It's a short film festival, entirely free. Concept is simple: to propose a short film of 2 min 20 on a imposed theme each year.
The ambition is to support video creation and to encourage the emergence of new talents.
This very short format is explained by determination to reduce constraints of movie making to the maximum and to be the most accessible possible, that makes it possible to propose an opportunity to create.
To participate, you just have to submit your movies on this website that broadcasts all shorts in competition.
This Contest is open to all individuals, no matter your country.
Minors must obtain permission from a parent or guardian to enter the Contest. The Organiser may require written parental consent before awarding a prize.
To participate, you must register on www.festivalnikon.fr/en during call for films period, then complete your profile, information about your film and upload it before closing date for entries.
No other way of participation will be taken into account (sending a DVD, by mail, transfer link, Youtube link, multi-festival website...).
To stay informed, you can subscribe to our newsletter, follow us on Instagram Twitter or Facebook and pre-register as soon as possible on the website to become a participant.
To take part in the 15th edition, you must send your films via the festival website only before January 10, 2025 noon (12:00 France time). No other means of participation will be taken into account.
The time of receipt of your registration on the dedicated server and the time of start of the file upload are taken as proof, and it is not necessary for the film to be validated by the organization before this deadline. It may take several days for all the films received to be examined.
The last step of the entry form invites you to check your film and validate it.
In the last few days before closing, it is possible that the video player displaying your film for validation suffers from a large number of downloads at the same time (black screen, no sound, jerky image, etc.).
What to do if you encounter this problem?
Simply check the source file you're sending carefully, and if it doesn't have these problems, we invite you to confirm the upload.
If a problem is identified by our team, we'll check it during the viewing process to validate your film.
You have to submit as many videos as they would like, as long as they are related to the theme. Each director can upload as many videos as they would like, as long as they are related to the theme and duration.
The length of the video must be between 120 and 140 seconds including credits. As video players used to show films sometimes round length up to the next second, an additional second will be tolerated.
No exclusivity is imposed by the festival, however to guarantee that the works submitted are recent, the first broadcast or streaming of the video on any platform must not be earlier than 1 January 2023.
A French version or version subtitled in French of the work must be submitted to be eligible for the following awards and prizes: Grand Jury Prize, Media Award, Best Director, Best Photography, Best Actress, Best Actor, Best Sound, Best Student Film and Audience Award.
An English version or version subtitled in English of the work must be submitted to be eligible for the Best International Film Award.
The film must not involve third parties directly or indirectly without their authorization. Furthermore, the film must respect the law, public order and not be contrary to public decency.
See our technical recommendations and the rules for more information.
No, the selection is made by the pre-selection committee on the basis of the following criteria :
- The relevance of the video to the theme of the Competition
- The quality and originality of the script
- Technical quality, photography and direction
- The personal appreciation
Votes are limited to the Public Prize, they don't enter into selection or designation of other prizes.
It's not forbidden to include violence or nudity in your movies, however some rules must be respected to validate online broadcast and to ensure that potential viewers of your work are warned.
Proposed content must not contain pornographic messages or incite to crime, hate, violence, suicide and racism.
If your content contains scenes that are unsuitable for all audiences, we recommend that you include a warning introduction message to alert viewers. Finally, an age restriction can be imposed by the organization directly on video player to provide an additional level of protection and prevent distribution of this content to vulnerable audiences.
To take part as a director under 18, you need to obtain a signed authorization from your legal representative, which must be provided if requested by the organization.
If you wish to involve minors in your film:
If you want a child to take part in the project, you naturally need to start by asking the child's legal representatives for authorization. You'll also need to provide them with the script, as well as an explanation of what the child will have to do, how much he or she will be paid, and the shooting schedule.
As a reminder, here is the fixed and regulated hourly rate imposed in France for child labor in cinema:
- Under 3: One hour's work per day, with a compulsory break after half an hour's work.
- 3 to 5 years: Two hours' work per day, with a compulsory break after one hour's work.
- 6 to 11 years: Three hours' work a day (four during vacations) with a compulsory break after one and a half hours' work.
- 12 to 16 years: Four hours' work a day (six during the vacations), with a compulsory break after two hours' work.
It is also important that a person designated by the project owner and the child's legal guardians provide permanent supervision, that filming does not interfere with the child's schooling, and that health and safety conditions are fully respected.
To find out more, please consult the relevant articles of the French Labor Code concerning child labor in the film industry:
www.legifrance.gouv.fr
If upload of your film doesn't not work, check that your file respects recommendations and try again with a better internet connection, wired if possible.
If it still doesn't work, contact us at contact@nikonfilmfestival.fr : we'll tell you alternative procedure to follow.
Yes, it is quite possible to submit your film to other festivals during or after the Nikon Film Festival.
There is no imposed exclusivity, we invite participants to share these films as much as possible.
The Jury's decisions will be based primarily on the following criteria :
- Appropriateness of the theme
- Quality and originality of the script
- Quality of direction and acting
- Technical quality of image and sound
- Personal appreciation and emotions
Evaluation of the films in competition is a whole, no criteria has priority over another.
A preselection of 50 films will be selected by a committee made up of several members of the Organiser’s staff and industry professionals.
This list of committee members will be publicly announced at the same time as the preselection of films on the Internet.
The pre-selection of the 50 finalist films aims to represent as best as possible the diversity of views proposed each year on a common theme. The choice of this list is made in 3 steps that we explain below.
Preamble: the number of votes or views has no influence on the selection. The different stages are based solely on the qualities of the films in competition, without distinction of amateur/professional status and consideration of the team they are made up of.
1st stage: The members of the festival's organization view all the films in competition to make an initial selection of several hundred films for the second stage. This selection can vary between 300 and 500 films.
2nd step: each member of the pre-selection committee receives a list of 100 films or 200 films according to their availability to evaluate them on the same criteria as the members of the jury. This step is carried out individually and remotely.
A first deliberation is carried out to validate the films to be sent in step 3.
3rd step: a selection of 150 to 200 films (between 6 and 8 hours) is screened in a cinema to deliberate and validate the list of 50 finalists.
It is on this selection of 50 films that the jury bases itself to award the different prizes for which it is responsible. For the other prizes (International Prize, Media Prize, Gross Talent Prize and Audience Prize), this selection has no impact.
This pre-selection committee is composed of members of the organization and professionals from the audiovisual sector. Its exact composition will be revealed at the same time as the list of finalist films.
The selection criteria are the following (in no order of importance): quality of the script, photography, interpretation, direction, editing, sound, emotion, originality and relevance of the film to the theme.
The pre-selection of the 50 finalist films is made to prepare public screenings and deliberations of the main jury.
The Audience Award, International Award and Sens Critique Selection are not concerned by this selection. All eligible films in competition can win.
The award for Best Student Film is designated by the main Jury from the shortlist of finalists. The jury's decisions will be based primarily on the same criteria as the other main prizes. The participant's status as a student or young graduate of less than one (1) year as of the closing date of the entries will also be taken into account.
You want to add your school to the list ? Please contact us by email.
To support a movie, you have to click on the "support this movie" button available on the movie page, located below the video player. To vote, it is necessary to log in or create an account in the window that will open.
To create an account, there are 2 possibilities: by Google connect, or by email, in which case you have to activate your account by clicking on the link received by email.
Each voter can only vote via the "support this film" button once per film throughout the voting phase. There is no limit on the number of films that can be supported.
The Audience Award aims to encourage discovery of films in competition, and to reward a film via online voting. This award is not limited to the Selection: all films in competition are eligible.
The Audience Award is given to the Entrant whose film achieved the highest score based on the following calculation formula:
Score = ((1 x N1) + (1.25 x N2) + (1.5 x N3) + (2 x N4) + (2.5 x N5))
N1 = number of votes submitted by a voter who supported one (1) film in competition
N2 = number of votes submitted by a voter who supported between two (2) and five (5) films in competition
N3 = number of votes submitted by a voter who supported between six (6) and ten (10) films in competition
N4 = number of votes submitted by a voter who supported between eleven (11) and twenty (20) films in competition
N5 = number of votes submitted by a voter who supported more than twenty-one (21) films in competition
The minimum number of supporting votes to be eligible for the Audience Award is set at 50% of the average number of supporting votes for all films. In case of a tie between several Entrants, the jury will designate the winner.
The International Award is open to all, and the only condition for entry is that the film must be accessible to English-speaking audiences.
Regardless of the language of the original version, an English or English-subtitled version of the work must be submitted to be eligible for the International Competition.
It is not necessary to submit two different versions; a single upload is sufficient. In the case of a film in French, adding English subtitles directly embedded in the file allows you to be eligible for both competitions.
To sum up:
- Your film is only available in French = national competition
- Your film is only available in English = international competition
- Your film is available in French and English (audio or subtitles) = both competitions
- In the case of a silent film or a film without dialogue = both competitions
For more information, please visit this page.
Nikon Film Festival invites representatives of the film press to award a prize to one of the 50 finalist films.
This specific jury dedicated to the Critics' Choice Award is composed of journalists who agree to share their views on the films in competition, their decision is based on the same technical and artistic criteria as the main jury.
Your thumbnail can be customized at any time once your entry has been validated. It will be used as a preview image in the integrated video player. It should preferably have the following characteristics:
- A resolution of 1 280 x 720 (with a minimum width of 640 pixels)
- Be imported in image formats such as JPG, GIF or PNG
- Not exceed 2 Mo in size
- Be in 16:9 format, as this is the most commonly used format in YouTube players and previews.
You can change it at any time by logging into your director's area.
Yes, you need to upload a vertical poster in the particitation form to have a visual that presents your film on the various pages of the site that list the films and series in competition. This poster can also be used by the Nikon Film Festival to publicize selected films and other events.
Here are the recommended formats for optimal display:
- 4:5 vertical format (1080x1350 px)
- 10 Mb maximum
You can modify it at any time by logging into your director's area.
For series, only one poster is required
You can download the logo and the official poster in our press area.
Yes, the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for post-production or the creation of all or part of the images and music of a proposed work is tolerated. It must, however, be clearly and prominently mentioned in the film's credits to inform the viewer.
We encourage filmmakers to use content modification or generation tools in an innovative and responsible way. This use will also be mentioned to the pre-selection committee and jury, as this criterion is likely to be considered in deliberations.
To comply with YouTube rules, you must specify whether your content is modified or synthesized. This includes realistic sounds or visuals created with AI or other tools. If you select “Yes”, a label will be added to your content to inform the viewer.
Origin of this generated content may be requested for any verification of compliance with third-party intellectual property rights. It is therefore essential to check conformity of the tools used for this purpose.
Warning: in the event of doubt or undeclared use, the participation may be refused.
No, we recommend that you use an original composition or royalty-free content. For this second option, please ensure that web and cinema distribution is authorized, as some royalty-free content is not suitable for all uses or formats.
⚠️ If you wish to include copyrighted content in your video, you must request prior authorization or verify the rights of use associated with this work. In case of a claim, you may be asked to hide or replace the copyrighted music. As a reminder, you alone are responsible for the rights associated with your works.
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The Nikon Film Festival broadcasts all movies via the YouTube video player, without monetization so without any advertising.
In the majority of cases, this content uses original music and images or licenses to justify webcasting. However, it can happen that certain films contain content protected by copyright that has not been justified or is awaiting verification, in which case the copyright holders are able to force ads and recover all associated revenues.
This is a common rule on YouTube, and the Nikon Film Festival does not have any power to remove these automatic advertisements. The only solution is to contest these claims by providing proof, which is what we try to do for all concerned content.
The number of videos viewed on the Nikon Film Festival website is not displayed in real time, but is updated every 60 minutes.
YouTube regularly readjusts the number of video views to ensure that it is as close to reality as possible. It then removes incorrect views that do not come from a real user or do not reflect the genuine interest of a real user. These can be fraudulent, artificial (robots or looped playback) or even involuntary (duplicates, unidentified views).
Examples of incorrect video traffic:
- Automated or incentivized view generation from third parties, including optimization services and those claiming to be legitimate ad networks.
- Looped or accelerated playback, too short a duration, etc... anything that leads to an artificial increase in views.
YouTube's systems analyze traffic to your videos to determine whether it's valid or not, regardless of where the traffic comes from or how it's generated. Don't worry, this is a normal, automatic process carried out by the view verification algorithm on all videos.
It's important to understand that this doesn't necessarily mean you're using abusive methods, as there are many robots constantly circulating on the YouTube platform, generating artificial views independently of the creators or the channel. For more information on how views are counted, see the following question.
Youtube counts views according to three main criteria: time, IP address and cookies.
Youtube systematically checks views. It uses complex algorithms to count views of more than 30 seconds. The counter is automatically triggered while monitoring the person viewing the video. Automatic playback is not taken into account.
With IP address control: Youtube counts only one view for each device, regardless of the number of viewers.
The view counter can be stopped at any time to update the exact number of views, but also to check for artificial views. The counter stops for the first time, usually when a video reaches its first 300 views. After that, the counter updates every two or three hours.
To check that metrics are real and accurate, YouTube may slow down, interrupt or modify the counting of interactions, or even ignore low-quality plays. Nikon Film Festival website, for its part, displays number of views communicated by YouTube and updates it every 15 minutes.
The directors and co-directors of the finalist films selected for the Short Film Competition (50 films) and Mini-Series Competition (5 series) will be eligible for assistance from the CNC TALENTfund for Internet video creators .
These grants are awarded by the CNC on the basis of a decision by the President, following the opinion of the commission, which comes after a pre-selection procedure by readers. There are 5 committees a year, one every two months, with a break during the summer. Applications are made online only, using a form to be completed.
The creation grant supports the production of projects in all formats (short, medium and feature films, as well as web series) up to a maximum of €30,000.
Channel support is aid for the production of content and also for editorial and promotional expenses. It should enable your organisation to become more professional, and requires you to have thought through a real long-term strategy for the channel's existence, as well as a 6-month financing plan. This is aid for the launch of a new channel or the development of an existing channel. This aid is capped at €50,000 and is calculated on the basis of an estimate and a business model provided by the project owner. Please note that the proportion of public funding may not exceed 50% of the total provisional budget, in accordance with European regulations.
This new competition is aimed at filmmakers for whom the 2min20 format is too short, or simply those for whom series is an ambition.
To take part, you need to respect exactly same constraints as short film competition, i.e. a length of 2min00 to 2min20 and respect for imposed theme.
To be eligible for this category, however, you need to send :
- 6 episodes of 2min20 each (i.e. 14min00 in total)
To validate the mini-series format, these videos must have a narrative link between them.
Films entered in the Mini-Series competition will not be entered in the Short Film competition, and vice versa. It is permitted to enter both competitions with separate works only. The theme does not have to be central to the story, nor does it have to appear in every episode.
A pre-selection of 6 mini-series will be announced in March 2025, at which point the teams concerned will be eligible for the CNC TALENT. Finally, a dedicated award for Best Mini-Series will be announced at the ceremony at the Grand Rex.