Dear Asian filmmakers the International Film Festival Rotterdam (Netherlands) is accepting short films (until September 13th), and feature films (until September 20th, 2023).

About the festival:
International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) aims to offer a quality selection of worldwide independent, innovative cinema and visual arts. Devoted to actively supporting independent filmmaking from around the globe, IFFR is the essential hub for discovering film talent and for catching the early buzz on many world and international premieres.

Competitive Programmes:
-Tiger Competition
Eligible for Tiger Competition are directors of a 1st, 2nd, or 3rd feature-length film, that are presented in world premiere at IFFR or, in consultation with the festival, in international or European premiere after no more than one festival event or territorial release between September 2023 and January 2024

-Big Screen Competition
Big Screen Competition comprises up to sixteen selected films having their world premiere at IFFR. Exceptions may be made, at IFFR’s discretion, for films with an international or European premiere after no more than one festival event or territorial release in the five months leading up to the festival.

-Ammodo Tiger Short Competition
Eligible for Ammodo Tiger Short Competition are directors with a short film less than 64 minutes long. The film should have its world, international, or European premiere in Rotterdam

Eligibility:
– The festival is open to feature films, creative documentaries, experimental films, short and mid-length films and innovative visual productions for digital media.
– All submissions should be completed after 1 January of the calendar year prior to the festival. For IFFR 2024, this means the film should be completed after 1 January 2023.
– Films previously submitted to IFFR and not selected, will not be reconsidered for the 2024 Festival.
– Films that have already screened in The Netherlands are excluded from submission to the festival.
– IFFR only accepts short and mid-length films with a world, international or European premiere status. This also counts for short and mid-length films from the Netherlands.
– Student films, with the exception of post-graduate works, are excluded from submission to the festival.
– IFFR considers work-in-progress submissions, provided that the film can be finished in time for the festival. IFFR is not obliged to take into consideration new versions of the same submission.

– Entry Fees:
* Feature Films – €65 (ex. VAT)
* Short Films and Mid-length films (up to 63 minutes) – €40 (ex. VAT)
* VR/Immersive Works – €40 (ex. VAT)

– Submission Deadlines:
* Feature Films – September 20, 2023
* Short and Mid-length Films (completed before 1 July, 2023) – August 23, 2023
* Short and Mid-length Films (completed after 1 July, 2023) – September 13, 2023
* VR/Immersive Works – September 1, 2023

Notification Date: 4 weeks after submission you should be contacted by the festival.

We recommend filmmakers to read the full Rules and Regulations here: https://iffr.com/en/film-entry (This is also the submission link)

We remind readers that the 53rd International Film Festival Rotterdam will take place from January 25 – February 4, 2024.

To see other Call for Entries please follow the next link: “Call For Entries”.

Dear Asian filmmakers the Sundance Film Festival (USA) is accepting New Frontier Projects (until September 1st), Short Films (until September 4th), Episodic Content (until September 18th), and Feature Films (until September 25th, 2023).

* Note in this article we will only post information for International productions. Requirements for American films can be found at the Sundance Film Festival’s website. We also encourage filmmakers and producers to read the complete Rules and Regulations from the Sundance website*

General Rules and Regulations for Submitting a Film:
– If more than 50% of the Project’s financing originated from sources outside of the United States, the Project may only be submitted in one of the following categories: International Narrative Feature Films, International Documentary Feature Films, International Short Films, New Frontier Projects, or Episodic Content. Institute reserves the right to consider the Project for any Festival program, regardless of the submission category selected.
– If the Project’s final running or exhibition time is projected to be 50 minutes or more, the Project may only be submitted in one of the following categories: International Narrative Feature Films, International Documentary Feature Films, New Frontier Projects, or Episodic Content.
– If the Project’s final running time is projected to be less than 50 minutes, the Project may only be submitted in one of the following categories: International Short Films, New Frontier Projects, or Episodic Content.
– Incomplete versions of International Narrative and Documentary Feature Films that have been or will be screened as “works-in-progress” still retain Festival eligibility.
– International Narrative and Documentary Feature Films that have been or will be exhibited theatrically at one or more private screenings for which tickets were or will not be made available to the general public retain eligibility for submission to the Festival in all categories.
– International Narrative and Documentary Feature Films that have been or will be released via any home video or public distribution platform (including, but not limited to, Bluray, DVD, digital download, streaming, or video on demand) or broadcast on television in any country prior to January 29, 2024 are not eligible for submission to the Festival unless the version submitted is significantly different from the version that was previously made available to the general public. The Institute shall have the sole authority and discretion to determine whether a Project that was previously released via any method described above has been changed significantly from the previously released or broadcast version. The Institute reserves the sole and exclusive right to determine a previously released or broadcast project’s eligibility, without refund of any or all submission fees previously collected from the Applicant, based on the content of the submitted version of the Project as compared with the previously released or broadcast version.
– International Narrative and Documentary Feature Films that have been or will be exhibited theatrically, broadcast on television, or screened at other festivals within their country of origin prior to January 29, 2024 are eligible for open submission to the Festival in their respective categories of submission.
– International Narrative and Documentary Feature Films that have been or will be exhibited theatrically, screened at other festivals, broadcast or streamed on television or the Internet anywhere outside of their country of origin prior to January 29, 2024 are not eligible for open submission to the Festival.
– Short Films do not need to retain any sort of premiere status. International Short Films do not forfeit their eligibility for submission to the Festival if they were previously exhibited theatrically or via any home video platform, made available for digital download, broadcast or streamed on television or the internet, or screened at any number of festivals anywhere in the world.
– Episodic Content Projects originating from outside of the United States remain eligible if any of the submitted content has been released only within their country of origin or not released at all via any platform (broadcast television, Blu-ray, DVD, streaming, VOD, etc.) prior to January 29, 2024.
– Projects completed prior to January 1, 2022, are not eligible for submission to the Institute for 2024 Sundance Festival consideration.
– Projects that have been submitted for Festival consideration in previous years are eligible for re-submission for 2024 Festival consideration only if the content of the submitted Project has changed significantly since the previous year in which the Project was submitted.
– Applicants submitting Projects that contain significant non-English spoken dialogue must provide on-screen English subtitles.

Submission Categories & Eligibility Requirements:

International Narrative Feature Films:
–  Any narrative or non-scripted work of fiction originating from outside of the United States with a running time of 50 minutes or more. Only films retaining international premiere status are eligible for open submission to this category. Completed films that have been or will have been exhibited theatrically (festival or otherwise) outside of the film’s country or countries of origin prior to January 29, 2024 are not eligible for open submission to this category. Films that have been or will have been made available to the general public in a non-theatrical form, either for free or for purchase, prior to January 29, 2024 are not eligible to submit to this category. This includes, but is not limited to, television broadcast, home video, or any digital or online platform in any country or countries.

International Documentary Feature Films:
– Any nonfiction film originating from outside of the United States with a running time of 50 minutes or more. If your documentary contains re-enactments or other fictionalized depictions of actual events, you may submit it to this category, but we will ultimately decide which of our Festival programs is best suited for your project, if accepted. Only films retaining international premiere status are eligible for open submission to this category. Completed films that have been or will have been exhibited theatrically (festival or otherwise) outside of the film’s country or countries of origin prior to January 29, 2024 are not eligible for open submission to this category. Films that have been or will have been made available to the general public in a non-theatrical form, either for free or for purchase, prior to January 29, 2024 are not eligible to submit to this category. This includes, but is not limited to, television broadcast, home video, or any digital or online platform in any country or countries.

International Short Films:
– Any film or video project originating from outside of the United States with a running time of less than 50 minutes, including credits. This includes scripted or improvisational fiction, nonfiction or documentary, experimental film or video, animation, music video, or any other short-form film or video project. In order to qualify as an International Short Film, at least half of the submitted project’s financing must originate from outside of the United States. Short films have no premiere requirements or prior screening restrictions that impact Festival eligibility and may have been screened at any number of festivals or other public theatrical exhibitions, broadcast or streamed on television or the Internet, and/or released via any home video or other public distribution platform anywhere in the world.

– Episodic Content:
Any live-action, documentary/nonfiction, or animation project presented in or intended to be presented in a multi-episode format. This includes pilots, pilot presentations, webseries, docuseries, limited series, anthologies, or any other film or video project that was created to unfold over multiple episodes. Episodic projects may originate from anywhere in the world and you may submit single or multiple episodes of the same project, as long as all episodes play continuously in one single video file for digital upload and do not exceed 10GB in size. They accept both short-form and long-form content, with no restrictions regarding minimum or maximum episode or series length. Projects originating from outside of the United States remain eligible if any or all of the submitted content has been released only within the project’s country or countries of origin or not released at all. If some but not all of the episodes have been exhibited theatrically or made available via any other public platform, you may only submit episodes that have not been exhibited theatrically or otherwise released to the public. For example, if the first season of your series is available online, you may only submit episodes from a subsequent season that have not been released in any form.

– New Frontier Projects:
A wide range of innovative works and immersive experiences will be considered for the Festival’s New Frontier program. These works may include VR/AR/MR/XR projects created for a variety of platforms, media installations, live cinematic performances, custom digital platforms, or any combination of those elements. Projects may have previously been exhibited or performed at other festivals, industry trade shows, and/or events/conventions and still retain their eligibility for submission to this category. However, we do take premiere status into consideration in the final selection process. If your project includes immersive, interactive, or live performance elements, you should select the “VR / XR / Immersive” category when you create your project page on FilmFreeway. If your experimental film or video project does not include any of these elements, please select one of the feature or short film categories listed above.

– Submission Fees & Deadlines:

Notification Date: December 4, 2023

We recommend filmmakers to read the full Rules and Regulations here: Official PDF File

To submit to the festival please go to: https://filmfreeway.com/Sundance

We remind readers that the Sundance Film Festival will take place from January 18 – 28, 2024 in person in Park City and Salt Lake City, as well as online.

To see other Call for Entries please follow the next link: “Call For Entries”.

These are five films you shouldn’t miss at the Cambodia International Film Festival which will take place from May 30 until June 4, 2023 in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Baby Queen illuminates the struggles and joys of becoming who you want to be, and what it means to carve out a safe space in a society that is at times cruel to those who are different. Candid and clear-eyed in its portrait of queer life, the film celebrates radical self-acceptance as a personal yet deeply political act.

Trailer:

Japan, 1944. Trained for intelligence work, Hiroo Onoda, 22 years old, discovers a philosophy contrary to the official line: no suicide, stay alive whatever happens, the mission is more important than anything else. Refusing to believe that World War II ended, Onoda continued to fight on a remote Philippine island until 1974.

Trailer:

On an impulse to reconnect with her origins, Freddie, 25, returns to South Korea for the first time, where she was born before being adopted and raised in France. The headstrong young woman starts looking for her biological parents in a country she knows so little about, taking her life in new and unexpected directions.

Trailer:

A mother refuses to speak about her childhood during the Cambodian genocide. Upset by her silence, her two sons decide to follow Antoine, a grandson of Armenian genocide survivors, photographing the ghosts of his ancestors in the Middle East, from Turkey to Iraq.

Trailer:

The odyssey of the Cambodian Royal Ballet and the Khmer classical dance. A millenary art and the symbol of a restored identity. A movie that captures history, emotion, expression and the beauty of hand gestures. A movie about movement and the story behind it.

Trailer:

For more information, please visit: https://www.cambodiaiff.com/

These are eight short films you shouldn’t miss at the Cambodia International Film Festival which will take place from May 30 until June 4, 2023 in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

In a world where you can rent everything from vending machines, a girl wants to be a guitarist, but people choose otherwise for her. (Cambodia2023)

Trailer:

A young Indigenous Bunong woman and her older brother spend one last day in their village, before moving to the capital city in search of a more prosperous life. While her brother is excited about the move, she senses a quiet desire to return to their long-gone village that was lost to the development of a nearby hydroelectric dam a few years earlier. (Cambodia2023)

Trailer:

A fateful encounter reconnects childhood friends Chakriya and Panha. Together, they dream of bigger things in the big city: Phnom Penh. As they save for their future, Chakriya and Panha lean on each other and their deaf friend Kosal, proving that love and perseverance move us through each season of life. (Cambodia2023)

Migo, a Linguistic student, goes back to his hometown to write about the language in the area that was not what it used to be. He sees fragments of his childhood friend Ami, who speaks a different language. The deeper Migo goes into the memories of the place, the more something in him tells why he has returned. (Cambodia2023)

Having to constantly negotiate his identity, a queer Cambodian American teenager finds home inside the water of his high school pool. (Cambodia2023)

Trailer:

After receiving a housewarming rug from his sister, a Cambodian adoptee discovers a dark history hidden underneath its surface. (Cambodia2023)

Trailer:

Among the tall buildings of the city, the lonely guard hides a beautiful field that no one knows, and meets an egret there, but the expansion of the city never stops. One day the field is destroyed, the egret escapes without a trace, he begins to see mysterious illusions. (Cambodia2023)

Trailer:

We Wear The Crown follows the Phnom Penh Crown’s Women’s football team, uncovering the challenges they face in an oppressed environment. Join Savin, Rong and Srey Rath as they fight for their dream to become professional football players. (Cambodia2023)

For more information, please visit: https://www.cambodiaiff.com/

Blueback directed by Robert Connolly will open the Seoul International Eco Film Festival which will take place from June 1 – 7, 2023 in Seoul, Korea.

Based on Tim Winton’s best-selling novel of the same title, Blueback is the story of Abby, who fights to save coral reefs and her mom Dora. The film takes us back to Abby’s childhood through several flashbacks. Abby gradually recalls her memories of Dora standing up against whale hunters and developers. She realizes that her mom’s persistent effort to engrave the beauty of ocean in her mind has become a force to live. While revealing how serious condition the marine ecosystem is under, the film consists of absolutely lyrical melodramatic images and lines. Although the underwater world seen through Dora and Abby’s eyes is fatally beautiful, it is turning into dangerous place owing to human cruelty and ignorance. Affirming love for each other midst their attempt to save the ocean and sea creatures, Abby and Dora are family and comrades at the same time. (SIEFF 2023)

Trailer:

About the director:
Robert Connolly is one of Australia’s most acclaimed and best-known filmmakers. His films such as PAPER PLANES, BALIBO and THE TURNING were a hit at the box office. Most recently he wrote and directed THE DRY.

For more information, please visit: https://en.sieff.kr/

We present the programme for the Nippon Connection Japanese Film Festival which will take place from June 6 – 11, 2023 in Frankfurt, Germany.

NIPPON CINEMA
#Manhole by Kazuyoshi Kumakiri, Japan 2023
A Far Shore by Masaaki Kudo, Japan 2022, German premiere
A Hundred Flowers by Genki Kawamura, Japan 2022, German premiere
Baby Assassins by Hugo Sakamoto, Japan 2021, German premiere
Baby Assassins 2 Babies by Hugo Sakamoto, Japan 2023, German premiere
December by Anshul Chauhan, Japan 2022, German premiere
Drive My Car by Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Japan 2021
Egoist by Daishi Matsunaga, Japan 2022, German premiere
I Am What I Am by Shinya Tamada, Japan 2022, German premiere
Lesson In Murder by Kazuya Shiraishi, Japan 2022, German premiere
Mondays: See You “This” Week! by Ryo Takebayashi, Japan 2022, German premiere
Mountain Woman by Takeshi Fukunaga, Japan, USA 2022, European premiere
My Small Land by Emma Kawawada, Japan, France 2022
Nabbie’s Love by Yuji Nakae, Japan 1999
Okiku And The World by Junji Sakamoto, Japan 2022, German premiere
Our Huff And Puff Journey by Daigo Matsui, Japan 2015, German premiere
PLAN 75 by Chie Hayakawa, Japan, France, Philippines, Qatar 2022, German premiere
Shin Ultraman by Shinji Higuchi, Japan 2022
Spring In Between by Rika Katsu, Japan 2022, International premiere
Straying by Rikiya Imaizumi, Japan 2021, German premiere
The Zen Diary by Yuji Nakae, Japan 2022, German premiere
Thorns Of Beauty by Hideo Jojo, Japan 2023, International premiere
To The Supreme! by Santa Yamagishi, Japan 2022, European premiere
Yudo by Masayuki Suzuki, Japan 2023, German premiere

NIPPON VISIONS – Features
Amiko by Yusuke Morii, Japan 2022, German premiere
Double Life by Enen Yo, Japan, China 2022, German premiere
Hoarder On The Border by Takayuki Kayano, Japan 2022, International premiere
Journey by Shogo Kiriu, Japan 2022, International premiere
Remembering Every Night by Yui Kiyohara, Japan 2022
Roleless by Yutaro Seki, Kentaro Hirase, Masahiko Sato, Japan 2022
Sayonara, Girls. by Shun Nakagawa, Japan 2022, European premiere
Scary Friend by Takara Mineo, Naohiro Takahashi, Japan 2022, European premiere
Single8 by Kazuya Konaka, Japan 2023, European premiere
The Song Of Rain by Tetsuichiro Tsuta, Japan 2021, German premiere
TOCKA by Yoshitaka Kamada, Japan 2022, International premiere
VATA by Takeshi Kamei, Japan, Madagascar 2022, International premiere
Your Lovely Smile by Kah Wai Lim, Japan 2022, German premiere

NIPPON VISIONS – Short Films
A Strand Of Regret by Hisato Michigami, Japan 2021, International premiere
Farewell Wedding Dress, Until We Meet Again by Kyusaku Ichida, Japan 2021, International premiere
Farewell, Family by Kohei Sanada, Japan 2018, European premiere
Great Society by Masanori Oe, Japan 1967
Kureru by Yuya Takeda, Japan 2022, International premiere
Layers by Takuya Uchiyama, Japan 2021, German premiere
Moon Night by Manaka Nagai, Germany 2022
My Baddest Spicy Cooking by Sakura Ueki, Japan 2020, European premiere
Oh! My Mother by Kohei Ando, Japan 1969
One Minute Walk To Love In Cosplay by Ryosuke Tanaka, Japan 2021, International premiere
Paludes by Tsuneo Nakai, Japan 1968
Passive Aggressive by Ere Nakada, Japan 2022, International premiere
Shagiri by Keitaro Fujimori, Japan 2022, International premiere
Shelter by Nobuhiro Aihara, Japan 1980
Silk & Rushes by Ryushi Lindsay, Japan 2023, World premiere
Theater by Yu Sakudo, Japan 2022, German premiere
They Are/Were Watching by Aki Hiraoka, Yasuharu Soshi, Japan 2022, International premiere
Tokyo Capsule Hotel by Emi Saito, Japan 2018, European premiere
Wedding Anniversary by Takafumi Sakabe, Japan 2021, German premiere
Why by Keiichi Tanaami, Japan 1975

NIPPON ANIMATION – Features
Future Boy Conan by Hayao Miyazaki, Japan 1978
Gold Kingdom And Water Kingdom by Kotono Watanabe, Japan 2022, German premiere
Lonely Castle In The Mirror by Keiichi Hara, Japan 2022, German premiere
Poupelle Of Chimney Town by Yusuke Hirota, Japan 2020
Sumikkogurashi: The Little Wizard In The Blue Moonlight by Takahiro Omori, Japan 2021, European premiere
Tekkonkinkreet by Michael Arias, Japan 2006
The Deer King by Masashi Ando, Masayuki Miyaji, Japan 2021

NIPPON ANIMATION – Short Films
BOTTLED INSECTS by Yuxin Gao, Japan 2022, International premiere
Carrots Don’t Wait by Lina Machida, Japan 2022, International premiere
In The Big Yard Inside The Teeny-Weeny Pocket by Yoko Yuki, Japan 2022
JOHNNY THE EEL by Naoyuki Niiya, Japan 2021, International premiere
Magnified City by Isaku Kaneko, Japan 2022, German premiere
Ogre, Curtain And Salt by Misa Nishihara, Japan 2022, German premiere
OTOHIME 20000 by Naoyuki Niiya, Japan 2018, German premiere
PIROPIROPU by Iyo Matsumoto, Japan 2022, International premiere
The Hole by Sawako Nakagawa, Japan 2022, International premiere
The Nighthawk Is Not A Hawk by Junjie Wang, Japan 2022, International premiere
The Tiny Hunter And The Giant Rat: Back To Otohime 20000 by Naoyuki Niiya, Japan 2022, International premiere
Those Scary Black Things by Daigo Shinkai, Japan 2022, International premiere
Tiger Is Strolling Around by Anastasiia Falileieva, Ukraine 2021
Tunnel Wandering by Zehao Li, Japan 2022, International premiere
Vision by Çağıl Harmandar, Japan 2022, International premiere
Wanna Be Reborn As A Mole On The Back Of The Unicorn’s Neck by Yuchen Liu, Japan 2022, International premiere
We’ll Water Them So They Don’t Fossilize And Also Expose Them To Light by Yuka Abe, Japan 2022, International premiere

NIPPON DOCS
A Son by Ryuichi Shimada, Japan 2022, International premiere
I Am A Comedian by Fumiari Hyuga, Japan, South Korea 2022, International premiere
Maelstrom by Mizuko Yamaoka, Japan 2022, German premiere
My Anniversaries by Sungwoong Kim, Japan 2021, European premiere
Ryuichi Sakamoto – Coda by Stephen Nomura Schible, Japan, USA 2017
Soup And Ideology by Yonghi Yang, Japan, South Korea 2021, German premiere
Tokyo Uber Blues by Taku Aoyagi, Japan 2022, German premiere
UMUI – Guardians Of Traditions by Daniel López, Japan 2022, German premiere

NIPPON RETRO
Army by Keisuke Kinoshita, Japan 1944
Carmen Comes Home by Keisuke Kinoshita, Japan 1951
Carmen’s Pure Love by Keisuke Kinoshita, Japan 1952
Morning For The Osone Family by Keisuke Kinoshita, Japan 1946
She Was Like A Wild Chrysanthemum by Keisuke Kinoshita, Japan 1955
Spring Dreams by Keisuke Kinoshita, Japan 1960
The River Fuefuki by Keisuke Kinoshita, Japan 1960
The Snow Flurry by Keisuke Kinoshita, Japan 1959
Twenty-Four Eyes by Keisuke Kinoshita, Japan 1954

NIPPON KIDS
Future Boy Conan by Hayao Miyazaki, Japan 1978 (German dubbed version)
Poupelle Of Chimney Town by Yusuke Hirota, Japan 2020 (German dubbed version)
Sumikkogurashi: The Little Wizard In The Blue Moonlight by Takahiro Omori, Japan 2021 (German live dubbing)

For more information, please visit: https://nipponconnection.com/en/start/

We take a look at the Asian films that will be screened at the Zlín Film Festival – International Film Festival for Children and Youth, which will take place from June 1 – 7, 2023 in Zlin, Czech Republic.

Arnold is a clever student who has won many academic awards. One day, he meets Bee who runs an underground business helping students cheat on their exams. Bee asks Arnold to join his cheating ring and offers him a lot of money. While Arnold considers working with Bee, many of his schoolmates, unhappy with their school’s disrespect of their freedom, organize a big protest.

Trailer:

A satirical story about Ashish, a so-called “lower caste” boy from the Dalit community in 1990s Maharashtra, who falls in love with his classmate Srushti, a girl from the so-called “upper caste” Brahmin community. We follow their story and the story of the dramatic socio-political transformations around them, their families, city, and India.

Trailer:

A desperate father sets out in search of a bizarre folk remedy to cure his daughter’s strange illness. Travelling thousands of miles to Tibet, there he encounters two simple Tibetan teenagers and convinces them to trade his tablet for their groundhog. From then on, the two sides engage in a battle for the groundhog.

Krisha is the daughter of the Yates, a nomadic tribe of the tundra. When her mother falls seriously ill, Krisha follows the words of the tribe’s shaman and sets out on a quest to ask for help from Red Bear, the sacred spirit and owner of the land.

Trailer:

Trailer:

Naima, a brave and determined girl, wants to help her poor Bangladeshi family financially, but her undeniable artistic talent is useless in this matter. With her father gravely ill, it seems that the only thing she can do is to leave her native village and throw herself into the whirlwind of big city Dhaka. But here she faces the same economic, social and gender inequalities as most young girls in Bangladesh.

Trailer:

More information: https://program.zlinfest.cz/en

We present a list of ten film festivals with open calls that will end next month. Hurry up! Don’t waste your time!

Although this list was intended for our Asian audience, filmmakers from other regions can benefit too. If you like our website don’t forget to follow us on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, and INSTAGRAM.

80th Venice International Film Festival
Date: August 30th – September 9th, 2023
Place: Venice, Italy
Deadline: June 1st, 2023 (Short Films)
Entry Fee: $ 70 – 80 Euros | Fees changes depending on the deadline
Category: Short Films
—–>Go to the Call For Entry

27th Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival
Date: November 8th – 19th, 2023
Place: Toronto, Canada
Deadline: June 5th, 2023
Entry Fee: $ 15 – 50 USD (Depending on the category and deadline)
Category: Short and Feature Films
—–>Go to the Call For Entry

80th Venice International Film Festival
Date: August 30th – September 9th, 2023
Place: Venice, Italy
Deadline: June 15th, 2023 (Feature Films)
Entry Fee: $ 150 – 175 Euros | Fees changes depending on the deadline
Category: Feature Films
—–>Go to the Call For Entry

66th Dox Leipzig – International Leipzig Festival for Documentary and Animated Film
Date: October 8th – 15th, 2023
Place: Leipzig, Germany
Deadline: June 15th, 2023
Entry Fee: $ 34 – 55 USD
Category: Short and Feature Films (Documentary and Animated Films)
—–>Go to the Call For Entry

71st San Sebastian International Film Festival
Date: September 22nd – 20th, 2023
Place: Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
Deadline: June 19th, 2023
Entry Fee: $ 70 – 200 Euros (Depending on the Film and Format)
Category: Feature and Short Films
—–>Go to the Call For Entry

19th Indie-AniFest – Korea Independent Animation Film Festival
Date: September 14 – 19, 2023
Place: Seoul, Korea
Deadline: June 19th, 2023 (Asian Short Films)
Entry Fee: FREE
Category: Asian Short Films (under 40 minutes)
—–>Go to the Call For Entry

28th Busan International Film Festival
Date: October 4 -13, 2023
Place: Busan, Korea
Deadline: June 21st, 2023 (Short Films)
Entry Fee: FREE
Category: Short and Feature Films
—–>Go to the Call For Entry

21st Tirana International Film Festival
Date: September 23rd – 30th, 2023
Place: Tirana, Albania
Deadline: June 23rd, 2023
Entry Fee: $18 – 55 USD (Depending on the category and deadline)
Category: Feature and Short Films
—–>Go to the Call For Entry

18th Sapporo International Short Film Festival & Market
Date: October 6th – 9th, 2023
Place: Sapporo, Japan
Deadline: June 30th, 2023
Entry Fee: $ 15 – 35 USD (Depending on the category and deadline)
Category: Japane Short Films | World Premiere (Under 30 minutes)
—–>Go to the Call For Entry

25th Bucheon International Animation Festival
Date: October 20th – 24th, 2023
Place: Bucheon, Korea
Deadline: June 30th, 2023
Entry Fee: FREE
Category: Short Animated Films
—–>Go to the Call For Entry

Tokyo FILMex International Film Festival
Date: November 2023
Place: Tokyo, Japan
Deadline: June 30, 2023 (International Films)
Entry Fee: FREE
Category: Feature Films (over 60 minutes)
—–>Go to the Call For Entry

For more open calls please visit this link: https://asianfilmfestivals.com/call-for-entries/

We take a look at the Asian short films that will be screened at the Vienna Shorts – International Short Film Festival which will take place from June 1 – 6, 2023 in Vienna, Austria.

In Competition

An earthquake interweaves unconnected worlds; objects suddenly manifest from nothingness and make a mountain grow. Hee-yoon Hahm’s masterfully hyperrealistic drawing style impressively brings these events to life, blurring the boundaries between imagination and the real world. Viewers are invited to plunge into a fascinating realm of fantasy and reality where the impossible becomes possible. (ll)

Trailer:

A floating dog, a talking fish from the test lab, and fourteen-year-old Jani smack-dab in the middle. In a dystopian world riddled with nuclear reactors and governed by military curfews, the teenager struggles through a life marked by surreal encounters and bleak realities. With plenty of color, shrillness, and noise, Stephen Lopez stages this fantastic story spawned by the political regime of the Philippines. (mm)

Trailer:

Yoko Yuki is one of the graduates of the Tokyo University of the Arts who aggressively break with a classical Japanese animation tradition and habitually ruffle some feathers. She describes her film as an experimental montage of diary-like sketches. The result is a rollicking, exuberant collection of animation sequences reminiscent of children’s drawings with a chaotic soundtrack and babble of voices. Anti-art as the recipe for success. (tr)

Trailer:

The abstract black-and-white animations play with the historic architecture of London, creating an ornate pattern full of visual poetry. Piano tunes mix with clouds of mechanic and organic sounds. Buildings and roads seem like a pulsating, ever-evolving organism that unifies past and future, immersing the viewers in a fascinating audiovisual experience. (ll)

Trailer:

Excavators and trucks have occupied the premises of a Singapore cemetery. A family is standing at the grave of a deceased relative. Next to them, a worker is preparing everything for the upcoming ceremony. He fetches a plastic bag with a number and a name, a red plastic bucket, and a tarpaulin. In a capitalist society, he must make room for consumerism—even if it means disturbing the dead. (mm)

Trailer:

To paraphrase Paul Celan’s poetry, words can be disappointing. Writers create texts, but according to Umberto Eco, texts are “lazy machineries” that require the collaboration of the reader to fill in the “gaps.” Misunderstandings are the result of different life experiences. When words cannot overcome thought barriers, music may circumvent logic as an immediate vibration and guide those who search for meaning. (ll)

More information: https://www.viennashorts.com/en

Tokyo High Tide directed by Hiroyasu Murakami will open the GINMAKU Japanese Film Festival which will take place from May 25 – 29, 2023 at the Cinema Houdini & Riffraff Zurich in Zürich, Switzerland.

Tokyo High Tide is a captivating portrayal of a changing Tokyo illuminating various issues facing Japan prior the 2020 Sommer Olympics like environmental destruction, aging of the society, poverty, etc. through the daily life of a homeless man in his mid-80’s. His home for more than 10 years is a hut at the tidal flats of the Tama River, where he takes care of abandoned cats, earning a living by collecting clams with his bare hands. By also looking into his at times turbulent life before settling down at the tidal flats once senses the passing of the time into a rapidly changing environment. (GINMAKU 2023)

Screenings:
May 25, 2023 | Thursday | Riffraff Zurich | 18:50 pm (Opening Night)
May 27, 2023 | Saturday | Cinema Houdini | 21:20 pm
May 28, 2023 | Sunday | Cinema Houdini | 12:00 pm

Trailer:

For more information, please visit: http://ginmaku-festival.com/