Sunrise Film Festival | Lowestoft (6)

Festival start: 19 August 2027      Festival end: 22 August 2027

Sunrise has fast become the UK's biggest celebration of Diverse Stories and Underrepresented Filmmakers, our 6th edition, of the BIFA & Grierson Qualifying Sunrise Film Festival takes place from 19 to 22 August 2027 in Lowestoft, Suffolk.

Submissions for our 6th edition in August 2027 are now open and close on 29 November 2026!

The serious bit:
Sunrise Film Festival, based in Lowestoft, Suffolk, UK, was founded in 2021 and is run voluntarily by passionate independent film enthusiasts and filmmakers to provide an important accessible platform for filmmakers like themselves every August.

We're passionate about creating a platform for filmmakers who are yet to be discovered (or picked up by the bigger film festival circuit), whilst making film accessible and proudly showcasing independent film to new audiences across overlooked communities.

Since 2021, we have screened just over 1,100 independent films as part of our official selection to our live audiences and have presented over 125 awards at our festival award ceremonies since inception.

Don't just take our word for it, here's what some of our Alumni have to say:

A wonderful festival experience from start to finish. The team go above and beyond to create fantastic experience for filmmakers and the care that went into the festival was evident throughout. We were thrilled to receive a Community Award nomination. Thank you to the whole Sunrise team for championing independent filmmakers and creating a space where diverse stories can truly be seen and celebrated. Highly recommend! - Cat White

Sunrise film festival truly is one of the best. Having screened with them two years running, they’ve helped me as an emerging filmmaker secure my place in the industry. Not only do they showcase a wonderful mix of films, they’ve helped also create a sense of community that extends outside of their screenings. The communication from their team is quick, consistent and always kind. Definitely a stand out festival for many reasons! - Charly Faye

Why Sunrise Film Festival?
As Suffolk's largest film festival, we're passionate about creating an inclusive platform for filmmakers here in East Anglia.

We've proudly been the bright and colourful film festival, loved by filmmakers for the friendly grassroots feel. We're a small team, but our festival pacts impact, showcasing film in one of the most deprived communities in England in a welcoming seaside location, and we've awarded as well as showcased some impactful stories along the way.

We value and proudly promote films from any filmmaker, creative, or producer to the general public, including receiving submissions from first-time filmmakers, female/non-binary filmmakers, neurodiverse filmmakers, stories from the LGBTQIA+ community, people with lived experience, as well as films focusing on social and environmental issues.


*Rules & eligibility on Section B at BIFA can be found by visiting https://www.bifa.film/about/rules-and-eligibility/

You only need to submit to one category, and as such, FESTHOME won't let you submit to multiple categories for our festival. Pick the category that best fits your film; it won't affect your chances of being considered during our programming.

Officially selected entries will be included in the 6th edition festival programme.

Films will be screened during the 2027 festival, taking place in person in Lowestoft, Suffolk, UK, from 19-22 August 2027.

Nominees in each award category will be invited to our red-carpet award ceremony, to be held on Saturday, 21 August 2027.

Each winner will receive a highly coveted trophy and certificate, as well as regional media coverage at our red-carpet award ceremony during the festival in Lowestoft.

As a winning film, you will also be part of our 'Best of The Fest' programme that tours independent venues across Norfolk & Suffolk in order to bring independent film to more audiences across underserved communities in the South East region.

Award categories are chosen at our discretion, and specific genre or thematic awards are subject to a sufficient number of entries. In 2025, we had 26 award categories.

Sunrise Film Festival’s 6th edition will take place in-person from 19-22 August 2027.

Our Submission Deadline
29 November 2026

Early entries are encouraged, but do not change or guarantee your chance of acceptance.

Our Required Submission Format
Filmmakers must submit their films only via an online screener through a FESTHOME submission.

Submission Eligibility For Sunrise

All submissions must have been completed after July 2025.

Sunrise doesn’t require a public UK premiere prior to entry (private screenings are eligible).

There is no premiere policy for short films, feature films or Virtual Reality works.

Work-in-progress short films for development of feature films and films with distribution are accepted.

Preferably, feature films must be at least UK premieres, and if selected, you will support us with a joint marketing campaign.

Film entries must have been made and produced or submitted to meet each submission category's requirements. You can only submit via category per film, and the total runtime must not exceed that displayed in the category.

For selected screening films, to ensure we meet accessibility requirements, we prefer that burned-in subtitles are supplied as part of your filming material, and that films are supplied as MP4 files and with sound in stereo format.

Student categories are locked to student submissions only. If you're a student having trouble submitting to one of these categories, please reach out to us via Instagram @sunrisefilmfest or email hello@sunrisefilmfestival.co.uk.

We are unable to accept rough cuts or newer versions of previously submitted films once you have entered a category (although you may update your film file or embedded content already submitted via FESTHOME). No refunds will be offered if you do not adhere to the rules outlined here.

Your Film Classification
All films screened during Sunrise Film Festival will either receive a blanket 15 or 18 certificate. Please consider this when submitting to us.

Submission Fees to Sunrise
All submissions for Sunrise must be paid for through the FESTHOME platform. The submission fee is non-refundable; we will not accept unsolicited requests via email for entry fee waivers.

Exclusions from the entry fee may be valid under specific circumstances; for full details, visit https://sunrisefilmfestival.co.uk/submissions/

Selection of Films To Sunrise 
Submissions are reviewed and selected based on a fair scoring criteria:

• Direction (Overall vision and its execution).
• Cinematography (Composition; lighting; camera movement).
• Editing (Technical assembly, pacing, transitions).
• Production Design (Set, location, props).
• Music/Sound (Sound quality and added effects).

Lower quality productions in terms of sound or cinematography will not take precedence when considering our final programming.

Notification For Our 2027 Festival
Sunrise aims to complete all selection decisions by 29 April 2027 and inform all submitting parties in writing via a FESTHOME notification and email, via the supplied email address on your submission, if your film has been selected or not selected by this date at the latest opportunity.

Successful submissions will receive information in our Filmmaker Welcome Pack that includes important information on the correct film files to send to the festival, complimentary filmmaker passes, and other helpful information.

Festival Scheduling In Our Programme
Screenings are scheduled at Sunrise’s discretion only. While every effort will be made to adhere to the published schedule and give you advance notice of your screening date and time, we reserve the right to make changes at any time for any reason. Sunrise will not be liable for any costs claimed as a result of a schedule change or technical issues/malfunctions affecting screenings. No film may be withdrawn from the festival program after selection.

In the event of circumstances beyond the control of the festival organisers (such as natural disasters, viral/bacterial pandemics, etc.), every effort will be made to pause, postpone, or amend the festival so that it still goes ahead in some form. We will never cancel the festival unless we can rearrange it. In such circumstances, no refunds will be issued, as submission fees will be used to continue planning the festival at a different place or time.

Awards and Judging panel
Officially selected entries chosen by the screening committee will be screened as part of the 2027 film festival programme, and industry professionals will form our jury to choose our winners from our shortlisted nominees for each category.

All final decisions on any winners are made by the jurors.

By submitting an entry/entries to Sunrise Film Festival, you agree to have read and accepted the following Terms and Conditions for participation as follows below.

Intellectual Property and Copyright
Films that are submitted to Sunrise Film Festival must be the entrant’s original work and must not infringe on anyone's legally binding copyright or any other rights of any third parties.

Contestants agree that they have obtained all required releases and copyright permissions regarding music, sound, images, and all other materials used in their film that are not solely owned by the entrant themselves or other royalty-free non-copyright material.

The permission of a parent or legal guardian is required if any person appearing in any motion picture is under the age of 16.

We reserve the right to require appropriate proof of ownership of usage rights of any material and to deny admission or withdraw work from the competition if, for any reason, the work appears to expose it to any actual or potential damage to the reputation, risk of legal proceedings or enforcement including, without limitation, the alleged breach of third-party intellectual property rights to Sunrise Film Festival.

All enquiries regarding copyright will be referred to the entrant.

Press and Publicity
By submitting a work to our Festival, you consent to Sunrise Film Festival using the whole of or any part of the work for publicity purposes, including and not limited to marketing on our website, posters, leaflets, social media, and for press and festival brochure purposes.

If your film is selected, we will require digital images and other press/publicity materials so your work and the festival can be promoted online and in print.

Digital press packs can be uploaded with submissions via FilmFreeway, and we strongly recommend you do this.

For the best publicity, we recommend you include at least the following:

• Your film in MP4 with Stereo sound (with embedded subtitles)

• A trailer (where possible, if you haven't got a post for your film, we recommend prioritising that over a trailer)

• A poster for your film (300dpi)

• A 100-word synopsis of your film

• At least 3 stills from the film (at least 800px wide and 300dpi)

• A director’s statement (max 500 words)

• At least 3 photos of the director/behind the scenes (at least 800px wide and 300dpi)
Please do not send hard copies as we are not able to store them (unless we specifically request them).

Successful submissions will be listed on the Sunrise Film Festival website, sunrisefilmfestival.co.uk, booking system, on our social platforms, and successful applicants will be notified by FESTHOME and email.
Please make sure the contact information you provide on FilmFreeway is completely accurate when submitting your film, so we can reach you during the decision-making process.
Please note that if we are unable to contact you, your film will be removed from the festival line-up with immediate effect.