15 Mar 2026
Call for entries
20 May 2026
Final deadline
29
days
29 May 2026
Notification date
05 Jun 2026
05 Jun 2026
Festival start: 05 June 2026 Festival end: 05 June 2026
A festival born from creativity
In this second edition, we once again chose to focus on what inspires us most: talent. As part of a creative exercise within the Art Direction course, fourth-year Animation students, guided by our director Blanca Bonet, immersed themselves in a process of exploration full of references, concepts, and possibilities. From that journey, several proposals emerged, which were first voted on by the students themselves and ultimately gave rise to this year’s concept and official poster.
The inspiration for this edition comes from nature: those wild yet mythical worlds that inhabit our collective imagination. References such as Princess Mononoke helped us understand the relationship between the magical and the ancestral, between stone-carved figures that seem to belong to a culture yet to be discovered, and the inevitable question of who, or what being, could have created such extraordinary structures.
The invitation behind this concept is clear: step into this forest with us, lose yourself among its shapes, and let yourself be surprised as you discover the incredible talents that will bring the festival to life.
The general awards of the Official Section are:
Best Director Award
Best Original Screenplay Award
Best Original Score Award
Best Editing and VFX Award
Best Animation Award
Best Art Direction Award
Jury Award for Best Short Film of the Year
The Special Section awards are:
Special Madrid Award
Special International Award
Special Alumni Award
RULES AND REGULATIONS OF THE 2nd ANIMAFEST 2026
1. CALL FOR ENTRIES
UDIT, University School of Design, Innovation and Technology, announces the 2nd edition of the ANIMAFEST UDIT short film competition, the UDIT Animation Short Film Festival.
2. DATES
2.1 Opening of submissions: the competition will open on March 15, 2026. From that date onward, participants may upload their short films to the ANIMAFEST UDIT account on the Festhome platform: https://festhome.com/
2.2 Closing of submissions: the deadline for participants to submit their short films is May 20, 2026, inclusive.
2.3 Announcement of finalists: on May 29, 2026, the finalists of the competition will be announced, both in the Official Section and in the Special Categories. The announcement will be made through UDIT’s social media channels and website, as well as at a physical event at UDIT.
2.4 Announcement of winners and awards gala: on June 5, 2026, the winners of the competition will be announced during the ANIMAFEST UDIT awards gala.
3. PARTICIPANTS
3.1 Participating works must be uploaded to the FESTHOME platform before May 20, following the platform’s instructions. Short films by UDIT students and alumni may be uploaded free of charge.
3.2 ANIMAFEST UDIT has 5 competition categories: two in the Official Section and three in the Special Section.
3.2.1 Official Section
3.2.2 Eligible to participate in the festival’s Official Section are students enrolled during the 2025/2026 academic year at UDIT University School of Design, Innovation and Technology, from any degree program offered by the University School, including ESTEC and UDIT Oviedo, whether with an original short film, a project or Final Degree Project short film, or a finalist short film from Animaweek 2026.
3.3 Special Section
3.3.1 Special Madrid Category: students enrolled during the 2025/26 academic year in any intermediate, higher vocational, or university-level Animation program within the Autonomous Community of Madrid may participate.
3.3.2 Special International Category: students enrolled during the 2025/2026 academic year in a university degree or master’s program, either within or outside Spain.
3.3.2 Special Alumni Category: any UDIT/ESNE alumni may participate with works created during the 2025/2026 academic year.
4. SHORT FILMS
4.1 The running time of the short films may not exceed 10 minutes, including titles and credits.
4.2 The subject matter of the submitted works is open.
4.3 The short films must be exported in H264, MP4, and in 1920 x 1080p or 1280 x 1080p format, with a 48 kHz audio sampling rate whenever possible.
4.4 The official language of the submitted short films shall be Spanish. If they contain dialogue in any other language, they must include Spanish and/or English subtitles.
4.5 The number of short films each participant may submit is unlimited.
4.6 The submitted short films must be original and previously unreleased, and must have been produced after June 18, 2025.
4.7 In order to complete the data required by Festhome, candidates must create an account on Festhome (https://festhome.com/
) and complete a series of sections: title, synopsis, technical sheet, director’s bio-filmography, as well as attach the short film, at least 3 stills from the short film, a poster, and a photo of the film’s director.
4.8 Disqualification. The Festival Management reserves the right to fully or partially disqualify any work whose information is incomplete.
4.8.1 Short films containing xenophobic, sexist content, or content that incites hatred, ideological, physical or intellectual discrimination, the use of illegal substances, or violent behavior may be disqualified by the Festival Management.
4.9 Participation in the competition implies authorization to upload the work, in whole or in part, to the festival’s online platforms and social media channels (YouTube, Instagram, X, etc.) for dissemination and promotional purposes. This authorization may be voluntarily revoked by contacting the Festival Management at animafest@udit.es
.
5. CATEGORIES
5.1 OFFICIAL SECTION
5.1.1 Any short film made by a UDIT student during the 2024/2025 academic year, as well as the finalist short films of ANIMAWEEK 26, may compete in the Official Section.
5.2 SPECIAL SECTION
5.2.1 All participation requirements listed in section 3 apply to the Special Section.
5.2.2 Special Madrid Award
5.2.2.1 The Special Madrid Award aims to encourage and discover new talent among students in the Autonomous Community of Madrid.
5.2.2.2 Works produced during the 2025/26 academic year by students enrolled in intermediate, higher vocational, or university-level programs at any institution in the Community of Madrid may be submitted.
The deadline to upload the short films to the platform is May 20, 2026.
5.2.2.4 Entry in this category is incompatible with the Official Section.
5.2.3 Special International Award
5.2.3.1 The Special International Award will be granted to any animation short film made during the 2025/26 academic year by undergraduate or master’s students from any country, following the procedure described in section 4.7.
5.2.3.2 The submission deadline is also May 20. The short films must be subtitled in Spanish or English.
5.2.3.3 Entry in this category is incompatible with the Official Section.
5.2.4 Special Alumni Award
5.2.4.1 The Special Alumni Award will be granted to any animation short film made during the 2025/26 academic year by ESNE/UDIT alumni, following the procedure described in section 4.7.
5.2.4.2 Entry in this category is incompatible with the Official Section.
6. AWARDS
6.1 The awards will be presented during the awards gala to be held on June 5, 2026 at the UDIT Auditorium (Av. Alfonso XIII, 97).
6.1.1 Winners will only be eligible to receive the award if they attend the gala either in person or online, or send a video accepting the award to animafest@udit.es
.
6.2 Official Section
6.2.1 Each Official Section award will include a physical trophy and an accrediting diploma. In addition, the awards may be associated with other prizes granted by UDIT and/or the festival’s partners, which will be revealed before May 20, 2026.
6.2.2 Awards by category in the Official Section
6.2.2.1 Each category in the Official Section includes one award for the best submitted work.
6.2.2.2 The awards in the Official Section categories are:
Best UDIT Short Film Award
Best Animaweek Short Film “Mask” Award
6.2.3 General Awards of the Official Section
6.2.3.1 All works submitted to the Official Section are eligible for the general awards.
6.2.3.2 Each general award will have 5 finalists.
6.2.3.3 The general awards of the Official Section are:
Best Director Award
Best Original Screenplay Award
Best Original Score Award
Best Editing and VFX Award
Best Animation Award
Best Art Direction Award
Jury Award for Best Short Film of the Year
6.3.3.4 All short films, both from the Official and Special Sections, are eligible for the Social Media Award, which will be given to the work with the most likes on the festival’s Instagram account during the period from May 29 to June 5 (5:00 p.m.). If a participant does not wish for the work to be uploaded to the YouTube channel, they must send an email to animafest@udit.es
with the subject line Exclusion from Social Media Award.
6.3.3.5 All short films, both from the Official and Special Sections, are also eligible for the Audience Award for Best Short Film of the Year, which will be given to the work receiving the most votes during the screening of the finalists on Tuesday, June 5 at midday in the UDIT auditorium.
6.3.3.6 The Jury Award for Best Short Film of the Year is given to the short film receiving the highest evaluation from the festival’s professional jury within the Official Section.
6.3.3.6.1 In addition to the statuette and diploma, this award also includes a special distribution prize granted by the festival’s associated distribution company.
6.4 Special Section
6.4.1 Each category in the Special Section has its own award.
6.4.2 Each award presented in the Special Section consists of a trophy and an accrediting diploma.
6.4.3 The Special Section awards are:
Special Madrid Award
Special International Award
Special Alumni Award
6.4.4 Short films submitted to the Special Section may also compete for the Social Media Award and the Audience Award.
7. SELECTION PROCESS
7.1 Finalist selection phase
7.1.1 Participants shall upload their works to Festhome from March 15 to May 20, 2026, after creating an account on the platform and completing their submission form.
7.1.2 On May 29, the finalists for each category and award in the competition will be officially announced through the festival’s website and social media channels, as well as during a physical event at the university.
7.2.2 On June 5, 2026, the winners will be announced during the awards gala.
8. LEGAL MATTERS
8.1 All participating short films must have the appropriate permissions and/or copyrights for the material used. In this regard, participants guarantee that the short films do not infringe any exploitation rights, rights to honor, privacy and image, intellectual property rights, or any other rights that may violate current legislation. Therefore, the Animafest UDIT Organization declines all legal responsibility for the submitted works and their content.
8.2 Participation in the competition grants consent and authorization to the Festival Organization to use, reproduce, disclose, print, publish, and disseminate, through any medium or platform, the name of the director, performers, and technical crew, as well as to exhibit and screen the submitted work for the promotion of UDIT and Animafest UDIT.
8.3 Animafest UDIT reserves the right to make changes to these rules and regulations or add successive appendices regarding the selection process and awards. Any changes or appendices will be duly justified and communicated during the course of the competition.
9. QUESTIONS AND INQUIRIES
9.1 For any questions, participants may write to animafest@udit.es
10. ACCEPTANCE OF THE RULES
10.1 Participation in the Festival implies full acceptance of these rules and regulations.
Madrid, March 6, 2026
Blanca Bonet
Director of ANIMAFEST UDIT ’26
No Fee
Submissions deadline
20 May 26
Any UDIT/ESNE alumni may participate with works created during the 2025/2026 academic year.
No Fee
Submissions deadline
20 May 26
Students enrolled during the 2025/2026 academic year in a university degree or master’s program, either within or outside Spain.
No Fee
Submissions deadline
20 May 26
Students enrolled during the 2025/2026 academic year in any intermediate, higher vocational, or university-level Animation program within the Autonomous Community of Madrid may participate.
No Fee
Submissions deadline
20 May 26
Eligible to participate in the festival’s Official Section are students enrolled during the 2025/2026 academic year at UDIT University School of Design, Innovation and Technology, from any degree program offered by the University School, including ESTEC and UDIT Oviedo, whether with an original short film, a project or final degree project short film, or a finalist short film from Animaweek 2026.
