Emergente CineLab 2025 (9)

Inizio del Festival: 04 novembre 2025      Festival si chiude: 05 novembre 2025

EMERGENTE! A call for emerging creators from Spain and Latin America with fiction, documentary, animation, or experimental projects in development. Its mission is to become a vibrant meeting point for up-and-coming producers and creators, showcasing new voices and promoting emerging Spanish-language talent worldwide. The program aims to give the short film industry an international boost through project development, financing opportunities, and co-production.

They will be announced at a later stage.

Participation Guidelines

emergente! CINE LAB is a Short Film Development Lab and Co-Production Forum organized by AIC (Asociación de la Industria del Cortometraje).

With the support of the Ministry of Culture, Madrid City Council, and EGEDA, we consolidate in this ninth edition as the world’s first laboratory specialized in the development of short films for emerging Spanish-speaking creators, as well as an international co-production forum for short films between Europe and Latin America.

Once again, we continue our mission of identifying and fostering the professional growth of the best emerging Spanish-language audiovisual talent worldwide. Our aim is to become the first endorsers of this young talent before a national and international audiovisual industry that is always seeking new perspectives. We provide a space for encounter and growth for emerging Spanish-speaking screenwriters, producers, and directors, working together on the development, financing, and national and international co-production of their short film projects.

After receiving 300 projects from 16 different countries last year, this year our call is officially open to Spanish-speaking creators and producers from anywhere in the world. You are all welcome.

Given the exponential growth in submissions over the last few editions, for the fourth consecutive year we will focus exclusively on emerging creators (screenwriters, directors, and producers): those who are currently developing their first or second professional film (1).

In this edition, for the first time, project submissions to our professional event will be made exclusively through the Festhome platform.

Spanish production companies, whether legal entities or natural persons: €15. AIC members: €10.

Spanish professionals (directors and/or screenwriters): €10.

Non-Spanish production companies, whether legal entities or natural persons: USD 10.

Non-Spanish professionals (directors and/or screenwriters): USD 10.

We are looking for projects with the following characteristics:

At any stage of development (no prior financing required).

Submitted by:

a complete creative team (screenwriter, director, and producer),

a screenwriter and a director (seeking a producer),

or solely by a screenwriter (seeking a director and producer).

Offering real narrative potential for international co-production between Latin America, Spain, and Europe.

The selected projects and their representatives will participate in our Development Lab, where both creative aspects and essential elements of contemporary production will be addressed. This work will take place online during October, and in person on November 4 and 5.

The process will culminate with the public presentation of the projects at our International Co-Production Forum, in person, before potential co-producers, investors, and broadcasters from Spain and other countries in Latin America and Europe. This event will be held in Madrid on November 4 and 5.

Eligibility criteria:
Short film creators (screenwriters, directors, and producers) wishing to participate in emergente CINE LAB! with one of their projects must meet the following conditions:

Projects of any genre and format (fiction, documentary), whether live-action or animation, in Spanish (including any co-official languages), will be accepted, at any stage of development and seeking further development and financing.

The person submitting the official entry must be an independent screenwriter, director, or producer who, to date, has not written, directed, or produced more than two professional films.

If submitted by a producer, the producer must be legally recognized in their country either as a legal entity (company) or as an individual producer, and must provide proof of registration in the corresponding national registry or an official certificate accrediting this status.

The final deadline for submission is September 15, 2025.

Each applicant must complete all fields of the entry form.

Required documentation:

Entry form through Festhome at this link.

Literary script.

Complete project dossier, up to 15 pages. In the case of projects seeking a producer, items d and e below will not be mandatory:
a) Synopsis (max. 2 pages).
b) Creative or Directorial Statement (max. 5 pages): references, visual and narrative style, motivations, etc.
c) Committed technical and artistic teams, including short bios/filmographies. If applicable, a breakdown proposal of these teams by territories or countries (max. 3 pages).
d) Production statement, including (max. 5 pages):

professional and creative motivations behind the project,

production, financing, or distribution needs expected from emergente CINE LAB! (e.g., co-producers, international investors, sales agents, distributors, broadcasters, territorial sales, etc.),

national and international co-production and financing strategy: countries or territories of interest,

distribution and exploitation strategy, both national and international,

production calendar: development, production, post-production, and release.
e) Financial plan:

Budget (summary by line items, max. 1 page).

Detailed financing plan, with proposed distribution of contributions (current or expected) from co-producing countries. Confirmed, estimated, or pending amounts must be specified, and supporting documentation provided for confirmed contributions (max. 1 page).
f) Production locations: proposed territories, regions, or countries for the development, production, or post-production of the project.

Optional documentation:
a) Video pitch.
b) Project teaser or trailer (link access).
c) Sample of the director’s previous work (link access).
d) Letters of commitment or interest from artistic and/or technical collaborators.

Projects will be reviewed to ensure complete documentation. Incomplete projects will be automatically disqualified.

A selection committee of professionals, appointed by AIC in collaboration with its LATAM partners, will choose between 6 and 12 projects from all submissions. Half of this selection will be reserved for projects that include a woman as screenwriter, director, or emerging executive producer.

Projects will be evaluated based on:
a) Originality and quality: script, characters, narrative structure, etc.
b) Risk-taking, innovation, and creativity.
c) The talent and professional growth potential of the production team and creative leaders (director and screenwriter).
d) Track record of the confirmed technical and artistic teams.
e) Potential for international distribution and exploitation.
f) Genuine justification for co-production or the need for international financing.
g) Inclusion of women in creative and executive production roles, as well as in department head positions.

Selected participants will be notified.

Three projects in this ninth edition of emergente CINE LAB! have already been preselected by three partner labs: one from the BFM of the Bogoshorts Festival (Bogotá, Colombia), another from Curt Creixent of the Cinemajove Festival (Valencia), and a third from ECAM Forum (Madrid). These three projects will join the Development Lab and be eligible for all awards.

Selected creators and producers must confirm their availability to attend both the online lab sessions and the in-person co-production forum. Failure to participate in the lab phase will result in exclusion from the final selection.

emergente CINE LAB! will cover travel expenses for selected projects from outside the Autonomous Community of Madrid, as well as hotel expenses (1 night for projects from outside the Autonomous Community of Madrid and 2 nights for projects from outside Spain) for 1 team member, only if no member of the team resides in Madrid or Spain.

Selected projects will compete for various cash prizes and awards to support their development at different forums in Spain, Europe, and Latin America, which will be announced shortly.

All producers of awarded short films commit to including the emergente CINE LAB! logo in a single card in the opening credits of the final copy of their short film.

Participation in emergente CINE LAB! implies acceptance of these guidelines. The organization reserves the right to decide on any organizational aspects not expressly covered herein.