Festival Mal Del Cap Narratives Mal Dites Eivissa (11)

Festival start: 12 December 2025      Festival end: 30 April 2026

Mal del Cap opens the call for entries for its XI International Short Film and New Narratives Festival
Ibiza, July 21, 2025.– The Ibizan cultural association Mal del Cap, Cultura Mal Dita has opened this Sunday the call for entries for short films to compete in the XI International Short Film and New Narratives Festival “Mal del Cap, Narratives Mal Dites”, which, on this occasion, will change its format and will take place between December 2025 and April 2026.

The submission period runs from July 21 to September 1, 2025, and is open to filmmakers from all over the world. Works must be submitted in digital format and can be fiction, documentary, or animation. Selected films will be screened during April 2026 in different cultural venues across the island.

“Once again, we are looking for bold stories and ways of storytelling that break the mold, works that connect with people and are not afraid to experiment,” says Pedro López, Vice President of Mal del Cap and co-director of the event. “This festival is an open space for free creativity, for sharing and networking among the most underground proposals on the international scene.”

Once again, this festival —which started in 2014 and is one of the longest-running in the Pityusic Islands— features several competitive sections that will award 1,000 euros in prizes across the different categories: the Official Short Film Competition Section, the Youth Short Film Competition Section –awarded by young students from Ibiza–, the Sebas Parra Award for the best socially themed short –courtesy of the association La Guerrilla Comunicacional from Girona–, the Malalt Award –reflecting the wildest spirit of the association–, the Best Short Film in Catalan Award, and the Audience Award.

For more information about the rules, technical requirements, and entry forms, interested participants can visit the official website www.maldelcap.com or email info@maldelcap.com.

Cash Prizes: 1,000€

1st Prize in the Official Competition Section: €200 and trophy

1st Prize in the Youth Competition Section: €200 and trophy

“Sebas Parra” Award in the Official Competition Section for the best short film with social content, granted by the association La Guerrilla Comunicacional: €200 and trophy

“Malalt” Award in the Official Competition Section: €100 and trophy

Award for the Best Short Film in Catalan in the Official Competition Section: €100 and trophy

Audience Award in the Official Competition Section: €100 and trophy

FIRST.

The cultural association Mal Del Cap, Cultura Mal Dita de Eivissa (hereinafter MdC) will carry out a selection of short films, with the submission period running from July 21, 2025, to September 1, 2025, both dates inclusive. This is framed within the 11th International Short Film Festival “Mal del Cap”, aimed at all video creators who wish to participate and who register to take part in this competition by submitting their videos under the conditions detailed below.
The 11th Mal del Cap Festival will take place in Ibiza between December 2025 and April 2026, and the selected short films will be screened during April 2026.

SECOND.

“Mal del Cap” is the name of the International Short Film and New Narratives Festival organized by Mal del Cap, Cultura Mal Dita de Eivissa, with the aim of promoting the production and dissemination of audiovisual works that are difficult to access in the commercial sphere.
It is not only an exhibition platform for emerging creators, but also a competitive festival where the quality and creativity of the works will be the priority.

THIRD.

The participation of cinematographic and audiovisual works that will make up the Festival’s programming in its different sections will be chosen by the Festival Organization and its Selection Committee, composed of MdC’s Board of Directors and members of the association La Guerrilla Comunicacional, responsible for selecting short films in the “Sebas Parra” social content category.

FOURTH.

The Festival will feature the following sections:

Official Competition Section:
Short films of fiction, documentary, or animation in any digital production format may participate. Works must be submitted in digital format with a minimum quality of 720x576 and H.264 codec. They must be sent through the collaborating platforms, may not exceed 17 minutes in length, and must have been produced after January 1, 2024.

Youth Competition Section:
Short films aimed at a youth audience that promote values such as solidarity, integration, drug prevention, interculturality, or any subject of interest to young people that fosters social values related to the association. Works must be submitted in digital format with a minimum quality of 720x576 and H.264 codec. They must be sent through the collaborating platforms, may not exceed 15 minutes in length, and must have been produced after January 1, 2024.

“Sebas Parra” Award:
Short films with social content will be eligible for the “Sebas Parra Award” granted by the association La Guerrilla Comunicacional from Blanes, an entity twinned with Mal del Cap. It also organizes the annual Mostra Mal del Cap in Girona, where a selection of such films will be screened during the second term of 2025. Participation in this competition implies acceptance of the possible screening of all submitted works at the Mostra Mal del Cap in Girona, regardless of whether they are screened in Ibiza. Works must be submitted in digital format with a minimum quality of 720x576 and H.264 codec, may not exceed 17 minutes in length, and must have been produced after January 1, 2023.

FIFTH.

The Festival Organization will appoint the members of the Jury for the Official Competition Section, which will consist of at least five members. They will be individuals with no connection to the submitted films.
The jury for the “Sebas Parra” Award will be composed of members of La Guerrilla Comunicacional.
The juries’ deliberations will be secret, and decisions will be made by simple majority.
The Audience Award for the Official Section will be decided by the audience attending each short film screening.
Any operational conflict not foreseen in these regulations will be resolved by the Festival Management.
For the Youth Competition Section, the jury will be the young attendees at the screenings, through a popular vote.
All jury decisions are final and not subject to appeal.

SIXTH.

The design of these awards and their categories may be subject to change or modification at the discretion of the Organization, with the latest version published on the Festival’s official website.
Any of the awards may be declared void if the submitted short films do not meet the required quality standards.

SEVENTH.

To participate in the festival, the following conditions must be met:

Works participating in the Festival must be in Spanish or Catalan. Films whose original version is in another language must include embedded subtitles in Spanish or Catalan.

Registration will be done through the platforms enabled for this purpose, and works must be submitted for evaluation between July 21 and September 1, 2025.

Projection copies of selected short films must be sent before March 15, 2026.

Individual or collective filmmakers from any country may participate.

Short films may be fiction, documentary, or animation in any digital production format.

Works that do not guarantee correct technical projection, or those without a completed registration form or with incorrect data, will be rejected.

Preselection format: digital, minimum quality 720x576, H.264 codec, maximum duration of 17 minutes for the Official Section and Sebas Parra Award, and 15 minutes for the Youth Section. Files must be sent via one of the associated platforms.

Notification of selection: no later than March 1, 2026, the Festival Organization will inform applicants of their participation in the different sections.

The Festival will not pay screening fees for films participating in competitive sections.

The invitation for each selected film will be strictly confidential between the Festival Management and the producers or representatives of the invited film until the Festival decides to make an official announcement.

Subtitling of the copy will be the responsibility of the producers or representatives of the film.

All expenses related to the submission of short films or participation in the competition will be borne by the entity or individual submitting the film.

Press and publicity material: Along with the registration form, all participating works must send at least two photographs of different scenes from the film and any other informational or promotional material for the press and public, as well as any additional documentation about the film that enriches its dissemination. This material must be received by the Festival Organization no later than November 1, 2024.

Producers and directors of the short films grant exhibition rights within the Festival and authorize, by registering, all promotional actions by the authors and the Festival that may involve total or partial reproduction of their works or the photographs, frames, or posters submitted, for dissemination before or after the jury’s decision, as well as in cultural circuits in which MdC or any of the organizers participate, particularly in the Mostra Mal del Cap in Girona, after the festival, which screens a selection of socially themed shorts (whether or not selected in the Ibiza festival) in the context of the “Sebas Parra” Award.

The Festival reserves the right to make a digital copy of the selected works, guaranteeing, in all cases, the authors’ copyright and intellectual property, and reserving the right to screen them during the 11th Mal del Cap Festival and in the Mostra Mal del Cap in Girona or other cultural circuits in Ibiza, with prior notice to the filmmakers.

EIGHTH.

The Festival Management may withdraw any film that fails to comply with these regulations at any time.
Likewise, providing false production data may result in the film being removed from the competitive sections.
The Festival Organization will determine the order and screening date of each film.

NINTH.

The Organization reserves the right to add or modify awards in each category.

TENTH.

Participation implies full acceptance of these regulations.
In case of conflict regarding the interpretation of any Article or any aspect not covered in these regulations, the interpretation and decision of the Festival Management shall be final.

The original version of these regulations is available and updated on the official website: www.maldelcap.com