Estranhos Encontros - Festival De Cinema Independente de São Paulo (1)

Festival start: 25 September 2025      Festival end: 28 September 2025

Estranhos Encontros: São Paulo Independent Film Festival is a young festival that opens a new window for independent cinema in the cultural calendar of a city that is essential to Brazilian and Latin American film. We seek works that explore inventive strategies and approaches to filmmaking, especially those that creatively navigate production limitations. We are interested in filmmakers who engage with the history—or histories—of cinema without nostalgia, seeking ways to make the cinema of the future. The festival is organized by a team of producers, programmers, critics, filmmakers, and other professionals deeply committed to discovering new films and new practices within the independent cinema landscape.

Our program includes a competitive short film section focused on Portuguese-speaking and Latin American countries; a contemporary showcase featuring international feature and mid-length films; and a retrospective session dedicated to the work of a filmmaker whose contribution to cinema has been particularly emblematic.

Grand-Prix - Short film

Preamble

Estranhos Encontros: São Paulo Independent Film Festival is devoted to screening and reflecting on contemporary independent cinema, with an emphasis on auteur short, medium-length and feature films, artisanal processes and formally forward-looking visions. Held at Centro Cultural São Paulo on 25, 26, 27 and 28 September 2025, the festival comprises screenings, Q&As with filmmakers, round-tables with industry professionals and a masterclass by our honouree, director Paulo Sacramento. Across three strands—Competitive Shorts, Horizontes and Retrospective—the curators seek works that provoke critical thinking about cinema and foster encounters between artists, audiences and film criticism.

Article 1 – Scope
The programme consists of three strands:
Competitive Shorts – films 3–30 minutes long;


Horizontes – medium-length and feature films;


Retrospective – films by Paulo Sacramento plus one “carte blanche” title chosen by him.



Article 2 – Sections
Submitted works may be considered for:
Competitive Shorts – short films distinguished by their aesthetic proposition, running 3–30 minutes;


Article 3 – Eligibility
We accept films that meet all the following criteria:

Running time between 3 and 30 minutes;


Completed between 2023 and 2025;


Country of origin located in Latin America or the Lusophone world;


Any genre or format (fiction, documentary, experimental, animation, hybrid);


Submitted by any individual or collective;


Supplied with subtitles in Portuguese or english.


Submissions close on 17 August 2025.

Article 4 – Submission Procedure
All entries must be submitted exclusively via Festhome.


An active screening link (Vimeo, YouTube or direct upload) is mandatory.


Works in post-production are eligible provided the final cut is delivered by 20 August 2025.


The submission fee supports the festival’s operating costs. Filmmakers unable to pay may write to us by e-mail; we are open to finding solutions that ensure broad participation.



Article 5 – Selection & Delivery Materials
Official selections will be announced by e-mail no later than 31 August 2025.


Selected films must supply, within 10 business days:


A download link to the exhibition copy (DCP);


Four stills, synopsis, full credits and filmmaker mini-bio;


Signed screening authorisation;


A subtitle file with timecode (Portuguese or english).



Article 6 – Screenings & Rights
Selected films may be shown online in a temporary, free, password-protected session during the festival period.


Filmmakers authorise the festival to use clips and images for promotional purposes.



Article 7 – Omissions
Any issues not covered by these regulations will be resolved by the festival’s executive team in accordance with principles of transparency, respect for authorship and best practices in independent audiovisual culture.