Shortlist New Horizons International Film Festival 2026 Regulations

Regulations of the Shortlist Section

1.1
The New Horizons Association, headquartered at Zamenhofa 1, 00-153 Warsaw, registered in the register of associations, other social and professional organizations, foundations, and independent public health care institutions, as well as in the register of entrepreneurs kept by the District Court for the Capital City of Warsaw, XII Economic Department of the National Court Register under KRS number: 0000162000, NIP: 525-22-71-014, Regon: 015503904 (hereinafter referred to as the "Organizer"), is the organizer of the 26th New Horizons International Film Festival (hereinafter referred to as the "Festival"), including the Shortlist Competition (hereinafter referred to as the "Competition") held as part of the Festival.

1.2
The Festival will take place on-site from July 23  to August 2, 2026  in Wrocław, Poland, and online from July 23 to August 9, 2026.

1.3.
Detailed information about the Festival’s profile and the program sections can be found on the official website of the Festival: nowehoryzonty.pl

1.4
Shortlist is a review of the most interesting and daring Polish short films.

1.5
According to the Organizer's decision, feature films, documentaries, animated films, experimental films, and innovative visual productions may be submitted for participation in the Festival in the Shortlist section, provided that they were completed after January 1, 2025.

1.6
Only films of Polish production or co-production, as well as those made by Polish filmmakers abroad or foreign filmmakers living in Poland, may be submitted.

1.7
A film confirmed for participation in the Festival may not be withdrawn from the program after June 15, 2026.

1.8
The Shortlist section is open to films with a maximum duration of 30 minutes, and there is no requirement for a Polish premiere.

1.9
The deadline for submissions is April 2, 2026.

2.1
To be considered for selection, a completed application form must be submitted by the deadline mentioned above, along with mandatory attachments, including a link to the online review copy of the film. The password for the link must remain unchanged throughout the selection period. If the password needs to be changed during the selection process, the Entrant must notify the Organizer immediately and provide the new password.

2.2
Due to the high volume of entries, the Organizer reserves the right to announce the selection results no later than 40 days before the start of the Festival.

2.3
The Organizer will notify only the Entrants whose films have been qualified for the program about the selection results. The Festival Selection Committee is not obliged to justify its selection decisions.

2.4
Films are presented in the original language version with English and Polish subtitles if the original language of the film, or parts of it, is other than Polish. The Entrant must provide the organizer with copies with English and/or Polish subtitles or copies in the original version with the necessary subtitles in .srt or .vtt format.

2.5
For each qualified film, the Festival must receive a synopsis of the film, stills from the film, the director’s biography and filmography, and a basic list of credits.

2.6
Each film will be showcased at the festival twice in the cinema from July 23 to August 2, 2026, and online on the NH VOD platform in the TVOD model from July 23 to August 9, 2026. Online screenings will be limited to the territory of Poland only and protected from unauthorized use. There will be an upper limit of viewers for each film, as determined by the Organizer.

2.7
The Organizer reserves the right to use excerpts of the qualified films (not exceeding 3 minutes) and include information about the film on the Festival website and in all other promotional publications concerning the Festival, including the catalog, program, press releases, etc.

2.8
The Organizer reserves the right to use promotional materials both during and after the Festival.

2.9
Copies of films qualified for the Festival should be sent digitally as a download link, made available on a server, or delivered in physical form to the Organizer's office in Warsaw. In each case, no later than July 1, 2026.

2.10
The cost of delivering copies of the films, unless otherwise agreed, shall be paid by the Organizer.

3.1
All copies of the films presented at the Festival, sent in the form of physical media, are insured by the Organizer from the moment they are delivered to the Organizer's office until they are handed over to the courier for return.

3.2
The Festival Organizer shall be responsible for the safety of the copy from the moment it is collected from the transport company until it is handed back to the transport company, provided that the Organizer's liability for damaged or lost copies shall be limited to the cost of making a new copy at prevailing lab rates (standard copy).

3.3
Any damage to the film copy must be reported to the Organizer's office in writing within one month from the date of its return.

3.4
All copies will be returned no later than August 15, 2026, unless otherwise agreed between the Organizer and the Entrant.

3.5
In the case of issue copies received in electronic form, the Organizer will make every effort to ensure that such copy does not come into the possession of third parties and undertakes to remove it from all its servers immediately after the festival.

3.6
Films may be submitted to the Festival for which the Entrant has rights, including copyrights and related rights, enabling the film to be submitted to the Festival and to be screened during the Festival. In particular, the Entrant of a Film to the Festival is obliged to ensure that:

a) they are entitled to property copyrights to the submitted film (including rights to the works used in the film) or appropriate licenses in this respect,

b) they are entitled to related rights to the submitted film or appropriate licenses in this regard,

c) the dissemination of images of persons in connection with the submission of the film to the Festival or the screening of the film during the Festival does not violate the personal rights of the persons to whom the image relates.

3.7
The Organizer reserves the right to refuse to qualify a film for the Festival, to suspend the film's participation in the Festival, or the right to withdraw the film from the Festival, in case the Organizer becomes aware that the film submitted for participation in the Festival or its screening during the Festival may violate the copyrights, related rights, or personal rights of third parties.

3.8
The Entrant of a film submitted for the Festival shall, in the event that a third party makes a claim against the Organizer for infringement of its copyright or related rights in the film or its individual elements, or its personal rights, be obliged to compensate the Organizer for the damage suffered and to cover all costs associated with the claims raised.

3.9
The Entrant entrusts the Organizer, within the meaning of Article 31 of the Act of August 29, 1997 on the Protection of Personal Data, with the processing of personal data.

4.1
The entrustment covers personal data of persons listed on the application form and persons listed on the payroll, in particular filmmakers and performers. The entrustment covers the following personal data:

1) first and last name,

2) email address,

3) telephone number,

4) profession.

4.2
The Organizer may process the entrusted personal data in order to qualify the film for the competition and screen the film.

4.3
The Organizer is authorized to further entrust the processing of personal data to other entities as necessary.

CONCLUDING NOTES

Submission of a film to the Festival constitutes acceptance of the terms of these regulations. Matters not covered by the regulations will be decided by the Festival director.