Regulations of IFF ART FILM 2026 (International Film Festival ART FILM)
1. General Information
1.1. ART FILM FEST s.r.o., with its registered office at Kukučínova 81/2, 040 01 Košice – City District Juh, Company ID (IČO): 48 284 254, registered in the Commercial Register of the Municipal Court Košice, Section Sro, File No. 58934/V (hereinafter also referred to as the “Main Organizer”), is the organizer of the International Film Festival ART FILM (hereinafter referred to as “IFF ART FILM”).
1.2. The 32nd edition of IFF ART FILM (hereinafter referred to as the “Festival”) will take place from 19 to 25 June 2026 in Košice, Slovakia.
The Festival programme offers a broad and diverse platform for the presentation of films representing the latest trends in world cinema, significant works from film history, and, last but not least, a comprehensive overview of contemporary Slovak audiovisual production.
1.3. The Festival programme is built around four main competitive sections:
a) International Feature Film Competition – open to directors who have completed their first, second, or third feature-length fiction film under professional production conditions;
b) International Short Film Competition – dedicated to short films of all genres;
c) International Competition of Films from Central and Eastern Europe (a Festival-selected list of former Eastern Bloc countries) – open to directors who have completed a feature-length fiction, documentary, or animated film produced in eligible countries:
Slovakia, Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Slovenia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania, North Macedonia, Kosovo, Ukraine, Moldova, Belarus, Armenia;
d) International Competition for the FIPRESCI Award – open to films selected by the organizer from the competitive sections and Slovak premieres of the 32nd IFF ART FILM for evaluation by the international FIPRESCI jury.
1.4. The Main Organizer of the Festival is the Slovak legal entity:
ART FILM FEST s.r.o., Kukučínova 81/2, 040 01 Košice – City District Juh, Slovak Republic
Company ID (IČO): 48 284 254, Registered in the Commercial Register of the Municipal Court Košice, Section Sro, File No. 58934/V.
2. Competitive Sections and Statutory Awards
2.1. International Feature Film Competition
This competition applies to:
• feature-length fiction films that are the director’s first, second, or third feature film,
• films produced after 1 January 2025,
• films available in DCP 2D format,
• films with a running time of over 60 minutes,
• films with English subtitles.
2.1.1. Jury and Awards
The winners of the statutory “Blue Angel” awards are selected by a three-member international jury of the International Feature Film Competition, appointed by the Main Organizer.
The jury decides by a majority vote of the members present and voting. The results are announced at the Festival Closing Ceremony.
The jury awards four statutory prizes:
• Blue Angel for Best Film (awarded to the film’s producer as a natural person), accompanied by a financial prize of EUR 2,000;
• Blue Angel for Best Director;
• Blue Angel for Best Actress;
• Blue Angel for Best Actor.
The jury may also grant non-statutory awards, known as Special Mentions, to additional films in the competition.
Persons associated with competing films may not serve on the jury nor be present during jury deliberations.
2.2. International Short Film Competition
This competition applies to:
• films with a running time of up to 30 minutes,
• fiction, documentary, experimental, or animated short films,
• professional or student productions,
• films produced after 1 January 2025,
• films available in DCP 2D format,
• films with English subtitles.
2.2.1. Jury and Awards
The Blue Angel for Best Short Film is awarded by a three-member international jury, appointed by the Main Organizer.
The jury decides by majority vote and announces the results at the Festival Closing Ceremony.
The jury awards one statutory prize:
• Blue Angel for Best Short Film (awarded to the director as a natural person), accompanied by a financial prize of EUR 500.
The jury may also award Special Mentions.
Persons associated with competing films may not serve on the jury nor participate in deliberations.
2.3. International Competition of Films from Central and Eastern Europe
This competition applies to:
• films with a running time of over 60 minutes,
• fiction, documentary, experimental, or animated films,
• films produced after 1 January 2025,
• films available in DCP 2D format,
• films with English subtitles,
• co-productions, provided that the production share belongs to an eligible country.
Eligible countries:
Slovakia, Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Slovenia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania, North Macedonia, Kosovo, Ukraine, Moldova, Belarus, Armenia
2.3.1. Jury and Awards
The Blue Angel for Best Film from Central and Eastern Europe is awarded by a three-member international jury, appointed by the Main Organizer.
The jury awards one statutory prize:
• Blue Angel for Best Film (awarded to the director as a natural person), accompanied by a financial prize of EUR 1,500.
Special Mentions may also be awarded.
Persons associated with competing films may not serve on the jury nor participate in deliberations.
2.4. International Competition for the FIPRESCI Award
This competition applies to:
• films with a running time of over 60 minutes,
• fiction, documentary, experimental, or animated films,
• films produced after 1 January 2025,
• films available in DCP 2D format,
• films with English subtitles.
2.4.1. Jury and Awards
The FIPRESCI Award is decided by a three-member international jury, appointed by the Main Organizer in cooperation with the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI).
The jury awards one statutory prize:
• Blue Angel – FIPRESCI Award (awarded to the director as a natural person).
Special Mentions may also be granted.
3. Film Submission
Film submissions for IFF ART FILM 2026 will be open from 10 January 2026 until the deadline specified in Article 10 of these Statutes.
Films may be submitted to the competitive sections via the official submission form.
Submission fees apply in accordance with the valid price list.
4. Film Selection
The Main Organizer reserves the right to curate the three competitive sections at its own discretion.
5. Promotion of Selected Films
The Main Organizer reserves the right to use excerpts from submitted films for Festival promotion as follows:
• feature-length fiction, documentary, and animated films – up to 3 minutes,
• short films – up to 30 seconds.
If an official trailer is not delivered on time, the Main Organizer may create promotional excerpts from available materials.
Film excerpts and trailers may be screened at Festival venues, broadcast on partner television channels, and published on the Festival website.
For artistic reasons, the Main Organizer may use excerpts of submitted films in the Festival trailer, up to 10 seconds.
Official film stills may also be used for promotional purposes and provided to the media.
6. Guests
Invitations are issued at the discretion of the Main Organizer, with priority given to creators of competing films.
The Festival covers accommodation and travel costs within limits agreed individually, subject to the Festival budget.
7. Refund Policy for Submission Fees
If a submitted film does not meet the eligibility requirements set out in these Statutes, the submission fee will not be refunded.
It is the submitter’s responsibility to ensure full compliance with all rules and submission guidelines.
8. Financial Prize and Income Tax
8.1. The financial prize represents a reward before taxation.
8.2. The financial prize from public competitions is considered other income subject to income tax in accordance with § 8 para. 1 letter j) of Act No. 595/2003 Coll. on Income Tax, as amended, with the exception of a prize not exceeding EUR 350, which is exempt from tax in accordance with § 9 para. 2 letter m) point 2 of the Income Tax Act.
8.3. In accordance with § 43 para. 3 letter d) of the Income Tax Act, the Main Organizer will deduct income tax at a rate of 19% from the cash prize (Financial Prize) each time it is paid. If the prize is paid, remitted, or credited to a taxpayer in a non-contracting state under § 2 para. x) of the Income Tax Act, a tax rate of 35% will be applied. The Organizer is not responsible for fulfilling tax obligations for non-resident taxpayers or taxpayers with limited tax liability arising from the country in which they are tax residents.
9. Privacy Policy – FilmFreeway Submissions
Submitters using the FilmFreeway platform to submit films to IFF ART FILM 2026 are required to follow FilmFreeway’s Privacy Policy: https://filmfreeway.com/page/privacy-policy.
ART FILM FEST s.r.o. is not responsible for how personal data is processed on FilmFreeway. Submitters are encouraged to review and comply with FilmFreeway’s Privacy Policy independently.
For the full Regulations of IFF ART FILM 2026, please visit: https://iffartfilm.com/en/festival/rules-regulations/
10. Key Dates and Deadlines
• 10 April 2026 – Film submission deadline
• 15 May 2026 – Final selection announcement
• 31 May 2026 – Delivery of documentation
• 10 June 2026 – Delivery of screening materials
• 19–26 June 2026 – 32nd IFF ART FILM
• 31 July 2026 – Notification of export destinations
Festival Headquarters:
ART FILM FEST s.r.o.
Kukučínova 81/2
040 01 Košice – City District Juh
Slovak Republic
Festival Office / Postal Address:
ART FILM FEST s.r.o.
Tomášikova 30C
821 01 Bratislava
Slovak Republic
E-mail: info@iffartfilm.com
Website: www.iffartfilm.com
Update of the Festival Regulations of IFF ART FILM 2026: 9 January 2026
