⁣⁣The Chicago film industry was a central hub for motion picture production and exhibition before Hollywood became the undisputed capital of filmmaking. In the early 1900s, Chicago boasted the most significant number of production companies and filmmakers. This situation was partially preserved until 1920, when the Chicago film industry met decline for a combination of reasons, including the impact of the Great Depression. Not until the 1980s and early 21st century has Chicago experienced a film production revival. Movie production again entered Chicago in the 1980s, with the state of Illinois becoming a leader in money spent on film production. Blockbusters, such as Blues Brothers, Sixteen Candles, and The Dark Knight, have rejuvenated the Chicago film scene.
Inspired by this tradition, the mission of the Chicago Filmmaker Awards, aka Cifawards, is to recognize and reward independent filmmakers that are currently missing in mainstream Hollywood. Whether your talent is in front of the camera or behind it, we have a category for you. We are waiting to watch your films.
We are interested in professionally made independent works. Submissions are open for shorts, feature narratives, documentaries and animation, and even experimental films and music videos.
This will be a seasonal Awards event with yearly live screening. Each season, we will select the best-known movies and promote the winners through social media and the official website. Few of the winners of each season will be selected for our online event.

⁣New Orleans International Film Awards’s mission is to bring international independent films to the widest possible audience in the region. The Festival aims to provide a cultural alternative to the commercial film experience, to support independent filmmakers, and promote the art of filmmaking.
New Orleans is part of an amazing worldwide community; a unique collaboration of multi-talented writers, film score composers and filmmakers. The festival mission is to entertain, inform, inspire, encourage and educate. We honor those artists who, through their creative work, actively increase awareness, provide multiple viewpoints, address complex social issues, and strengthen ties between international audiences. At the festvial, you can come together with other writers, directors and producers to create new opportunities, develop tools for success and forge new alliances within the international film and entertainment industry.

⁣⁣Santa Barbara Shorts is a short, online film competition festival. Its aim is to provide quality films to our festival audience with particular attention to the craft of performance, cinematography, sound and score, and editing.
We are seeking shorts in documentary, animation, live action and narrative films up to 50 mins there are no restrictions on when or where the film was made as long as the film itself can be classified into a general audience rating.
If you have an interesting live action or animated short film, we warmly welcome you to submit to our film section of our festival.

San Diego Shorts is a seasonal International online competition which accepting films from all over the globe, offering awards in various categories.
We work to create an opportunity that allows filmmakers to submit their work and get them judged by the very qualified, professionals, and experts in the fields of filmmaking.

⁣An IMDb qualified festvial , Rotterdam Independent Film Festival (Riff) is a brand new, up-and-coming online seasonal short film festival in Netherland, a country with great filmmakers like Johan van der Keuken and popular international film festivals. Riff is an exclusive online short film competition, and our main goal is to showcase the brilliant short projects for a diverse audience of cinephiles.
RIFF is more than just a Film event; it is a strong connection among all filmmakers worldwide. RIFF is a hub for international filmmakers to celebrate their premieres, thank their cast and crew, and meet their fans. Exposing young talented filmmakers to an environment of industry professionals with vast experience in their field is a priority for us. One of our top aims is to help first-time filmmakers promote their talent regardless of their age. The objective of RIFF is to provide support to indie filmmakers globally through reviewing, judging, marketing, and distribution networking. We aim to create networks that lead to further opportunities for filmmakers.
RIFF is an online award film festival. You have two steps in front to advance to the annual event. At first, each season, our jury selects the winners of each category through "private" screenings. Every submitted film has a chance to be a winner for each season. In the next step, we select few films from the winner projects for the annual event. If you get to the second stage, we will get in touch with you for the annual event (not getting a notification from us means that you are not a selected film for the second stage). If you advance to the yearly event, you need to send us materials for online screening.
Our judges consist of filmmakers and industry professionals from 5 different countries. We believe that having such a multicultural team behind our festival helps our festival thrive among Indie Festivals.

⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣Inspired by cosmopolitan mentality, we encourage diversity and multi-cultural short films. We want to truly reflect the international filmmaking community and showcase fresh talent from all filmmakers - no matter the age or the subject matter. With this in mind, we encourage filmmakers from all backgrounds to submit their projects. Furthermore, we genuinely believe that good filmmaking is an actual result of a good story. We hope to find new voices and perspectives to celebrate the power of a good story.
Florida Shorts is a seasonal competition and an annual online festival dedicated to short films of all genres from the U.S. and international filmmakers. In the first step, our professional screeners will privately review your film each quarterly season, and the highest scored films will become the semi-finalist . The semi-finalist of the seasonal editions are screened privately to jury members of each edition in various categories. All the award winners are then considered for the annual online festival; if they get selected, they will compete with other films in our annual event.
Join us for Florida Short's events this year!

⁣⁣⁣San Diego Shorts is a seasonal International online competition which accepting films from all over the globe, offering awards in various categories.
We work to create an opportunity that allows filmmakers to submit their work and get them judged by the very qualified, professionals, and experts in the fields of filmmaking.

⁣Oakland Film Festival is an online seasonal international film festival. It aims to be one of North America’s leading film festivals for international filmmakers. It is a unique platform for new talent and a celebration of cinematic creativity and innovation. The Festival attracts a broad selection of shorts and feature by filmmakers working in every genre and format and offers the people of Oakland and visitors an extraordinary chance to glimpse the future of cinema. The festival prides itself upon providing opportunities for talented directors, producers, writers, actors and crew members from all over the world to learn together and exhibit their work in a stimulating international environment. The festival is open to any film in any genre and especially prioritizes low-budget films of independent spirit and exciting new talent. The Festival aims to provide a cultural alternative to the commercial film experience, support independent filmmakers, and promote the art of filmmaking. It was established to utilize the power of film to further the goal of inter-cultural understanding among nations and to assist in the building of a shared artistic experience. During each season, films submitted to Oakland Awards are judged by our International Jury on their overall artistic and technical quality on a performance scale. Few of the finalist films will be selected for online screening and awards.

About us:
⁣An IMDb qualified festvial , Rotterdam Independent Film Festival (Riff) is a brand new, up-and-coming online seasonal short film festival in Netherland, a country with great filmmakers like Johan van der Keuken and popular international film festivals. Riff is an exclusive online short film competition, and our main goal is to showcase the brilliant short projects for a diverse audience of cinephiles.
RIFF is more than just a Film event; it is a strong connection among all filmmakers worldwide. RIFF is a hub for international filmmakers to celebrate their premieres, thank their cast and crew, and meet their fans. Exposing young talented filmmakers to an environment of industry professionals with vast experience in their field is a priority for us. One of our top aims is to help first-time filmmakers promote their talent regardless of their age. The objective of RIFF is to provide support to indie filmmakers globally through reviewing, judging, marketing, and distribution networking. We aim to create networks that lead to further opportunities for filmmakers.
RIFF is an online award film festival. You have two steps in front to advance to the annual event. At first, each season, our jury selects the winners of each category through "private" screenings. Every submitted film has a chance to be a winner for each season. In the next step, we select few films from the winner projects for the annual event. If you get to the second stage, we will get in touch with you for the annual event (not getting a notification from us means that you are not a selected film for the second stage). If you advance to the yearly event, you need to send us materials for online screening.
Our judges consist of filmmakers and industry professionals from 5 different countries. We believe that having such a multicultural team behind our festival helps our festival thrive among Indie Festivals.

⁣Berlin Short Awards is a bi-monthly IMDb qualified online short awards event. We are happy to welcome filmmakers from all genres, particularly low or no-budget ones, and all countries, especially from those traditionally underrepresented in the global film industry. Our main goal is to showcase their brilliant projects in Berlin's beautiful city for a diverse audience of cinephiles. Berlin, as a city dates to the 13th century. Reminders of the city's turbulent 20th-century history can be seen in the parts of city. The city's also known for its art scene and modern landmarks like the gold-coloured, swoop-roofed Berliner Philharmonic, built in 1963. We encourage you to submit your work to this online event.
The selected projects are privately judged by a random team of invited experts from academia and the film industry worldwide, against a high standard of merit. From the official selection pool, which has a very competitive acceptance rate, Berlin Shorts Award chose the nominees and award winners of the month. All the Winners will receive the Official Laurels and the winning-category certificate.