Love, Sex & Cinema Film Festival (1)

Festival start: 16 September 2026      Festival end: 17 September 2026

Love, Sex & Cinema Film Festival is an international, Berlin-based short film festival dedicated to cinema that treats intimacy as storytelling – not spectacle.

We showcase bold, thoughtful films that explore love, desire, vulnerability, and emotional closeness. From subtle gestures to raw encounters, the films we programme are unafraid to look closely at what it means to be human.

Love, Sex & Cinema was created to fill a curatorial gap. Films that engage openly with intimacy often fall between categories: too emotionally exposed or sexually frank for conservative festivals, yet misaligned with festivals that frame sex primarily through erotic spectacle, pornography, kink, or niche subcultures.

The festival exists for the vast middle ground, where intimacy is narrative, emotional, political, and deeply human.

We welcome narrative, documentary, and experimental short films (up to 20 minutes). Explicit sexual content – including real sex – is welcome when it serves a clear cinematic or emotional purpose, but sex does not need to be present. What matters is depth, intention, and how closeness functions within the film.

The inaugural edition will take place September 16–17, 2026, at Il Kino in Berlin, an independent cinema known for thoughtful programming and a strong film community.

Built by filmmakers, for filmmakers, the festival approaches stories of closeness, desire, and vulnerability with seriousness, openness, and respect.

What Kind of Films Are We Looking For?

We are looking for short films (up to 20 minutes) that engage seriously and thoughtfully with love, sex, intimacy, desire, and human connection.

Sex does not have to be present.

Films centred on love, longing, consent, self-love, coming of age, emotional intimacy, relational tension, etc. are just as welcome. What matters to us is not explicitness, but depth and intention.

We welcome:

Narrative shorts

Documentary shorts

Experimental work – as long as there is a clear story, idea, or emotional through-line.


Form, tone, genre are all flexible.


Explicit sexual content – including real sex – is welcome when it is used with intention. Sex can be provocative, confronting, sensual, unsettling, or even titillating. We are interested in work that understands sex as a cinematic tool, something that can carry meaning, tension, pleasure, power, or purpose.

What matters to us is that intimacy, bodies, and sexual acts are doing something within the film: shaping character, advancing an idea, challenging the viewer, or deepening the emotional or narrative experience, rather than existing in isolation or as empty spectacle.

We are less interested in work where sex is the entire point, and more interested in work where love or sex is part of a larger cinematic conversation. We are drawn to films that trust the audience, resist simplification, and approach intimacy with emotional honesty and cinematic intention.

Rules & Terms

— Submissions are open worldwide.

— Films must have a running time of under 20 minutes, including credits.

— Submissions must be original works and submitted by the film’s producer, director, or a legal representative of the production.

— The festival does not accept films that substantially rely on generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) for image creation, performance, or authorship. Such films will be disqualified without refund.

— Entrants must ensure they have secured all necessary rights (music, images, performances, etc.) prior to submission. Love, Sex & Cinema Film Festival accepts no responsibility for copyright infringement.

— Films must have been completed within the last three years. There is no premiere requirement.

— Films not currently available for public streaming online (including platforms such as YouTube or Vimeo) may be prioritised.

— All dialogue must be in English or include English subtitles.

— By submitting a film, entrants grant the festival permission to screen their film publicly as part of Love, Sex & Cinema Film Festival.

— Explicit sexual content, including real sex, is permitted when used with clear cinematic, narrative, or emotional intention.

— By submitting, filmmakers confirm that all performers appearing in intimate or sexual scenes participated consensually, were of legal age at the time of production, and that all necessary performer releases have been obtained.

— If selected, filmmakers will be asked to provide a DCP file, high-resolution stills, and/or a short bio for promotional use.

PLEASE NOTE: Selected films will be exhibited in a cinema and therefore require delivery as a Digital Cinema Package (DCP). This is a set requirement.

Filmmakers who do not already have a DCP may request assistance from the festival to create one at a small cost, intended to cover technical processing only. Full delivery specifications will be shared with selected filmmakers via email.

— The festival reserves the right to use film stills and brief excerpts (under 30 seconds) from selected films for promotional purposes, including social media, trailers, press, and other festival marketing materials.

— Each submission fee grants the submitter one film entry. Filmmakers wishing to submit more than one film must submit a separate application and fee for each film.

— Love, Sex & Cinema Film Festival is a filmmaker-focused event. Attendance is encouraged but not mandatory. The festival does not have the financial capacity to cover flights or accommodation.

— All submissions must be made via Festhome.

— Refunds will not be issued under any circumstances, including if a filmmaker withdraws their film after submitting and paying via FestHome.

— We do not offer fee waivers. Submission fees are kept as low as possible and help cover basic operational costs. The festival is independently run and not operated for profit.

— Works-in-progress are not accepted. Films may be submitted to a future edition once completed.

— All selection decisions are final. Due to the volume of submissions, individual feedback cannot be provided.