits)

have all rights cleared and have the permission of the owner to register their work to this festival.

There are:

no limits to the number of films that a producer or filmmaker may register.

no restrictions on genre or subject matter, and films from any country are welcome to submit.

You grant Zero To Hero Short Film Festival the right to use clips or images from your film and/or press kit for promotional purposes.

Films and scripts will be judged on creativity, storytelling, technical quality, originality, and impact. We are particularly interested in works that push artistic boundaries or offer new perspectives. The jury’s decision is final and cannot be appealed.

We cannot provide refunds.

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  • Jean Carbonaro

    A fantastic experience at the From Zero to Hero Festival in Malta! The screenings in Valletta’s cinemas were beautifully organized, the team was welcoming, and the atmosphere was truly supportive of filmmakers. I was thrilled that my film “The Informant” received an Honorable Mention. A spectacular festival.

    December 2025
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  • Bruce Micallef Eynaud

    A wonderful first edition! A lovely eclectic mix of films!

    September 2025
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