Cartagena Negra Cortometrajes (10)

Festival Start: 12 September 2026      Festival Ende: 12 September 2026

Cartagena Negra is the crime fiction festival held in the city of Cartagena. It is an event centred around literature and the crime fiction genre.
During the festival, there are round tables, lectures, presentations of new literary works, reading clubs, and other events related to the noir theme, such as monologue competitions, open mic sessions, talks, and meetings.
This year marks the 10th edition of the Cartagena Negra Short Film Competition, which has become a fundamental part of the official programme. At Cartagena Negra, we are passionate about cinema, which is why we want to bring together the literary and cinematographic genres in the same event.
Therefore, in the spirit of strengthening this relationship with the world of cinema, this edition will feature screenings of noir films, including the participation of filmmakers who specialise in this type of story.
The Cartagena Negra Short Film Award has a clear mission to promote short films within the current film scene, contributing to their recognition. Short films are also cinema.

Geldpreise: 500€

The winning short film will receive a cash prize of €500 and a commemorative plaque.

Consult the rules and regulations in Spanish

CARTAGENA NEGRA 2026 SHORT FILM AWARD – RULES

Maximum duration: 25 minutes.

Technique: No restrictions.

Country: No restrictions.

Production date: Only works produced from 1 January 2025 onwards will be accepted.

Language: Works must be submitted in their original language. In the case of a version other than Spanish, the work must include Spanish subtitles or attach a list of the original dialogues with a Spanish translation.

Number of short films: There is no limit to the number of works submitted. Each author may participate with as many short films as they consider.

Genre: Film noir, crime, mystery or thriller. This genre may be approached with complete creative freedom, from different perspectives or styles.

Rights and responsibilities of participants
Filmmakers entering the competition shall be responsible for ensuring that the works submitted do not infringe third-party rights through the use of musical pieces, nor give rise to any claims regarding image rights of the persons appearing in them, releasing the organisation from any kind of liability.
The submitted works will not be uploaded to any streaming platform. However, the festival may edit and use printed material from the works that are screened. Likewise, it may use a fragment of the work (maximum one minute) for dissemination in the media, on its website and on social networks for the purpose of promoting Cartagena Negra activities.
The organisation presumes that the persons or groups submitting the works hold the screening rights to them, as well as the authorisation to receive the award in the case of collective authorship. In any case, the organisation declines any responsibility that may arise from infringement of these rules or from claims for payment of copyright related to public communication or other intellectual property rights.
Short films that were submitted or selected in the previous edition will not be accepted.

Deadlines
Short films may be submitted from the publication date of these rules until 1 June 2026 at 11:59 pm.

Submission method
In order to participate, it will be necessary to submit through FESTHOME, and it is mandatory to complete the registration form provided and comply with the accepted video formats.
Submissions must include the form and any additional information about the short film that the production company considers appropriate, always indicating a contact telephone number or email address.

Jury
Coordination of the award lies with Cartagena Negra and the specialised film and series website Seriemaniac.com.
The jury will be composed of professionals from the audiovisual field selected by the festival’s steering committee.
The jury’s decision will be final. The jury may declare the award void.

Finalists
From among all participating short films, the jury will select three finalist short films.

Mandatory requirement for finalists
To be selected as one of the three finalists, it is an essential requirement to undertake the mandatory commitment to attend the city of Cartagena (Spain) on Saturday, 12 September 2026, in order to participate in a round table composed of one member of the team from each short film candidate for the award.
The finalist short films will be screened at a rate of one short film per day as part of the official programme of Cartagena Negra 2026. Screenings may be subject to possible changes in the official schedule according to the festival management. The festival management decides the dates and times at which the participating works are screened.

Winner
From among all participating short films, and once the three finalists have been selected and are required to attend the gala on Saturday, 12 September 2026, the jury will decide the winning short film after the round table held as part of the official programme of Cartagena Negra.
The winning short film will receive a cash prize of €500 and a commemorative plaque will be awarded.
The director (or responsible person) of each of the three finalist short films undertakes to attend the Festival’s closing gala (Saturday, 12 September 2026) unless prevented by force majeure. The winner will be announced after the round table of the three finalists.
The organisation will cover the accommodation expenses for that night for the director (or another team member attending as a representative) of each finalist work.
The award ceremony will take place on Saturday, 12 September 2026 in the afternoon, as part of the official programme of the festival, after the round table in which the three finalists must participate. On the same day, a second screening of the winner will take place as part of the festival’s activities, as well as on TeleCartagena.
The prize may not be awarded ex aequo. The prize may be declared void.

Acceptance of the rules
The Festival will not consider short films that do not comply with all the requirements established in these rules. Submission of the works implies that participants acknowledge and accept these rules. In the event of translations of this text, the Spanish version of the rules shall always prevail.

Further information
Award Coordination: info@seriemaniac.com | +34 649 03 53 24
More information: www.cartagenanegra.com | ctnegra@gmail.com