Porto Femme - International Film Festival (10)

Festival start: 12 April 2027      Festival end: 18 April 2027

Porto Femme - International Film Festival is a place for the exhibition and dissemination of multiple and diverse artistic visions. A concrete action in the struggle for equal representation, focusing on new identity representations that seek to deconstruct stereotypes and erase invisibilities. The Festival aims to create a visibility space for women and/or non-binary identities in the cinematographic world, uniting them internationally.
Feminist solidarity is our guiding thread, and we want to continue creating feminist spaces through an innovative, intersectional, and intergenerational way of working characterized by support, diversity, creativity, and experimentation, serving as a point of sharing, debate, and creation for all those who love cinema.

These films intend to educate and inform the public about social and political issues that affect women and minority identities worldwide and give voice to several groups and struggles.

Our curation aims to reflect the diversity of genres, themes and languages. PORTO FEMME is a festival with a varied and appealing offer to the public, including competitive sessions, exhibitions, workshops, debates, Q & A sessions, exhibitions, among others.

Awards will be presented in the following categories:

Official Competition

Best Fiction Feature Film
Best Fiction Short Film
Best Portuguese Fiction Film
Best Documentary
Best Portuguese Documentary
Best Animation Film
Best Portuguese Animation Film
Best Experimental Film
Best Portuguese Experimental Film

GRRL* Competition

Best GRRL* Film

XX Element Competition

Best XX Element Film

Thematic Competition

Best Film in the Thematic Competition

In addition, two special awards may be presented across the competitive programme:

**- Women’s Rights and Struggles Award, recognising a film that contributes to the promotion of women’s rights, gender equality and feminist values, as well as to reflection on other forms of discrimination and inequality.

Women’s Voices Award, presented in partnership with MIRA – Artes Performativas, recognising a Portuguese film in competition for its artistic quality, the relevance of its authorial perspective and its contribution to the visibility of cinema made by women and non-binary people in Portugal.

These prizes may be complemented by Special Mentions awarded by the juries.

PORTO FEMME – INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2027
(EN) Terms and conditions

1. Organisation

XX Element Project is a non-profit cultural association whose purpose is to promote cultural enrichment, civic participation and social transformation through the arts. Its work places particular emphasis on issues concerning women and people of historically marginalised genders, promoting gender equality, diversity and inclusion.

2. Festival

Porto Femme – International Film Festival is a space for screening, showcasing and bringing together multiple cinematic perspectives and practices. The Festival represents a concrete commitment to equal representation, valuing new perspectives and representations of identity that help dismantle stereotypes, counter invisibility and broaden the narratives present in cinema.

Porto Femme promotes the visibility of work by women and non-binary people in cinema, creating connections across different geographies, generations, experiences and forms of creation.

Feminist solidarity is the guiding principle of the Festival. Porto Femme seeks to build feminist spaces through an intersectional, intergenerational and collaborative working practice based on mutual support, diversity, creativity, experimentation and sharing.

3. 2027 – 10th edition of PORTO FEMME

The 10th edition of Porto Femme – International Film Festival will take place from 12 to 18 April 2027 at Batalha Centro de Cinema and other venues in the city of Porto.

4. General Conditions

4.1. The Festival comprises four competitions: Official Competition, GRRL*, XX Element and Thematic Competition.

4.2. The Official Competition, GRRL* and Thematic Competition are open to films directed by women and/or non-binary people. XX Element accepts films directed by men or mixed-gender teams, provided that they meet the specific eligibility requirements set out in these Terms and Conditions.

4.3. Submissions will be open from 15 September to 30 November 2026, according to the following schedule:

Early Bird: until 30 September 2026;

Regular Deadline: until 10 November 2026;

Extended Deadline: until 30 November 2026.

4.4. Each submitted film is subject to the following submission fee, according to the period in which it is submitted:

Early Bird: €7;

Regular Deadline: €10;

Extended Deadline: €12.

4.5. Films submitted to the GRRL* Competition and made in an academic, school or training context benefit from a 50% reduction on the applicable submission fee.

4.6. If the submission fee constitutes a barrier to submitting a film, a fee waiver may be requested by sending a duly justified request to submissionsportofemme@gmail.com. The Organisation reserves the right to refuse the request.

4.7. The submission fee applies individually to each film submitted.

4.8. Submissions must be made through Festhome.

4.9. Only films produced after 1 January 2025 are eligible for any of the competitions.

4.10. Films that are publicly available online are not eligible. This condition does not apply to private or password-protected links used for submission and viewing purposes.

4.11. Only final versions of films will be accepted. Incomplete works or works submitted as works in progress are not eligible.

4.12. There are no restrictions on age, number of works submitted per person or country of origin, without prejudice to the specific eligibility requirements of each competition.

4.13. The following categories are accepted in all competitions:

Fiction: short and medium-length films of up to 60 minutes and feature films of more than 60 minutes;

Animation: short and medium-length films of up to 60 minutes and feature films of more than 60 minutes;

Documentary: short and medium-length films of up to 60 minutes and feature films of more than 60 minutes;

Experimental: short and medium-length films of up to 60 minutes and feature films of more than 60 minutes.

4.14. Each work must be submitted to one competition and one category only.

4.15. The Organisation is not obliged to pay screening fees or exhibition rights for films selected for the Festival competitions, unless otherwise expressly agreed in writing in advance.

4.16. Selected films may be considered for the Women's Rights and Struggles Award and, where they meet the relevant eligibility requirements, for the Women's Voices Award.

4.17. Selected films may not be withdrawn after their participation in the Festival has been officially announced.

5. Competitions

5.1. Official Competition

The Official Competition includes national and international short and feature films, bringing together different geographies, aesthetics and forms of cinematic creation.

The Official Competition is open to films directed by women and/or non-binary people, with no restrictions regarding country of origin.

For the purposes of the awards for Portuguese cinema, films must meet at least one of the following conditions:

Films directed by women and/or non-binary people of Portuguese nationality;

Films produced or co-produced in Portugal.

Official Competition Awards

Fiction

Best Fiction Feature Film;

Best Fiction Short Film;

Best Portuguese Fiction Film.

Documentary

Best Documentary;

Best Portuguese Documentary.

Animation

Best Animation Film;

Best Portuguese Animation Film.

Experimental Cinema

Best Experimental Film;

Best Portuguese Experimental Film.

5.2. GRRL*

GRRL* is dedicated to films made in an academic or training context, promoting the discovery of new talent and encouraging emerging cinematic creation.

GRRL* is open to films directed by women and/or non-binary people during their academic, school or training journey, regardless of the level or field of study.

Award

Best GRRL* Film.

5.3. XX Element

XX Element is dedicated to films directed by men or mixed-gender teams that contribute to promoting gender equality, women's rights, LGBTQIA+ rights and feminist values.

Films directed by men or mixed-gender teams are eligible for XX Element if they meet at least one of the following conditions:

Films addressing issues related to women, LGBTQIA+ people, gender equality, women's rights or feminist values;

Films in which a woman and/or non-binary person plays a significant role in the creation, production or completion of the work, including co-directing, producing, screenwriting, performing a leading role, cinematography, sound direction or editing.

Award

Best XX Element Film.

5.4. Thematic Competition

The Thematic Competition brings together works that engage directly with the curatorial concept of each edition of Porto Femme, offering different perspectives on the Festival's annual theme.

In its 10th edition, the Thematic Competition is centred on Present! A Look at Absences, Archives and Memories.

The Thematic Competition is open to films directed by women and/or non-binary people that reflect on archives, memory, untold stories and different forms of absence and presence.

Award

Best Film in the Thematic Competition.

6. Special Awards

In addition to the awards presented in the different competitions, Porto Femme will distinguish works that stand out for the relevance of their artistic, social and cultural contributions through two awards open across the competitive programme.

6.1. Women's Rights and Struggles Award

All films selected for the Official Competition, GRRL*, XX Element or the Thematic Competition may be considered for the Women's Rights and Struggles Award.

This award recognises a work that contributes to the promotion of women's rights, gender equality and feminist values, as well as reflection on other forms of discrimination and inequality.

6.2. Women's Voices Award

Presented in partnership with MIRA – Performing Arts, the Women's Voices Award recognises a Portuguese film in competition that stands out for its artistic quality, the relevance of its authorial perspective and its contribution to the visibility of cinema made by women and non-binary people in Portugal.

7. Selection

7.1. Film selection is the responsibility of the Festival's programming team. The final decision on the films included in the different competitions rests with the Porto Femme programming team.

7.2. Selection results will be communicated to the people responsible for the submissions by 15 February 2027.

7.3. Results will be communicated by email from submissionsportofemme@gmail.com.

7.4. By submitting a film, the person or entity responsible for the submission declares that they hold all rights and authorisations required for its screening.

7.5. Unless the rights holders expressly state otherwise, the submission and subsequent selection of a film authorise the Organisation to screen it as part of the 10th edition of Porto Femme, Festival extensions, Femme Sessions and other screenings held under the “PORTO FEMME” name.

7.6. Once participation has been confirmed, the film may not be withdrawn from the programme of the 10th edition of the Festival.

7.7. The rights holders of selected films authorise the Organisation to use excerpts from the works on television, social media, the website or other digital media exclusively for the promotion and communication of the Festival, its extensions and Femme Sessions. The excerpts used may never exceed 10% of the film's total running time.

7.8. Selected films may receive acquisition or distribution proposals for the Portuguese market. Any negotiations will take place directly between the rights holders and the interested entities.

8. Technical Specifications

8.1. In-person Screening

8.1.1. Screening copies must be submitted by 1 March 2027. Failure to meet this deadline may result in the film not being included in the competitive screening programme.

8.1.2. If a screening copy is not submitted within the established deadline, the Organisation may use the copy previously provided for selection purposes, provided that it is of sufficient quality. In such cases, responsibility for the quality of the screened copy rests with the person or entity responsible for the submission.

8.1.3. Screening copies must be sent to submissionsportofemme@gmail.com using the MyAirBridge link provided in the selection correspondence or another online file-transfer service.

8.1.4. The following must be provided for in-person screenings:

2K or 4K DCP, flat or scope, with 2.0 or 5.1 audio;

backup file in .avi, .mov or .mp4 format, encoded in H.264 or H.265 at a bit rate of between 7 and 30 Mb/s (up to 5 GB).

8.1.5. The person or entity responsible for the submission is responsible for the English translation and subtitling of selected films.

8.1.6. Screening copies must be delivered without embedded subtitles, except for films entirely in Portuguese, which must be supplied with English subtitles.

8.1.7. In addition to the screening copy, an English-language subtitle file in .srt format, including the relevant timecodes, must be provided, even if the film is entirely in English. If the film contains on-screen text and/or intertitles that are not included in the subtitle file, a list of the relevant timecodes must also be provided.

8.1.8. Where Portuguese subtitles are available for films not spoken in Portuguese, the corresponding .srt file must also be provided.

9. Juries

9.1. The juries for the different competitions will be composed of professionals from cinema, the arts, culture or other relevant fields, invited by the Organisation.

9.2. The juries will decide according to their own criteria, in accordance with the conditions and objectives of each award. Their decisions are final and not subject to appeal.

9.3. The juries may decide not to present one or more awards if they consider that none of the works in competition meets the necessary requirements.

9.4. The juries may present Special Mentions whenever they consider them warranted.

9.5. No jury member may be involved in the direction, production, distribution or exploitation of any work included in the competition for which they are responsible.

10. Final Provisions

10.1. Submission to PORTO FEMME 2027 implies full and unconditional acknowledgement and acceptance of these Terms and Conditions.

10.2. Any questions or matters not covered by these Terms and Conditions will be considered and resolved by the Organisation in accordance with the principles of fairness, transparency and good judgement.