Hong Kong in China is one of the seven PLAYGROUNDS* of the shnit Worldwide Shortfilmfestival.

shnit Worldwide Shortfilmfestival is a premier venue for the exhibition and promotion of short films. The festival is an exceptional twelve-day event with a unique concept – a transnational film festival simultaneously taking place in eight cities on five continents worldwide. The festival includes three main segments:

shnit PLAYGROUNDS*
shnit EXPANDED
shnit FINALE*

In its eighteen years of existence, shnit has become a major international short film festival that reinvents itself in ever new forms. What started as a local initiative is now an exceptional transnational event that connects and inspires makers and fans of short films across the globe. shnit embraces diversity, originality, and exchange between creators and an audience from different cultures and backgrounds. It is the main goal to actively increase the perception of short filmmaking by creating a multi-platform event for high-quality short films. With its cinematic treats, the popular festival fascinates more than 35.000 visitors and therefore belongs to the leading short film festivals in the world.

shnit is a non-profit organization. The annual festival is created and centrally coordinated by the shnit ASSOCIATION in cooperation with the executives. The organization is built on principles of excellence and professionalism, enabling the global expansion of the festival possible.

*shnit PLAYGROUNDS: shnit Worldwide Shortfilmfestival takes place simultaneously in the following cities, shnit PLAYGROUNDS, on five continents: Bern [Switzerland], Buenos Aires [Argentina], Cairo [Egypt], Cape Town [South Africa], Hong Kong [China], Moscow [Russia], San José [Costa Rica]. The shnit FINALE in New York is held annually, as long as the contributions of the partners and sponsors make this possible.

Awards & Prizes

The shnit Worldwide Shortfilmfestival includes five award categories with prizes of USD 24.000 (cash or in-kind prizes)** and attracts award-winning short filmmakers from around the globe. As a result, shnit presents a competition program of exceptional quality and density. The prestigious award THE FLAMING FAUN is granted to the winners during shnit FINALE* in New York.

AUDIENCE AWARD – INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION & WORLDWIDE COMPETITION

The audience decides by voting in all INTERNATIONAL COMPETITIONS (INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION & WORLDWIDE COMPETITION) the following award (will be given to the film director(s)):

• shnit AUDIENCE Award: Festival trophy THE FLAMING FAUN for the best film in this competition

WORLDWIDE COMPETITION

The organizers will nominate an international Jury of three members. Films with PLAYGROUNDS* premiere status will be considered primary. The following prizes will be given to the film directors:

• shnit JURY Award: Festival trophy THE FLAMING FAUN & 5.000 USD** for the best film in this competition

INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION

The organizers will designate a president of the shnit TRIBUTE to elect the three winners out of the nine nominated films. Nominations are done by the shnit TRIBUTE members. The members of the shnit TRIBUTE are former participants of INTERNATIONAL and NATIONAL COMPETITIONS who can give their vote on the shnit TRIBUTE platform. The following prizes will be given to the film directors:

• shnit TRIBUTE Award | Category up to 10 minutes: Festival trophy THE FLAMING FAUN & 3.000 USD** for the best film in this category
• shnit TRIBUTE Award | Category up to 20 minutes: Festival trophy THE FLAMING FAUN & 3.000 USD** for the best film in this category
• shnit TRIBUTE Award | Category up to 40 minutes: Festival trophy THE FLAMING FAUN & 3.000 USD** for the best film in this category

NATIONAL COMPETITION(S)

The organizers nominate one national jury per PLAYGROUND*. The kind of honoring per NATIONAL COMPETITION varies and is specified in the letter of confirmation. The following films are eligible for a NATIONAL COMPETITION:

• Origin of the film production from one of the PLAYGROUND* countries
• Origin of the film director from one of the PLAYGROUND* countries

Submissions for a NATIONAL COMPETITION automatically qualify as entries for all INTERNATIONAL COMPETITIONs. Double submission is not necessary.

*shnit PLAYGROUNDS: shnit Worldwide Shortfilmfestival takes place simultaneously in the following cities, shnit PLAYGROUNDS, on five continents: Bern [Switzerland], Buenos Aires [Argentina], Cairo [Egypt], Cape Town [South Africa], Hong Kong [China], Moscow [Russia], San José [Costa Rica]. The shnit FINALE in New York is held annually, as long as the contributions of the partners and sponsors make this possible.

**Any prizes (cash or in-kind prizes) awarded by shnit are not transferable, exchangeable or redeemable for cash. The Festival reserves the right to change, add or suppress awards according to the circumstances.

Rules & Terms

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS
• all genres
• the maximum length of 40 minutes (including credits)
• completed July 1st, 2018 or later
• completed productions only (working copies will not be previewed)
• a film can be submitted only once
• premiere not required
• accepted screening formats digital file (Apple ProRes 422 or H.264)
• screening copy must be in or subtitled in English
• by submitting the film, you commit to the screening if the film is
selected

HOW TO SUBMIT
• fill in the submission form
• upload at least one still photo of the film
• make sure the preview file is working correctly
• preview file must be in or subtitled in English
• final selection is announced on October 1st, 2020 at www.shnit.org
• only the submitters of the selected films will be notified personally

IF THE FILM IS SELECTED
• please note that ONLY the submitters of the selected films will be notified personally
• information is given in the entry form (synopsis, credits, etc.) will be used as such in all printed publications and on the website
• please have your screening copy ready for sending in from 1st of July
• screening copy must have English subtitles and be identical to the preview copy
• the festival is authorized to make excerpts not exceeding 10% or max. 3 minutes of the total running time of the selected films to be used in promoting the festival in various media and the Internet and for promotional (incl. shnit-postcards), archival and other non-commercial purposes
• the festival will ensure the screening copy while in the festival's possession (The insurance will follow the regulations of FIAPF)
• the festival offers the representative of the film (1 person) accommodation for three nights in Bern during the festival
• ensure that nominated filmmakers are ready to travel to the shnit FINALE in New York to be part of the award ceremony

SHNIT ONLINE FILM LIBRARY AND BEST OF PROGRAM
Films selected to the competitions can automatically be entered into shnit film festival’s online film library without separate notification. The online film library is available for accredited professionals only and is open for four weeks till November 14th, 2020.
After the festival, a few films from the official selection may be screened as a BEST OF–program, in cinemas and cultural centers in various countries. Best efforts will be made to ensure that filmmakers whose films are being screened as BEST OF will be informed about the place(s) and date(s) of the screening(s)

NON-SPECIFIED CASES
Any such cases not mentioned in these regulations will be left to the festival's consideration (in accordance with FIAPF International Regulations). By submitting the entry form, the submitter acknowledges that they have read, understood and accepted the regulations without reservation. The extended regulations and explanations are at www.program.shnit.org.