FESTIVAL CORTO CIUDAD REAL (28)

Festival start: 22 June 2026      Festival end: 27 June 2026

Festival that is celebrated in CIUDAD REAL from June 23 to 27 2026.

This year celebrates its 28th Edition. It is a Municipal Festival in which €12,500 in prizes are distributed.

The Official Section is made up of 15 works that compete for the different awards of the Jury and Public

The Parallel Section is made up of the works that will be screened during the first 3 days of the celebration and compete for four prizes from the public.

The projections are held outdoors in different spaces of the city with free admission where the public has a leading role since it awards half of the Festival prizes, 6 out of 12.

In addition to the prizes by modality, different special prizes are awarded such as:

Awards and Public Mentions in both Sections
Young Director Award for directors under 35 years of age
Best Director Award
"Ciudad Real Deporte" Award

Cash Prizes: 12,500€

The prizes awarded by the Jury and the Public are:

- Best Fiction Short, endowed with € 1,500 and a Trophy.

- Best Documentary Short, endowed with € 1,000 and a Trophy.

- Best Animation Short, endowed with € 1,000 and a Trophy.

- Best Local Short, endowed with € 700 and a Trophy.

- Young Director for the best short finalist directed by authors under 35 years of age, endowed with € 600 and a trophy.

- Audience Award for the most voted NON-LOCAL work during the OFFICIAL SECTION screenings, endowed with € 600 and a trophy.

- Best Director, for the best finalist work directed by a woman endowed with € 600 and a trophy.

- Local Mention of the public, to the most voted local work during the projections of the OFFICIAL SECTION endowed with a trophy and without economic amount.

- "Ciudad Real Deporte" (Ciudad Real Sport) Special Award, sponsored by the Patronato Municipal de Deportes (Sports Board of Ciudad Real), endowed with € 500 €.

The works of the OFFICIAL SECTION, in addition to the option to prizes have an endowment of € 300 in expenses generated by attending the festival.

Attendance to the Festival is compulsory.

The works selected in PARALELL SECTION will be elegible for a Special Audience Mention of € 300 for each of the three days of screenings.


The selected short films will be screened in the Parallel Section and the prize will be awarded by the audience.


The financial endowments and the amount of the prizes will be made effective in a single payment, after the celebration of the Awards Ceremony and closing of the Festival, once the winners have provided the data requested for this purpose.

The organization assumes that the people who register the shorts must necessarily hold the rights to exhibit the works they represent, as well as the authorization to receive the award. In any case, the organization disclaims any liability that may arise from the violation of this base.

The organization may use fragments of the selected works to promote them and the festival.

The winning titles will be obliged to include the prizes obtained in this contest in their press and advertising dossiers of the short film.

CALL FOR ENTRIES FOR THE 28TH CIUDAD REAL SHORT FILM FESTIVAL 2026

RULES OF PARTICIPATION

FIRST.- PHILOSOPHY AND PURPOSE

The City Council of Ciudad Real, through the Department of Youth, is opening the Call for Entries for the 28th Short Film Festival, a competitive process aimed at recognizing and encouraging creativity in the world of short films and establishing our city as a leader in this field. The Call for Entries for the 2026 Festival is hereby published and will be governed by these rules.

The purpose of this Call for Entries is to award various prizes in the world of short films in order to recognize and encourage creativity, as well as to support their production and distribution.
SECOND.- AWARD PROCEDURE.

The award procedure will be based on a competitive process, comparing the submitted works. A ranking will be established among them, and those works receiving the highest scores from the jury, based on the criteria outlined in this call for entries, will be awarded, subject to the available budget.

THIRD.- FUNDING

A total of €11,900.00 will be allocated to this call for entries, charged to budget line no. 2312 48003 “Competitive Grant for Short Film Festival Awards” of the City Council of Ciudad Real, extended for the 2026 fiscal year.

FOURTH.- LEGAL FRAMEWORK

• Regulations Governing the General Bases for Granting Subsidies by the City Council of Ciudad Real and its Autonomous Agencies, approved in an extraordinary plenary session on January 20, 2025.
• Royal Decree 887/2006, of July 21, Regulations of the General Subsidies Law.

• Law 38/2003, of November 17, General Subsidies Law.

• Law 7/1985, of April 2, Regulating the Bases of Local Government.

• Law 39/2015, of October 1, on the Common Administrative Procedure of Public Administrations.

• Consolidated Text of the Law Regulating Local Finances, approved by Royal Legislative Decree 2/2004, of March 5.

FIFTH.-DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION OF WORKS

The deadline for submission of works will be 30 calendar days from the day following the publication of the summary of the call for proposals in the Official Gazette of the Province of Ciudad Real through the National Database of Subsidies, as established in Article 20 of Law 38/2003, General Law on Subsidies.
SIXTH.- DATES

The 28th edition of the Ciudad Real Short Film Festival 2026 will be held from June 22nd to 27th, 2026.

SCHEDULE:
- SUBMISSION OF WORKS: 30 calendar days from the day after the publication of the summary in the Official Gazette of the Province (BOP).

- PUBLICATION OF TITLES PARTICIPATING IN BOTH SECTIONS OF THE FESTIVAL: OFFICIAL AND PARALLEL: May 20th.

- SCREENINGS: The short films in the PARALLEL SECTION will be screened on June 22nd, 23rd, and 24th. The works in the OFFICIAL SECTION will be screened on June 25th and 26th, where the public can cast their votes.

- FINAL DECISION, AWARDS CEREMONY, AND CLOSING OF THE 28TH EDITION: June 27th.
SEVENTH. - MODALITIES AND SCOPE OF PARTICIPATION

Three MODALITIES of participation are established:

- FICTION: Fiction works on any theme.

- DOCUMENTARY: Documentary works on any theme.

- ANIMATION: Works on any theme created using any animation technique.

The festival's scope is European and Latin American.

EIGHTH. - SECTIONS

Two sections are established:

- OFFICIAL SECTION, a competitive section where 15 works from the different modalities will be selected to compete for the awards. Of these 15 titles, 4 will be FICTION works, 4 DOCUMENTARY works, 4 ANIMATED works, and 3 works directed or produced by local authors in any modality.

- PARALLEL SECTION, works selected for screening during the first three days of the festival, where the audience can choose their favorite short film each day. The work that receives the most votes in each session will receive a Special Mention endowed with €300.
NINTH. - SELECTION COMMITTEE AND JURY

All submitted works will be viewed by a Selection Committee comprised of City Hall technical staff and professionals from the film, audiovisual, and cultural sectors. This Committee will select the works that will be included in the Official Section and the Parallel Section.

The awards and mentions given to the finalist works in the Official Section will be awarded by a Jury composed of independent professionals from the film, audiovisual, and cultural sectors. Their decisions will be final.

The Audience Award and Local Mention are exceptions and will be awarded based on votes cast by those attending the Official Section screenings. The ranking of the votes will be determined by the highest arithmetic mean, calculated by dividing the total score obtained by the number of voters.

The Jury's decision and the rest of the prizes and mentions will be announced during the Awards Ceremony on June 27th.
TENTH. - AWARDS AND SELECTION REQUIREMENTS

Both the Selection Committee and the Jury will select the works based on their quality and suitability.

All selected works will receive, upon request, a Certificate acknowledging their selection or award, as well as the Festival's laurels.

Works in the OFFICIAL SECTION, in addition to being eligible for awards, will receive a grant of €300 to cover expenses incurred by a representative attending the festival.

The awards granted by the Jury and the Audience are:
- Best Fiction Short Film, awarded €1,500 and a trophy.

- Best Documentary Short Film, awarded €1,000 and a trophy.

- Best Animated Short Film, awarded €1,000 and a trophy.

- Best Local Short Film, awarded €700 and a trophy.

- Young Filmmaker Award for the best short film directed by filmmakers under 35 years of age, awarded €600 and a trophy.

- Audience Award for the non-local film with the most votes during the Official Selection screenings, awarded €600 and a trophy.

- Best Director Award for the best short film directed by a woman, awarded €600 and a trophy.

- Local Audience Mention for the local film with the most votes during the Official Selection screenings, awarded a trophy but no cash prize. - Special “Ciudad Real Deporte” Award, sponsored by the Ciudad Real Municipal Sports Board, with a prize of €500. The selected short films will be screened in the Parallel Section and the award will be given by the audience.
The prize money will be paid in a single installment after the Awards Ceremony and closing of the Festival, once the winners have provided the required information.

The organizers assume that those submitting short films must hold the exhibition rights for the works they represent, as well as the authorization to receive the prize. In any case, the organizers are exempt from any liability that may arise from a breach of this rule.

The organizers may use excerpts from the selected works for the promotion of the films and the festival.

Winning films are required to include the awards received at this competition in their press kits and promotional materials.

The prizes will be subject to withholding tax in accordance with current Spanish tax legislation.
ELEVENTH.- PARTICIPATION AND CONDITIONS FOR WORKS

• Participation in this Festival is open to works produced in Europe and Latin America, as well as works directed by authors born or residing in Europe and Latin America.

• Works must not exceed 30 minutes in length, including credits. Only works produced after January 1, 2024, that have not competed in previous editions of this Festival will be accepted.

• Each participant may submit a maximum of 2 works.

• A work may not be submitted in more than one category.

• Works must be submitted entirely in Spanish or in their original version with Spanish subtitles.

In order to reach the widest possible audience and to provide special attention to people with hearing disabilities, subtitling of the work in a way that is legible to this group is recommended.

All works selected in both SECTIONS will be screened during the week of the Festival.
TWELFTH. - REGISTRATION

Registration will be done exclusively online through the following platforms:
- FESTHOME
- MOVIBETA

In addition to the short film, the following must be uploaded to the platform:

- Official poster of the film.

- Digital copy of the director's ID.

- Participants applying for local awards must provide proof of birth or residency in the municipality of Ciudad Real with the corresponding certificate.

We recommend submitting any relevant information (links to trailers, the film's website, the director's filmography, press kit, etc.).

Postal or in-person submissions will not be accepted.

Online registration fees are the responsibility of the participants.

THIRTEENTH - OBLIGATIONS AND RIGHTS OF THE SELECTED PARTICIPANTS

The works selected in the different SECTIONS of the Festival are required to send the Festival a Screening Copy for exhibition with a minimum resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels and embedded Spanish subtitles in the case of productions in a language other than Spanish.
Representatives of the Official Selection Short Films must be present at the location agreed upon by the Festival Organization on the afternoon of Saturday, June 27th. This is a mandatory requirement for receiving the corresponding award, as well as for receiving the €300 reimbursement for expenses incurred due to attendance.

To process the payment, the following documentation must be submitted:

• Third-party information form and bank account ownership certificate, which can be obtained electronically via the following link: https://www.ciudadreal.es/sede-electronica/210-sede-electronica/23318-comunicacion-de-datos-bancarios-ficha-de-tercero.html (The holder of the third-party information form and the bank account must be the same person whose name appears on the winning film).

• Certificate of being up-to-date with payments to the Spanish Tax Agency (Agencia Estatal Administración Tributaria).

• Certificate of being up-to-date with payments to the Spanish Social Security (Seguridad Social).
Representatives of the films in the Official Selection will have their accommodation covered by the Organization in a city hotel, with one double room per film, on a full board basis, from the day of their short film's screening until the Awards Ceremony.

The presence of a representative of the short films in the Parallel Selection will also be appreciated for their presentation during the public screenings. Their accommodation will be covered by a double room on a full board basis for the day of the screening.

FOURTEENTH. - PUBLICATION

The call for entries will be published in the National Database of Subsidies, and an extract thereof in the Official Gazette of the Province of Ciudad Real, in accordance with the procedure established in Article 20.8 of Law 38/2003, of November 17, General Law on Subsidies.
The full text of this call for proposals can be accessed on the website: www.festivalcortocr.com and in the National Database of Subsidies (http://www.pap.minhap.gob.es/bdnstrans/index).

In addition to the standard publicity required for all calls for proposals subject to the General Subsidies Law, it will be given the widest possible dissemination to all those who may be interested.

FIFTEENTH.-INSTRUCTING BODY, MANAGING BODY, JUSTIFICATION, AND APPLICABLE REGULATIONS.

In accordance with Article 24.1 of Law 38/2003, the General Subsidies Law, the Head of the Youth and Childhood Service of the City Council of Ciudad Real is designated as the investigating body for this call for proposals. The investigating body will carry out, ex officio, all actions it deems necessary to determine, understand, and verify the requirements for participation in the competition and eligibility for the prizes.
The managing body for this call for entries is the Councillor for Youth, Childhood, and Sports. For any questions or clarifications regarding this call for entries, interested parties may contact the Department of Youth and Childhood of the City Council of Ciudad Real, located at Calle Barcelona, 4, 13004 Ciudad Real, by telephone at +34 926 251 741 and +34 926 251 750, or by email: info@festivalcortocr.com; direccion@festivalcortocr.com; comunicacion@festivalcortocr.com.

For the purposes of justifying the awards, the provisions of Article 30.7 of the General Subsidies Law will apply.

The awarding of prizes will be governed by the provisions of the general rules for the granting of subsidies of the City Council of Ciudad Real and its autonomous bodies, in this call, in Law 38/2003 General of Subsidies and its development provisions, in the remaining rules of administrative law that, where appropriate, are applicable and, failing that, the rules of private law will apply.
SIXTEENTH. - PARTICIPATION

Participation in the Festival implies full acceptance of these rules. The organizers will have the final say on any matter not covered by them.

This is made public for general information.

Ciudad Real, March 2026

The Honorable Mayor-President. The Head of the Support Unit for the Local Governing Board