STATUTE OF THE FILM COMPETITION FROM V4 COUNTRIES, AUSTRIA AND UKRAINE
“IN THE HEART OF EUROPE”
within the framework of the Bratislava International Film Festival FEBIOFEST
Article I – Entry Criteria
- Short Film Competition
The Short Film Competition includes 20 short films (fiction, documentary, animated or experimental) that meet the following criteria:
- Maximum running time: 30 minutes
- Year of production: no older than two years prior to the current edition (for the 2026 edition, films from ©2024, ©2025 and ©2026 are eligible)
- The majority producer, in accordance with the European Convention on Cinematographic Co-production, must be from one of the participating countries: V4 (Slovakia, Hungary, Czech Republic, Poland), Austria or Ukraine
- Representation of the individual countries in the competition does not have to be balanced
- Films that were part of the selection in previous editions are not eligible
- Films do not need to hold a specific premiere status
- Feature Film Competition
The Feature Film Competition includes at least eight films (fiction, documentary, animated or experimental) that meet the following criteria:
- Minimum running time: 50 minutes
- Year of production: no older than two years prior to the current edition (for the 2026 edition, films from ©2024, ©2025 and ©2026 are eligible)
- The film must have at least a minority producer, in accordance with the European Convention on Cinematographic Co-production, from one of the participating countries: V4 (Slovakia, Hungary, Czech Republic, Poland), Austria or Ukraine
- Representation of the individual countries in the competition: one country = one film representative
- Films that were part of the selection in previous editions are not eligible
- Films must be presented in their Slovak premiere
Article II – Pre-selection and Submission Deadline
The pre-selection of competition titles is carried out by a selection committee consisting of three permanent members of the festival’s organisational team.
In all cases, the selection process must be based on consultations with qualified and respected film professionals – curators for the respective national cinematographies – who ensure the objectivity of the evaluation and the eligibility of the selected films for inclusion in the final competition line-up.
The pre-selection must be completed by 15 February of the respective festival year, with all applicants notified about their inclusion or non-inclusion in the competition.
Article III – Selection Principles
The decisive criteria for the evaluation and selection of films for the festival competition are their cinematic quality and artistic value.
Genre, theme, creative method, or technique are not determining factors.
The aim of the selection process is not to achieve equal representation among participating countries but to curate the best possible collection of short and feature films that reflect the current state of cinematography in the participating regions.
Article IV – International Jury
Each competition category shall have an international jury of at least three members.
To ensure impartiality, the jury shall consist of representatives from outside the participating countries.
Members of the jury are appointed by the Program Director and the Executive Director of the festival for one edition only.
A juror’s participation may be repeated in exceptional cases, but with a minimum interval of two years.
Each competition category has its own independent jury.
Jury members may include representatives of international film festivals, film sales agents, filmmakers, film historians or theorists, or film journalists with significant professional experience.
In all cases, the jury should consist of respected professionals whose work or expertise is closely related to film creation.
A special jury, composed of at least three representatives of film clubs, awards the Film Clubs Award. Their membership may also be repeated, but only with a minimum interval of two years.
No jury member may be a person who has participated in the production of any of the competing films.
Article V – Awards and Announcement of Results
The main award of the competition is the FEBIOFEST Award, accompanied by a financial prize:
a. Short Film Competition – €1,000, awarded to the director (or main creators) of the winning film, as determined by the professional jury.
b. Feature Film Competition – €1,000, awarded to the producer of the winning film, as determined by the professional jury.
The jury may also decide to grant a Special Mention to one film per category.
The competition results and winning titles are announced during the closing ceremony of the Bratislava section of the festival.
Peter Dubecký
President of the Bratislava International Film Festival FEBIOFEST
Bratislava, October 2025