Premio IberShorts (1)

Festival Start: 06 März 2026      Festival Ende: 15 März 2026

The aim of IBERSHORTS is to give international visibility to fiction and animation short films produced in Ibero-American countries (including Portugal and excluding Spain).

IBERSHORTS is organized by Festival de Málaga in collaboration with Festhome and seeks to strengthen cultural and cinematic ties between these regions, offering a privileged platform within one of the most important festivals in the Spanish and Latin American film scenes.

To achieve these objectives, IBERSHORTS will take place as part of Festival de Málaga, which will celebrate its 29th edition from March 6 to 15, 2026.

The Official Jury of Short Films for the 29th edition of Festival de Málaga will award a prize to one of the five selected short films.

The jury’s decision will be final and will not require justification.

People with interests in the production, distribution, or any other form of exploitation or participation in the selected audiovisuals may not be part of the jury.

The award cannot be declared void or given ex aequo.

The jury agrees not to publicly express their views on the selection of audiovisuals for which they will issue their verdicts.

Festival de Málaga management may attend the jury’s deliberations and communications with a voice but no vote.

The jury will grant the following award: Silver Biznaga for Best Ibero-American Short Film.

Additionally, the five selected short films will be part of Málaga Short Corner, an initiative within MAFIZ / Spanish Screenings Content, where, in addition to screenings, they will participate in various industry activities.

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O Júri Oficial de Curtas-Metragens da 29ª Edição do Festival de Málaga concederá um prêmio entre os cinco curtas-metragens selecionados.

A decisão deste júri será inapelável e não precisará ser justificada.

Não poderão fazer parte do júri pessoas com interesses na produção, distribuição ou qualquer outro tipo de exploração ou participação dos audiovisuais selecionados no IBERSHORTS.

O prémio não pode ser declarado nulo nem atribuído ex aequo.

O júri compromete-se a não expressar publicamente suas opiniões sobre a seleção dos audiovisuais sobre os quais emitirá seu veredicto.

A Direção do Festival de Málaga poderá estar presente, com voz mas sem voto, nas deliberações e comunicações do júri.

O júri concederá o seguinte prêmio:

• Biznaga de Prata de Melhor Curta-Metragem Ibero-Americano

Além disso, os cinco curtas-metragens selecionados farão parte do Málaga Short Corner, iniciativa inserida no MAFIZ / Spanish Screenings Content, na qual, além das projeções, participarão das diversas atividades da indústria.

Only submissions made by the qualifying festivals using an exclusive registration code will be accepted.



1ST EDITION IBERSHORTS AWARD 2025

PARTICIPATION GUIDELINES


OBJETIVES

The aim of IBERSHORTS is to give international visibility to fiction and animation short films produced in Ibero-American countries (including Portugal and excluding Spain).

IBERSHORTS is organized by Festival de Málaga in collaboration with Festhome and seeks to strengthen cultural and cinematic ties between these regions, offering a privileged platform within one of the most important festivals
in the Spanish and Latin American film scenes.

To achieve these objectives, IBERSHORTS will take place as part of Festival de Málaga, which will celebrate its 29th edition from March 6 to 15, 2026.


REGISTRATION PROCESS

The network of qualifying festivals established for this purpose may register works after meeting the following requirements:

1. Each participating festival must submit two short films selected from its most recent edition: one awarded by the jury and another awarded by the public (or their equivalents), provided that they were created after January 1, 2025, and have not been commercially released in theaters, video, television, or VOD platforms in Spain.

2. Works of fiction and/or animation are accepted.

3. The maximum duration for short films is 30 minutes.

4. Works from any Ibero-American country, including Portugal (except Spain), or co-productions may be registered, as long as they have more than 50% of production and nationality from one of the mentioned countries.

To participate in the 1st edition of IBERSHORTS, registration is mandatory, and the entry form must be completed exclusively through FESTHOME (www.festhome.com), before the following deadline: November 30, 2025


Festhome Registration Procedure

Registration is free and can only be made through the invitation system (with a code) provided by Festhome to each qualifying festival.

1. Invitation Codes

a. Only applicants who have the registration code issued by Festhome will be able to complete the process.

b. This code is personal and non-transferable and guarantees exclusive access to invited films.

2. Works Already Registered on Festhome

When the film has been accepted to participate in the festival through Festhome, it does not need to be re-registered.

• The festival may request its final inclusion by writing to help@festhome.com, indicating the title.

3. IBERSHORTS Authorization Annex

All registered works must submit the annex titled “Authorization for Registration, Exhibition, and Acceptance of Terms for Audiovisual Work - IBERSHORTS Call for Entries” and upload it in the Documents section of the platform.


• For films already in the Festhome system, this annex must be submitted before validating the registration.

4. Availability Inquiries on the Platform

Qualifying festivals wishing to confirm if any of the selected short films are already in the Festhome system should send an inquiry to help@festhome.com

During the registration and/or selection process, and in line with Festival de Málaga’s commitment to gender equality and supporting women’s presence in film production, we will ask for the gender of participants in the projects to gather reliable and real statistical data on female participation in the audiovisual field.

Registration of an audiovisual work in IBERSHORTS implies full acceptance and compliance with these Participation Guidelines and their possible annexes.


SELECTED FILMS

A selection committee designated by Festival de Málaga and Festhome will select five finalist short films from all the submissions by the qualifying festivals.

As the host festival and official interlocutor, Festival de Málaga will extend an invitation to each of the selected films.

This information will be strictly confidential between the festival management and the film representatives until the festival decides to announce it publicly.

The five finalist short films will be screened during the 29th edition of Festival de Málaga, and will be subject to the same obligations, compensations, and deadlines as other audiovisual works selected in any of its competitive
sections (see https://festivaldemalaga.com/el-festival/bases-de-participacion/).

Additionally, the five selected short films will be part of Málaga Short Corner, an initiative within MAFIZ / Spanish Screenings Content, where, in addition to screenings, they will participate in various industry activities.


VERSIONS

All screening copies of the selected audiovisuals must be presented in the original version:

• With Spanish subtitles, if the original version is not in this language (either partially or fully).

• With English subtitles, if the original version is in Spanish.

If the original version of the film is in other languages, it must be subtitled in Spanish or English.

In these cases, the festival will provide additional electronic subtitles in the missing language at its own expense, upon receiving the subtitle list in an online, downloadable file, which will be for internal and confidential use only.

The screening of these electronic subtitles will be performed by the festival’s subtitling service.


CIRCULATION OF COPIES AND FORMAT

The selected audiovisuals must deliver their screening copy in DCP format.

The Digital Cinema Package (DCP) screening copies must strictly comply with DCI regulations and will remain in the possession of Festival de Málaga until the last scheduled screening of the festival. The company that registered the selected film must certify the proper functioning of the copy (audio/video synchronization, color, etc.), by testing it before sending it to Málaga. The company must also provide the technical department with the necessary KDMs (with a minimum window of 48 hours before the screening and 24 hours after), covering the costs related to generating them and managing new KDMs (or DKDMs) if necessary.

The festival reserves the right to reject copies that, after necessary technical checks, are deemed unsuitable for screening and will provide a technical report to the film representatives and request a new copy.

The selected films must send the festival their screening copies before January 23, 2026, choosing one of the following methods:

•Physical DCP delivery along with a digital backup file.

Shipping costs (transport and insurance) for the copy’s dispatch from the place of origin to the festival’s copy storage will be covered by the production companies.

For participating films, production companies must deliver the screening copies to the festival before January 23, 2026, and must communicate the shipment date and method of transport to the organization.

All copies of participating audiovisuals must include return details. Returns will be made within 15 days after the festival concludes. The festival will cover the return shipping costs.

The festival’s insurance covers risks of fire, loss, theft, damage, and destruction of the copy during the period between arrival at the festival and its return. The maximum period for filing a claim regarding a copy will be three months from the return date.

• Digital DCP submission via a platform designated by the festival. In this case, the DCP must be uploaded uncompressed, and ZIP or RAR files will not be accepted, by January 23, 2026. In addition to the DCP, a H264 backup file (not exceeding 50 GB) must also be uploaded, along with English and Spanish SRT subtitles, with a minimum resolution of full HD. Companies have seven (7) days from receiving access to the platform to upload the film.

The organization will destroy these files once the edition ends.


JURADOS Y PREMIOS

The Official Jury of Short Films for the 29th edition of Festival de Málaga will award a prize to one of the five selected short films.

The jury’s decision will be final and will not require justification.

People with interests in the production, distribution, or any other form of exploitation or participation in the selected
audiovisuals may not be part of the jury.

The award cannot be declared void or given ex aequo.

The jury agrees not to publicly express their views on the selection of audiovisuals for which they will issue their verdicts.

Festival de Málaga management may attend the jury’s deliberations and communications with a voice but no vote.

The jury will grant the following award: Silver Biznaga for Best Ibero-American Short Film


IMAGE CREDITS

Participation in Festival de Málaga / IBERSHORTS allows the inclusion of the IBERSHORTS 1st Edition 2025 logo at the beginning of the audiovisual works. This logo and caption may also be included in press inserts and mentioned in various audiovisual media that feature the film prior to or during the festival. For correct logo placement, which may not be altered or adapted, the festival’s corporate identity manual is available at www.festivaldemalaga.com or can be consulted in case of doubts.


CATALOG, MATERIALS, AND DOCUMENTATION

Once an audiovisual is confirmed to participate, an exclusive online form for each film will be sent, which must be completed with necessary content for programming.

The requested documentation for the official catalog, programming guide, and website (synopsis, biofilmography, artistic and technical details, director and film photos, trailers, and other audiovisual materials) will be taken from this form, which must be completed by January 23, 2026.


PRESS AND PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS

The festival’s Press Department will contact the selected audiovisuals to supervise and coordinate the materials included in the selection form, which will be accessible to the media and accredited personnel via the Press Room on the website.

By accepting their participation, the production companies and/or distributors and/or representatives of the selected
short films authorize the use of one or more excerpts from their title for distribution as promotional material in any media.


ADDITIONAL PROVISIONS

These participation rules may be complemented or modified by the festival’s management and/or Festhome with any other annexes deemed necessary, prior to the start date of the 29th edition of Festival de Málaga.

The interpretation of these rules will be the exclusive responsibility of Festival de Málaga and Festhome management.

CONTACT

FESTIVAL DE MÁLAGA
REGISTRATION DEPARTMENT

Teatro Cervantes
Calle Ramos Marín S/N. 29012. Málaga (España)
T. (+34) 952 224 109
inscripciones@festivaldemalaga.com
festivaldemalaga.com
malagaprocultura.com

For inquiries or technical issues related to material submission:

help@festhome.com
(+34) 683 158 619
festhome.com