Australian film festivals, sorted by what's next.

Festival

November

Entries

Opens Jan · Closes June/July

Fees

~$13–$25 USD

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Max 20 minutes (inclusive of credits). Must be completed within the prior 2 years. Categories include National, Local ACT, First Nations and Animation.

• Shorts
• Animation
• First Nations
• Local / state-made

Festival

November

Entries

Opens May · Closes August

Fees

Free for Australian & First Nations entrants (waiver via email)

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Australia's oldest and largest queer film festival. Features, shorts and documentaries covering LGBTQIA+ themes.

• Features
• Shorts
• Documentaries
• LGBTQIA+

Festival

Oct / Nov

Entries

Opens early year · Closes Aug/Sept

Fees

~$30–$60 AUD

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Horror, dark fantasy and extreme genre cinema. Features (60–120 min, Australian premiere) and shorts (15 min or less, Victorian premiere). Strict anti-AI policy.

• Features
• Shorts
• Genre (sci-fi, fantasy, cult)
• Horror

Festival

Oct / Nov

Entries

Opens Nov · Closes Sept 1

Fees

~$20–$40 AUD

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Global pioneer in smartphone cinema: all entries must be shot 100% on phones or tablets. Features, shorts, micro-shorts and youth categories.

• Features
• Shorts
• Youth & students
• Smartphone filmmaking

Festival

January

Entries

Opens June · Closes Sept–Oct

Fees

~$45–$75 AUD

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Academy Award® accredited and BAFTA qualifying. Max 35 minutes. Australian premiere required; the film cannot have screened publicly online or on television.

• Shorts
• Academy Award® qualifying
• BAFTA qualifying

Festival

January

Entries

Opens Feb · Closes Dec 4

Fees

$25 AUD standard ($15 student)

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Short films judged live outdoors by industry celebrity panels. Over $30K in cash and prizes. Includes Emerging Filmmaker (18 and under) and Mental Health categories.

• Shorts
• Youth & students
• Cash prizes

Festival

February

Entries

Opens April · Closes Oct

Fees

~$25–$60 USD

Submit via

FilmFreeway

One-off creative non-fiction. Features (60 min or longer) compete for a $10,000 cash prize; Australian shorts (30 min or less) compete for $5,000. Sydney premiere required.

• Features
• Shorts
• Documentaries
• Documentary
• Cash prizes

Festival

February

Entries

Opens Feb · Closes Nov/Dec

Fees

~$35–$60 AUD (strictly no fee waivers)

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Held at Palace Cinemas James Street. Open to Australian and international shorts, animation, documentaries and scripts. Strictly no fee waivers.

• Shorts
• Documentaries
• Animation
• Screenplays
• Independent cinema

Festival

February

Entries

Opens June · Closes Dec 1

Fees

~$25–$45 AUD

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Open-air vineyard festival. Categories for South Australian, national Australian and international shorts. Max 15 minutes.

• Shorts
• Local / state-made

Festival

Feb / March

Entries

Opens Sept · Closes Dec

Fees

Shorts ~$30 AUD · Features ~$50 AUD

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Presented by Queer Screen, the premier LGBTQIA+ festival in NSW. Features the My Queer Career competition for Australian shorts (over $16,000 in prizes). No Sydney premiere needed for shorts.

• Features
• Shorts
• LGBTQIA+
• Cash prizes

Festival

February

Entries

Opens August · Closes Dec 1

Fees

~$15–$35 AUD

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Celebrates stories made in Western Australia. Features, shorts and student works shot in WA or created by WA key creatives.

• Features
• Shorts
• Local / state-made
• Youth & students

Festival

March

Entries

Opens May · Closes October

Fees

~$25–$45 AUD (waivers for First Nations & diverse creators)

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Celebrates Australian, Aotearoa NZ and Pasifika women and gender-diverse filmmakers. Key creative roles must be held by women or gender-diverse people. Generative AI banned.

• Women & gender-diverse

Festival

April / May

Entries

Opens Sept · Closes Jan

Fees

~$35–$65 AUD

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Sci-fi, fantasy, cult and thriller genre films. Features compete for the $10,000 Fantastic Film Prize. NSW and VIC premieres required for features.

• Features
• Genre (sci-fi, fantasy, cult)
• Cash prizes

Festival

April / May

Entries

Opens Aug · Closes Jan

Fees

Shorts ~$30–$50 USD · Features ~$50–$80 USD

Submit via

FilmFreeway

AACTA Award-qualifying for features. Queensland premiere preferred. Includes SIPFest (beachfront shorts), web series (no premiere needed) and Script-to-Screen competitions.

• Features
• Shorts
• Series & web series
• Screenplays
• AACTA qualifying

Festival

May / June

Entries

Opens Oct · Closes mid-Jan

Fees

100% free ($0 fee)

Submit via

Direct portal (festival website)

One of the world's leading animation-only festivals. Student, Australian and international animation categories. Submissions go directly through the festival website.

• Animation
• Animation
• Youth & students

Festival

May / June

Entries

Opens Sept 1 · Closes late Jan

Fees

~$40–$60 AUD

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Academy Award® qualifying for the Australia's Top Short Films competition. Max 40 minutes. Fiction, documentary, animation, comedy and music videos. Victorian premiere required.

• Shorts
• Documentaries
• Animation
• Music videos
• Academy Award® qualifying

Festival

June

Entries

Opens Oct · Closes late Feb

Fees

~$45 AUD flat fee (free for First Nations & Screenability)

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Features, documentaries and shorts (under 40 min). NSW premiere strictly required for features. Home of the Academy-qualifying Dendy Awards and the $20,000 Documentary Australia Award.

• Features
• Shorts
• Documentaries
• Academy Award® qualifying
• Cash prizes

Festival

July

Entries

Opens June · Closes May

Fees

~$25–$65 USD

Submit via

FilmFreeway & Festhome

Comprehensive documentary festival running physical and on-demand screenings. Features, shorts, video essays and music docos.

• Features
• Shorts
• Documentaries
• Documentary

Festival

July

Entries

Opens Sept · Closes April 1

Fees

Shorts ~$30–$45 USD · Features ~$50–$65 USD

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Independent, documentary and hybrid cinema. WA premiere required. Features dedicated "WA Made" short film sections.

• Features
• Shorts
• Documentaries
• Independent cinema
• Local / state-made

Festival

Aug / Sept

Entries

Opens Feb · Closes June 1

Fees

~$50–$90 USD

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Features, documentaries, shorts, VR and music videos. Must meet Significant Australian Content (SAC) or French co-production criteria. WA premiere required. Hosts the $100,000 AUD Film Prize.

• Features
• Shorts
• Documentaries
• Music videos
• VR / XR
• Cash prizes

Festival

August

Entries

Opens March · Closes May

Fees

~$20–$40 AUD

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Dedicated exclusively to regional filmmakers: at least two key creatives (writer, director or producer) must reside in regional Australia. Max 40 minutes.

• Shorts
• Regional filmmakers

Festival

August

Entries

Opens Jan · Closes May

Fees

Shorts ~$57–$115 AUD · Features ~$86–$143 AUD

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Features and shorts (Academy-qualifying). Strict Victorian premiere required: the film cannot have screened in Victoria in any form, or online in Australia. Must be completed within the prior 18 months.

• Features
• Shorts
• Academy Award® qualifying

Festival

September

Entries

Opens March · Closes June

Fees

~$15 USD standard ($10 student)

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Shorts (under 30 min) from Australia and South-East Asia. Features screen non-competitively at the Deckchair Cinema. Pays selected shorts a $100 AUD screening fee.

• Shorts

Festival

September

Entries

Opens Oct/Feb · Closes June/Aug

Fees

~$25–$50 USD

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Counter-culture, experimental, transgressional and micro-budget cinema. Features the Take48 challenge and experimental shorts.

• Shorts
• Experimental & underground
• Independent cinema

Festival

October

Entries

Opens Nov · Closes May/June

Fees

Shorts $40–$70 AUD · Features $80–$130 AUD

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Features, documentaries, shorts (under 40 min), series and XR. South Australian premiere preferred. DCP delivery preferred.

• Features
• Shorts
• Documentaries
• Series & web series
• VR / XR

Festival

October

Entries

Opens Feb · Closes July

Fees

Shorts $30–$60 USD · Features $45–$75 USD

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Features, documentaries, shorts (under 30 min), music videos, surf/eco films and screenplays ($750 cash prize). Northern Rivers premiere preferred.

• Features
• Shorts
• Documentaries
• Music videos
• Screenplays
• Surf & environment
• Cash prizes

Festival

October

Entries

Opens Feb · Closes June/July

Fees

~$30–$50 AUD

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Max 30 minutes. Focus on uplifting, perspective-shifting and heartwarming narrative and documentary shorts. No strict premiere requirement.

• Shorts
• Documentaries
• Uplifting stories

Festival

April (SWIFF) / Oct (Nextwave)

Entries

Opens June · Closes October

Fees

Low / free

Submit via

FilmFreeway

Regional youth filmmaking festival for ages 10–25. Short films must be under 5 minutes and incorporate the annual compulsory items and themes.

• Shorts
• Regional filmmakers
• Youth & students