Bellavista Film Festival (3)

Festival start: 08 October 2025      Festival end: 08 April 2026

The BELLAVISTA FILM FESTIVAL (BVFF) 2025 #BVFF25 seeks to inspire, empower, and unify our audience through cinematographic art of social impact.

The festival is a space in which the community and cinema converse through cinematographic works of art selected with great artistic value and a theme of representative and relevant social impact. Thus promoting social impact cinema as a tool to stimulate critical thinking and motivate social action to catalyze agents of change in their communities and beyond.

The BVFF will be held as an itinerant festival, bringing its screenings to the following cities:

- Cartagena, Bolívar, Colombia
- Cali, Valle del Cauca, Colombia
- Los Ángeles, California, USA
- Panamá City, Panamá
- México City, México
- Medellín, Antioquia, Colombia
- Bogotá D.C., Colombia

As a development of a social project for cultural growth, the festival seeks to promote exhibition spaces for the curated works, in addition to movie theaters, cinematheques and cultural institutions, also in neighborhood and rural locations and on an itinerant basis in representative cultural spaces in the rest of the country and Latin America.

We trust in the power of cinema as a commitment to social transformation and high-quality cultural reflection.

The Bellavista Film Festival awards will apply to feature films and short films with a social impact focus, which include:

Categories:
- Fiction innovation in social impact
- Animation innovation in social impact
- Creative documentary of social impact
- Innovation in children's social narrative

The award-winning works will receive recognition for their contribution to social impact cinema, which can increase their visibility and prestige in the film industry, in addition to promoting their distribution and screening in other festivals and world wide platforms.

WHO CAN PARTICIPATE?

We invite producers, directors and distributors from anywhere in the world who own the copyright, intellectual rights and other rights related to audiovisual and cinematographic works that address film themes of creative social impact at an international level.


DUTIES OF THE PARTICIPANTS

Participants must own the rights to the registered audiovisual work, including images, sounds and soundtrack, and have all written authorizations. Likewise, they must possess the rights and authorizations of third parties involved, especially in cases of minors or people under guardianship.

The legal representative of the entity that nominates the work is the only interlocutor with the Festival, assuming full responsibility before third parties related to the production.

The Festival is not responsible for breaches of the regulations, exempting itself from claims from third parties. Participants agree to indemnify the Festival for legal expenses and fees, as well as direct or indirect damages, derived from judicial proceedings or agreements with plaintiffs.


REQUIREMENTS

To register a work at the Bellavista Film Festival International Film Festival, it is necessary to use the Festhome platform during the established period.


REGISTRATION deadline

Registrations for the Festival will be available from May 20, 2025 and will close on August 20, 2024 at 11:59 PM.


CONDITIONS

▪ Only works produced after January 1, 2024 will be admitted to the Festival.

▪ Works in a foreign language must have subtitles in Spanish to be considered in the selection.

▪ Works that do not address relevant themes for the festival will be automatically disqualified.


CATEGORIES

Feature film 70 to 90 minutes
Short film 7 to 20 minutes

1. Fiction:
Films that present imaginative and creative stories, both in narrative and visual form. Fiction films can address a wide range of social issues, from the fight for equality to the exploration of the human condition.

2. Animation:
Animated films that use visual creativity to address issues of social impact. From short films to feature films, we value innovation in animation technique and the ability of films to convey powerful messages through their images.

3. Creative Documentary:
Documentary films that experiment with unconventional narrative forms and innovative techniques to tell stories of social impact. We value originality and creativity in the presentation of themes, as well as the ability of films to challenge perceptions and generate critical reflection. From essay film to experimental documentary, we look for works that expand the limits of the documentary genre.

4. Cinema for youth and kids:
Films that address relevant topics for boys and girls, from universities and inclusion to caring for the environment. We value the artistic quality and the ability of films to captivate the imagination of young people while transmitting positive and constructive messages.


THEMATIC BLOCKS:

1. Social Justice and Human Rights: Films that address issues of inequality, discrimination, and struggles for justice and human rights.

2. Environment and Sustainability: Exploration of issues related to climate change, environmental conservation and the relationship between humans and nature.

3. Migration and Cultural Diversity: Reflection on the experiences of migrants and refugees, as well as cultural diversity and intercultural coexistence.

4. Health and Wellbeing: Treatment of public health problems, access to medical care and the promotion of individual and community well-being.

5. Education and Community Development: Focus on educational initiatives, community empowerment and sustainable economic development.

6. Gender Equity and Feminism: Analysis of gender inequality, violence against women and the promotion of gender equality and women's rights.

7. Technology and Society: Exploration of the social, ethical and political impacts of technology in contemporary society, including the digital divide and privacy.


NOTE: Successful registration does not automatically guarantee the selection of the film for the Festival programming.