"Cinema without borders, Voices without limits"
Creativity is to discover a question that has never been asked. If one brings up an idiosyncratic question, the answer he gives will necessarily be unique as well.
BAFF
About Us
Our path, our passion, our festival
The festival selects works across various formats and themes. The Berlin Aurora Film Festival is more than just a competition. Your participation can be an important step in your professional trajectory and a way to truly present your story.

Join us-and let your film or screenplay become part of a vibrant and multifaceted cinematic event that will give birth to a new generation of art.
The Berlin Aurora Film Festival was founded as a platform for contemporary films and screenplays to receive the attention and recognition they deserve. Our goal is to showcase the best of what's emerging in global cinema today and to discover new creative voices for a wider audience.

The festival is inspired by Berlin's cultural energy and the city's passion for new art-and brings this atmosphere online. The festival brings together directors, screenwriters, and filmmakers from a wide range of genres, approaches, and cultures. Participation provides the opportunity to present your work to a wider audience; the works of participating and winning artists will be available for online viewing on the festival website.
Our event is March 5, 2026.
Season December 1, 2025 - March 5, 2026
Dates of the event:
Early deadline - for those who want to be among the first.
December 22, 2025 - January 17, 2025
The main deadline is the optimal time for submitting works.
January 18, 2025 - February 6, 2026
Late deadline - for those who missed out earlier but still want to get into the program.
February 7, 2026 - February 28, 2026
March 5, 2026
The festival nominations:
  • Narrative Feature
    A feature film with a storyline and characters.


    • (Duration: 60+ minutes)
  • Narrative Short
    A short film with a completed plot.


    • (Duration: up to 60 minutes)
  • Documentary Feature
    A feature documentary (real events/people, research on a topic).

    • (Duration: 60+ minutes)
  • Documentary Short
    Short documentary (real events/people, research on a topic).

    • (Duration: up to 60 minutes)
  • Original Concept
    Original project idea/concept (unique concept, world, character, format).

    • (Duration: any)
  • Experimental Feature
    An experimental feature film (unconventional form, structure, and film language).

    • (Duration: 60+ minutes)
  • Experimental Short
    Experimental short film (unconventional form, structure, and film language).

    • (Duration: up to 60 minutes)
  • Inspirational Film
    A film that inspires (a strong message, hope, overcoming, human values).

    • (Duration: any)
  • Student Film
    A work created by the student/as part of their studies (can be of any genre).

    • (Duration: any)
  • Animation Film
    Animated film (2D/3D/stop-motion, etc.).


    • (Duration: any)
  • Feature Script
    Feature film script.



    • (50–180 pages)
  • Short Script
    Short film script.



    • (up to 50 pages)
  • Author/Director
    Author's nomination (recognition of the author/director/screenwriter for style, voice and contribution).
  • Pilot/Web/Tv Series
    A pilot or episode of a web/TV series (or a series proposal).


    • (Duration: 10–60 minutes)
  • Music Video
    Music video.



    • (Duration: 2–7 minutes (longer if part of a concept).
  • LGBTQ+ Film
    A film with an LGBTQ+ theme or created by LGBTQ+ authors (any genre).

    • (Duration: any)
Step by step
01
The author uploads their work through the platform, choosing the appropriate category (feature film, short film, script, etc.).
The work undergoes a quick technical check, and the applicant receives an automatic confirmation of acceptance of the application.

📌 Time: the application is submitted at any time during the acceptance of works (usually several months).
02
After the acceptance stage is completed, the works are distributed among the jury members and experts. The evaluation takes place remotely, taking into account artistic value, originality, execution and compliance with the category.

📌 Duration: from 2 to 4 weeks, depending on the volume of applications.
03
All selected participants receive a letter of congratulations and an official finalist laurel. The list of finalists is also published on the festival website and in social networks.
Each finalist receives a digital certificate and can use the laurel to promote their project.

📌 Time: 1-2 weeks before the announcement of the winners.
04
The finalists are assessed again - now the jury forms the final shortlist and determines the winners in each nomination. The process is completely confidential, the jury does not reveal its decisions until the awards ceremony.
05
The final day of the festival is an online awards ceremony, during which the winners are announced, fragments of the works are shown, and video messages from the participants are published.
All winners receive digital diplomas, official laurels of the winners, as well as personal publications on social networks and on the festival website.

📌 The ceremony is held in the format of an online presentation + email notification.
06
After the ceremony, the winners are provided with media materials (laurel, diploma, press release), and the festival also makes reposts and publications about the awarded works.
Conditions of participation in the Berlin Aurora Film Festival
Please, read the rules and terms before submitting your application, you can ask any questions you are interested in: berlinauroraff@gmail.com
By submitting your work for consideration by the Berlin Aurora Film Festival, you confirm that you have read and fully understood these Terms and Conditions of Participation and voluntarily agree to be bound by all provisions set out below. This consent constitutes a legally binding agreement between you and the festival organisers.
• Works submitted to the festival must be fully completed at the time of submission. You may submit either the final commercial version of the project or the director's cut (if any) - at your discretion.
• All materials must be submitted as a direct link to the video (e.g. Vimeo, YouTube). Please ensure that the link is active and the password (if any) works at the time of submission. Works with broken or expired links may be rejected without consideration.
• All works submitted in a language other than English must be accompanied by embedded or separate English subtitles. Works without English translation will not be accepted for consideration.
• All paid registration fees are non-refundable and non-transferable to third parties, regardless of selection or participation results. This applies to all categories and stages of application.
• The festival reserves the right to use elements of your materials (including trailers, fragments, posters, synopses and images) to promote the event in any media formats, including social networks, the website, press releases and partner resources.
• Such materials may be used both before and after the festival, exclusively for non-commercial, informational and advertising purposes.
• By submitting your work, you confirm that you have all necessary rights to the film, script and related materials.
• The participant is fully responsible for compliance with copyright and related rights, as well as for resolving all legal claims related to the submitted work.
• The festival organizers are not responsible for disputes arising from violations of third party rights. All such conflicts are resolved exclusively between the relevant parties.
• The dates, format and program of the festival may be changed, postponed or cancelled by decision of the organizing committee. Participants will be provided with relevant information within a reasonable time.
• The organizing committee reserves the right to disqualify any work, the content of which is considered offensive, violating the law, ethical standards or the goals of the festival.
• It is understood that not all submitted works will be selected for participation in the competitive or non-competitive program. The selection is made by independent jury members at their professional discretion and cannot be appealed.
1. The evaluation of the submitted works is carried out by an independent jury consisting of professionals in the field of cinematography, screenwriting and related disciplines.
2. The jury members are appointed by the festival organizing committee and undertake to maintain objectivity, confidentiality and professionalism in the evaluation process.
3. The jury's decisions are final and are not subject to discussion or revision.
4. The jury has the right to disqualify works if it considers their content to be inconsistent with the festival's ethical standards or the law.
5. The organizers reserve the right not to disclose the composition of the jury without the consent of its members.
LET`S CREATE TOGETHER!
Berlin Aurora Film Festival
10115 Berlin
Germany
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