Tampere Film Festival 2027: €5,000 Short Film Grand Prix, International Entries Close 3 November
2027 International Competition closes on 3 November 2026
Tampere Film Festival in Finland invites animation, documentary, experimental and fiction short films from around the world for its 2027 International Competition. The deadline is 3 November 2026, and the 57th festival takes place 10–14 March 2027 in Tampere. A major distinction is that the International Competition, National Competition and Genre Competition have different entry rules: international filmmakers should use the 2027 International Competition submission form rather than assume that a Finnish-language competition automatically includes foreign projects. All qualifying films must have been completed on or after 1 January 2025.
No premiere requirement, but films must be under 30 minutes
The international strand accepts completed shorts running at most 30 minutes including credits, regardless of whether the work is fiction, non-fiction, animation or experimental cinema. A premiere is not required, so a film previously screened elsewhere may qualify; however a particular film can be submitted only once. English dialogue or English subtitles are required throughout the submitted preview. A work in progress is acceptable only if approved directly by the festival in advance, not automatically whenever the applicant indicates that post-production is nearly complete.
The correct price now is €20, not the expired early-bird rate
The organiser's official 2027 table lists an early-bird price of €16 through 1 September, a regular price of €18 through 1 October, and the final-stage submission fee of €20 through 3 November 2026. Earlier rates have expired as of 23 October. Fees are not refunded under any circumstances. Applications may be submitted through either FilmFreeway or Shortfilmdepot; a working preview link, film credits and a 300-dpi still image must accompany registration. Selection will be announced by the end of January 2027.
Prizes and selection are distinct from screening honoraria
The 2027 International Competition provides a Grand Prix of €5,000 and the festival's Kiss trophy. It also offers category prizes of €1,500 each for fiction, animation and documentary, plus special mentions, a nominated European Short Film Awards candidate and an audience award. These are competitive awards, not payments to everyone whose film is accepted. Some winning categories can create eligibility for Academy Awards consideration under that organisation's rules, but a competition win is not an automatic Oscars nomination or award.
Film rights, online circulation and producer protection
Tampere has operated since 1969 and is one of northern Europe's important established short-film festivals, offering screenings, filmmaker conversations and industry events. The festival supplies one representative of a selected film with three hotel nights, but it does not pay screening fees, and travel from another country is not necessarily covered. The rules allow use of a promotional excerpt of up to 10% or three minutes, whichever is shorter. Separately, films may enter its Finland-geoblocked online screenings or industry library with the filmmaker's agreement. Rights holders should check exclusivity clauses, territories and festival availability before accepting. The official contact is films@tff.fi.
Official organiser application, rules and supporting sources
Checked 23 October 2026. Confirm final fees, country/timezone, individual rights and delivery conditions in the original application before uploading. Where a source is inaccessible from outside, rely on the organiser's own live form.