Heart of Gold International Short Film Festival is the biggest short film festival in regional Australia with over 140 short films, masterclasses, events and panels over 4 days in Gympie, Queensland.

Celebrated as ‘triumphant’ by Australia’s ScreenHub, our festival is dedicated to inspiring and connecting audiences through short films that champion the richness of the human spirit. The small town of Gympie comes alive with film lovers from far and wide every October in a joyous celebration of storytelling.

The festival glows with a widely-renowned mix of country hospitality and global ideas—offering homestays and transport for visiting filmmakers, engaging conversations with interviewers and locals, and plenty of opportunity to party late with filmmakers, speakers, hosts and locals at the festival’s own Gold Bar. See the thoughts of some of our previous filmmakers in the reviews below.

Heart of Gold International Short Film Festival offer a range of significant cash prizes. Selected shorts compete for a range of jury awards, which this year include but are not limited to: Best Short Film, Best Australian Short Film, Best Student Short Film, Best Cinematography and Best Script.

Our unique selection process involves submitted films being viewed by multiple screener groups across Queensland, who feedback their thoughts and shortlist a selection for the Festival Director. This inclusive process catches niche gems and represents a broader spectrum of film taste.

‘Heart of Gold is a rare festival, in that its remit is focused but also their quality of content that they screen is stellar.’ (Festival Formula)

Heart of Gold lovingly curates sessions of short films from all genres that best capture our vision to screen films that are heart-warming, thought-provoking and entertaining. The films can be edgy, they can be groundbreaking and they can be downright hilarious – as long as they beat with a good, strong heart. The film festival's four-day program includes up to 30 sessions of brilliant short films, acclaimed features, parties, live music, filmmaker Q+A’s, interactive masterclasses and hearty discussions with delicious food and wine.

Awards & Prizes

Heart of Gold International Short Film Festival offer a range of significant cash prizes. Selected shorts compete for a range of jury awards, which this year include but are not limited to: Best Short Film, Best Australian Short Film, Best Student Short Film, Best Cinematography and Best Script.

Rules & Terms

1. Heart of Gold International Short Film Festival is open to all film genres and films from all countries. However, film content should be in line with the festival’s ethos and vision. We are seeking films that are: positive, hilarious, witty, whimsical, nourishing, well-crafted, inspiring, thought-provoking, entertaining, joyous, uplifting, quirky, enlightening, ground breaking.

If you are unsure of eligibility, please contact program@heartofgold.com.au

2. The producer grants the Heart of Gold International Short Film Festival the rights to exhibit the film at the 2023 Heart of Gold International Short Film Festival.

3. The producer warrants to the Heart of Gold International Short Film Festival that they have obtained all the necessary permissions to enter this film and that the film does not infringe the rights, including copyright, of any third party. This includes the use of music and literary material (i.e. if your film is based on a novel or poem).

4. Entries will not be considered valid until the entry fee has been paid in full. The entry fee is non-refundable.

5. Entries cannot be withdrawn after submission.

6. If your film is selected for the competition you will be sent a letter of confirmation from no later than 28 August, 2023.

7. Materials submitted in the initial entry process will not be returned.

8. Films in languages other than English must be supplied with English subtitles.

9. The Heart of Gold International Short Film Festival will only screen productions finished As a high-resolution Apple ProRes, H.264 or MP4 digital file (the following codecs will NOT be accepted FLV, WMV, AVI, or any low res files). Please also ensure your films are supplied with a stereo mix only and not a Dolby 5.1 mix) To ensure your entry is screened correctly, you must also include ratio details (e.g. 1920 x 1080). Unfortunately we cannot screen DCPs or DVDs.

Please note: ENTERING A FILM IN THIS FESTIVAL IMPLIES THE ACCEPTANCE OF THESE REGULATIONS. Contact program@heartofgold.com.au with any concerns.

11 Reviews
Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Christine Schindler

    Great festival to support. Enjoyed all the activites surrounding the films along with a beautiful curation of local to international films. Well done Gympie and HofG team.

    November 2022
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  • Pernell Marsden

    Was thrilled to be selected for this festival and would definitely submit again. It was well organised and the communication was really great and very friendly. I was sad that I couldn't make it up to Queensland because the program looked really varied and there was a lot of cool stuff to do at the festival. Next time!

    November 2022
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  • Kylie Agnew

    An uplifting festival that encourages and celebrates both professional and student filmmakers. We're looking forward to next year already!

    November 2022
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  • Annabel Vine

    I was gutted that I could not attend this film festival as it looked like an inspiring and intelligent program set in a wonderful location. I was so happy that my film Granbad was selected.

    May 2020
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  • Danielle Hastie

    I loved attending this festival! The organisers and locals were absolutely brilliant in making sure filmmakers were looked after. I didn't take advantage of the opportunity to do a home-stay and I wish I had - next time! It's an authentic and intimate film festival in that it's run by hospitable locals and its all about talking about the stories we love (rather than the awards or red carpet). Awards are great but it's a 'people' festival - with heart. Really down to earth and fun.

    November 2019
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    Response from festival:

    Hi Danielle :) thanks for your review, I am thrilled that you had the experience we were hoping to give to filmmakers. I'll pass this onto the team and looking forward to seeing you and another Heart of Gold festival.