The Hakkebush Feminist Film Festival aims to inspire Ukrainian and European female filmmakers who are just starting out in the cinema to be bold in their work and to express themselves.

Our festival seeks to create a film community, provide a platform for professional expression by organizing educational events and providing grants for different stages of development of their film projects, and increase the visibility of women's perspectives (female gaze) in cinema.

This festival is organized by the film organization of the same name, Hakkebush, whose main goal is to form a film community with a constant creative process, by creating different events for young female filmmakers.

Rules & Terms

The 2nd Feminist Film Festival "Hakkebush" will take place in Kyiv from May 23 to May 25, 2025. The Festival is organized by the film organization "Hakkebush".

The Festival consists of national and international sections:

National Section:
- National narrative short films
- National documentary short films

International Section:
- Narrative short films

Goals of the Festival:
- To increase the visibility of women and support female perspectives in Ukrainian cinema
- To build a community of European and Ukrainian women directors for mutual support and collaboration
- To foster the discovery of new talents
- To create a platform for experience-sharing between seasoned and emerging women filmmakers

Participation Criteria:
- Eligible entries include narrative and documentary short films (including student films) with a runtime of up to 30 minutes, produced after January 1, 2023, directed and/or shot by women.
- Films in the National Section must be made by Ukrainian women filmmakers, produced in Ukraine, or as co-productions with Ukraine.
- Participation in the International Section is open to women filmmakers from European countries that are members of the Council of Europe.
- Films that have had their national premiere at other Ukrainian festivals are eligible to participate.
- Films available for free online, on streaming platforms, or social media are not eligible.

Submission and Selection:
- Submissions are accepted via the FilmFreeway platform.
- The Festival does not pay screening fees to participants.
- Submission materials must include: a film synopsis, director’s biography and filmography, creative and technical details about the film, film stills, and a photo of the director.
- Films in the National Section must be in Ukrainian or have Ukrainian subtitles. Films in the International Section must have English subtitles.

Screening and Awards:
During the Festival, the following will be screened:
- 10 national narrative short films
- 10 national documentary short films
- 10 international narrative short films

Each film will be screened no more than twice and only during the Festival dates.

The jury will select winners in the following categories:
- Best National Narrative Short Film
- Best National Documentary Short Film
- Best International Narrative Short Film

Festival Jury:
The jury will consist of prominent women figures in the Ukrainian film industry, with three members in each category:
- National narrative short films
- National documentary short films
- International narrative short films

Rights and Responsibilities:
- The person submitting the film is responsible for ensuring that copyright and related rights are respected.
- The Festival guarantees protection against piracy.
- The Festival reserves the right to use film materials (stills, trailers, clips up to 1 minute) for promotional purposes.

Submitting a film to the Festival automatically confirms the authors’ agreement to the participation rules outlined above.