New Horizons International Competition 2026: submit your film
The 26th edition of the New Horizons International Film Festival will take place in Wrocław from July 23 to August 2, 2026, and online from July 23 to August 9, 2026. The program will once again feature the New Horizons International Competition, a platform dedicated to presenting artistic cinema that pushes beyond the boundaries of conventional filmmaking.
The Competition is open to original, auteurial feature films, essays, and animated works that experiment with form and cinematic language; engage in dialogue—sometimes dispute—with tradition and the masters; provoke radical shifts in perspective; and are provocative and thought-provoking.
Eligible films must have a running time of over 60 minutes, be completed after March 1, 2025, and must not have been publicly screened in Poland. The festival prioritizes world, international, and European premieres. Please be aware that we do not have a programme section for international short films and that submissions of short films will be disregarded. The winner of the Competition will receive the Grand Prix and a cash prize of €10,000. An additional Audience Award will also be granted.
Films may be submitted by email to submissions@nowehoryzonty.pl. The subject of the email must be in the following format: FILM SUBMISSION: Title of Film, Name of Director, (Year). The body of the email should include:
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a link to an online screener
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the title of the production
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the director’s full name
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year and country (or countries) of production
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full name of the submitting person (and company name, if applicable)
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email address and phone number
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a short description of the film in Polish or English (up to 500 characters, including spaces)
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the following statement: I declare that I have read the competition rules and accept their content.
A list of international festivals where the film has been screened and the director's filmography are welcome.
The submission deadline is March 15, 2026.
There are no submission fees. Only entries submitted by the deadline will be considered.
We would like to point out that the New Horizons program is primarily shaped by the curatorial team, who actively invite films to the festival. Submissions constitute only a part of the overall selection process. We will contact only those whose films have been selected.
Please note: Submissions and inquiries regarding Polish short films for the Shortlist Competition should be sent to: piotr.czerkawski@nowehoryzonty.pl