Icinema Film Festival - ’Obiettivo Corto’ Mobile Short Film Festival ()

Festival start: 03 August 2021      Festival end: 08 August 2021

ObiettivoCorto is one of the sections of the iCINEMA Film Festival, it is an international short film competition reserved for all directors who intend to participate with one or more works made exclusively with Smartphone devices and action cameras. The competing sections are, best international short, best Italian short (or dialectal language), best documentary (open to all). Thanks to the collaboration with the "Alma Mater" University of Bologna, department of cinema, television and multimedia arts and the department of art, music and entertainment, DAMS, we have added two sections to the main sections, one of which is dedicated exclusively to young people up to 25 years (best young short - CITEM award) and a section dedicated to experimental and innovative shorts (DAMS award), both sections are voted by juries of young students from the University of Bologna. The main jury will be composed of university and academic professors, television writers, directors and actors. The festival includes a special section dedicated to junior high and high school children (2022). The idea, which comes from a group of people who love the cinematographic arts, intends to bring together, thanks to the use of a tool such as a smartphone or action camera, devices now owned by everyone, people and in particular young people world of cinema offering the opportunity to compete and try their hand at making short films.

Best international short

Best Italian short films

Best Documentary
(open to all)

Best short school
Short films made by high and low school classes. (postponed to 2022)

Special awards

Best young short - Citem Award - University of Bologna, cinema, television and multimedia arts department.

Best experimental/innovative short - DAMS Award - University of Bologna, department of art, music and entertainment.

ONE MINUTE ITALY

Special mentions

Best Photography

Best Screenplay

Best editing

1. ObiettivoCorto is an international short film competition reserved for all directors who intend to participate with one or more works created exclusively with Smartphone devices and action cameras. It is divided into 4 main sections:

International Short Film Competition (open to all).

National Competition for short films made in Italian or dialect language

National Competition of short films made by high and low school classes. (postponed to 2022)

Documentary (open to all)

Special awards

Best young short - Citem Award - University of Bologna, cinema, television and multimedia arts department.

Best experimental short - DAMS Award - University of Bologna, department of art, music and entertainment.

Special mentions
Best Photography
Best Screenplay
Best editing


The festival allows short films, documentaries and animations of any cinematographic genre with a maximum duration of 25 '(the organization can evaluate the admission to the competition of works that exceed this limit up to a maximum of 29' titles included).

The author cannot register more than 3 works and in any case no more than one work will be selected per author.

The short films must have been made within the three years prior to their registration
The video link and all related material must be sent to the address competition@icinemafilmfestival.com or by using the dedicated platforms for which you will find the links at the end of this regulation

6. The works created must be in digital format (PRO RES, HEVC (High Efficiency Video Coding), also known as H.265) and in a minimum HD resolution (the organization reserves the right to evaluate and accept other formats ..

7. Participation is open to all and the registration fee is € 10.00 for each work presented. Payment must be made either by bank transfer or by paypal.

8. There is no limit to the number of films submitted by the same author or authors.

9. The short films must be shot with smartphone devices and / or action cameras, videos made with non-professional drones using non-professional devices are also included. It is very important to indicate the brand and model of the device (s) used. The use of any software for editing, post-production or processing of images, special effects and apps is allowed. If the devices used are not indicated, the work will not be admitted to the competition, in the event of a false declaration and therefore the use of devices that are not allowed, both the work presented and the others in competition created by the same author or authors will be disqualified.

10. All people appearing in the short films must do so with their consent, the author of the short is responsible for any lack of consent. Short films that contain discriminatory, pornographic material, that violate the dignity of people and animals, that contain images of animal abuse at any level, that incite violence or racial hatred are not accepted. The organization at its sole discretion may exclude from this competitionvideos that he deems inappropriate even if they do not fall within one of the previous cases.

11. The authors are responsible in any way for the works created in terms of images, dialogues and soundtracks used. Furthermore, the works presented must not contain images that in any way violate the laws in force in our territory.

12. Short films must be original works owned by the author or authors and must never have been presented in previous editions. On the other hand, works that have been presented in other festivals or competitions are admitted.

13. ObiettivoCorto will be able to promote the works submitted to the competition in schools, cinemas, festivals and wherever they may have cultural value.

14. ObiettivoCorto may unquestionably decide to have its logo and the words "ObiettivoCorto Smart Short Film Festival Final Selection" included in all the works selected for the competition, both in the credits and in the opening titles.

15. ObiettivoCorto is in no way responsible for the protection of the rights relating to the work presented.

16. The jury of the competition will be appointed by the artistic director, will have no connection with the authors of the works presented and may be composed of personalities from the world of cinema, experts in the sector or from the academic world. In any case, the decisions made by it will be final.

17. The short films must be transmitted through the dedicated platforms, chosen for the submission of the works, present on the official website in the registration section.

18. The organization may exclude from the competition the works that it deems non-transmissible for various reasons, communicating the exclusion to the author.

19. All films in foreign language and dialect must be made with english subtitles and Italian subtitles. If the work is not underlined in english or Italian, it must not have any other language under the title and must be accompanied by a text file showing all the dialogues contained in either english or Italian beyond the timeline of the dialogues themselves.

20. The soundtrack must be original or in compliance with any SIAE recordings and rights. The organization declines all responsibility for the use of any copyrighted material.

21. To attach:

- Promotional material (if available)
-Synthetic and schematic audiovisual presentation of the film by the director
-trailer (if available)
-Short and concise story of the director, this can be done on audiovisual material or simply written
- Passport-sized photos of the author or authors of the short
-Signed membership form and attached document of the rights holder or responsible author

22. Among all the works that will participate, the five finalists for each section may be required to send digital material (USB storage memory) containing a copy of the short film in minimum HD resolution. (The memory device will not be returned and can be requested for all short films in competition). All the required material can also be sent via postal services or courier. The material sent and the related documentation will not be returned and will become part of the organization's archive, without prejudice to the intellectual property rights of the authors.

23. The communication of the selected works will take place by 30/06/2021, from that moment on it will no longer be possible to withdraw them from the competition.

24. The deadline for submission is 31/5/2021. Films presented after this date will not enter the current edition of the festival (subject to different communication by the organization).

25. Participants accept the reproduction and dissemination of their short films for information and promotional purposes relating to the festival.

26. The organization reserves the right to change the rules and to promptly notify the change.

27. Participation in the competition implies full acceptance of all the conditions of this regulation.

28. By participating in the competition, the author authorizes the processing of personal data (law 675/96) contained in the works and in the attached material.

29. Carefully read the rules, both in the case of exclusion or inadmissibility for any reason of the works it will NOT be possible to refund the cost of registration.


The organization will select 5 works for each category.

The date and place of the screenings of the finalists as well as the place and date of the awards will be communicated subsequently and directly to the owners of the work. As a result of the latest special and exceptional anti-covid measures, the screenings and awards could be canceled, subject to special restrictions or broadcast in streaming mode. In any case, the organization will communicate all decisions in advance.