HAYAH Festival Internacional de Cortometrajes de Panamá (17)

Festival start: 12 November 2025      Festival end: 16 November 2025

17th HAYAH International Short Film Festival of Panama

The oldest and most significant short film festival in Central America, dedicated to the promotion of cinematic talent in the short film format.
Our mission is to foster the growth of Panama's audiovisual industry by connecting its filmmakers with the global film community and providing a premier exhibition platform for local and international works.

Short films in the Official Competition will compete for the festival's official trophy in the following categories:

- Best Fiction Short Film
- Best Documentary Short Film
- Best Animated Short Film
- Best Music Video
- Best FirstFrame Film (For Film Schools only)
- New Directors Award (for Panamanian filmmakers only)
- Best National Short Film (for Panamanian filmmakers only)

OFFICIAL RULES - 17TH HAYAH INTERNATIONAL SHORT FILM FESTIVAL OF PANAMA

PROFILE

The HAYAH International Short Film Festival of Panama, in its 17th edition, invites filmmakers from Panama and the world to participate in its annual competition. As the oldest short film festival in Central America, we seek to exhibit and award the best new short films.

FESTIVAL DATES

The 17th Hayah Festival will be held in person in Panama City in November 2025.

CATEGORIES

- In Competition:
- Fiction
- Documentary
- Animation
- Music Video
- New Directors (For Panamanian filmmakers only)

- Non-Competitive:
- FirstFrame (For Film Schools only)

SELECTION AND Awards

The festival's programming team is responsible for curating the Official Selection. Their role is to evaluate all submitted works and determine which short films will participate in the competitive categories. Short films not selected for the competition may be considered by the team for exhibition in special non-competitive sections.

The Official Jury, composed of recognized professionals from the film, cultural, and communication industries, will be responsible for granting the awards to the films in the Official Selection.

The jury will award the HAYAH Trophy in each main category and may grant Honorable Mentions at its discretion. awards are presented to the film's director and are personal and non-transferable.
The organization and the jury reserve the right to declare any category or prize void if no submitted work is found to align with the festival's standards.
The decisions of both the programming team and the Official Jury are final. The final verdict will be announced publicly during the festival's closing ceremony in 2025.


ELIGIBILITY AND SUBMISSION RULES

1. Eligibility: The call is open to individuals or legal entities of any nationality.

2. Submission Limit: A maximum of four (4) short films may be submitted per director.

3. Production Date: Only short films completed after January 1, 2023, are eligible.

4. Maximum length: The running time must not exceed 20 minutes, including credits.

5. Premiere Status:

- For international films: Must not have been publicly screened in Panama (at festivals, cinemas, or on television) nor be available on online platforms (YouTube, Vimeo, etc.) accessible within Panamanian territory before the festival.

- For Panamanian films: May have been screened at other festivals in Panama, but must not be publicly available on online platforms before the festival.

- The festival may consider exceptions for films with limited prior exposure. Please contact us to evaluate your case.

6. Previous Versions: New versions of films submitted in past editions will not be accepted.

7. subtitles:

- Short films whose original language is not Spanish must include Spanish subtitles. Failure to meet this requirement may lead to disqualification. The festival will not be responsible for subtitling.

- It is recommended that Spanish-language films include english subtitles to facilitate evaluation by international jurors.

8. Screening Rights: The organization will determine the screening dates and order. Participants may authorize their film's inclusion in traveling showcases after the festival.

9. Participation: Attendance at festival activities is mandatory for selected local filmmakers.

REGISTRATION AND SUBMISSION

The call for entries is open from July 7 to August 7, 2025. Submissions can be made through Festhome.

- Early Bird (July 7 - 17):
- International: $10.00 USD
- Panama: Free

- Regular deadline (July 22 - August 7):
- International: $15.00 USD
- Panama: $8.00 USD

Required Materials on the Platform:
- Film Still
- Poster (if available)
- Director's Photo
- Short Synopsis (in both english and Spanish)
- Trailer

*Film schools and distributors requiring an alternative submission method should contact the festival team directly at:
programacion@festivalhayah.com or info@festivalhayah.com.

ACCEPTANCE OF THE RULES

The submission of a work implies full acceptance of these rules. The participant declares they hold all copyrights to the work (script, image rights, and music). If the short film is selected, providing a trailer of a maximum of 1 minute in length is mandatory.