off18 Regulations
XVIII Edition. 20-26 september 2026
- ABOUT THE FESTIVAL
Organized by Sa.Li.Rò. ORTIGIA FILM FESTIVAL will take place on september 20-26, 2026, in Syracuse. OFF’s mission (acronym for Ortigia Film Festival) is to propose itself as a meeting place between directors and emerging young filmmakers, but also to promote and spread the different forms of audiovisual.
- SECTIONS
Competitive:
- Italian First and Second Feature Film Competition
- International Documentary Competition
- International Short Film Competition
Non-Competitive:
- Cinema Women
- Cinema & Animation
- The Voice of the Sea
- OFF Schools
- FEATURE FILM COMPETITION
The competition is open to first and second feature films produced or co-produced in Italy that are finished after January 1st, 2025. The films will be selected with the final decision of the Artistic Director and a Selection Committee of the festival. Applications will be submitted by the deadline of June 30th, 2026, by filling in the entry form on Filmfreeway.
A Jury of professionals in film industry will be nominated by the festival to assign the following Awards:
- OFF18/2026 Best Film Award
- OFF18/2026 Best Actor Award
- OFF18/2026 Best Screenplay
The jury reserves the right to award any special mentions.
- OFF18/2026 Audience Award for Best Film
The Audience Award will be assigned by the audience at the screenings.
- INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY COMPETITION
International documentaries (Italian and foreign) that are finished after January 1st, 2025, are admitted to the competition. The selection of the films in competition takes place under the responsibility of the artistic director and the selection committee of the festival. Applications will be submitted by the deadline of June 30th, 2026, by filling in the entry form on Filmfreeway.
The Festival Direction will nominate a jury made up of industry experts to assign the following Awards:
- OFF18/2026 Best Documentary Award CSC “Sebastiano Gesù”
The jury reserves the right to assign any special mentions.
- OFF18/2026 Audience Award for Best Documentary
The Audience Award will be assigned by the audience at the screenings.
- INTERNATIONAL SHORT FILM COMPETITION
International short films (Italian and foreign) that were completed after January 1st, 2025, are admitted to the competition. The selection of the films in competition takes place under the responsibility of the artistic director and the selection committee of the festival. The maximum length is 20 minutes. Applications will be submitted by the deadline of June 30th, 2026, by filling in the entry form on Filmfreeway.
A Jury of professionals in film industry will be nominated by the festival to assign the following Awards:
- OFF18/2026 Best Short Film AwardOFF18/2026
The winner of the OFF18 Best Short Film Award also receives the OFF18 Laser Film Award, consisting of a video post-production package of 8 hours of color correction at the Laser Film laboratories in Rome.
The jury reserves the right to assign any special mentions.
- OFF18/2026 Best Short Film Audience Award
The Audience Award will be assigned by the audience at the screenings.
- NON-COMPETITIVE SECTIONS:
- Cinema Women
A panorama of young international female directors giving voice to social and gender-related issues.
- Cinema & Animation
An international section dedicated to animated cinema, which has expanded the artistic horizons of the seventh art by creating fantastical worlds, original visual styles, and movements that defy physical reality.
- The Voice of the Sea
A section dedicated to raising awareness and promoting respect for the ecosystem. This section embodies the essence of the city of Syracuse and the island of Ortigia.
- OFF Schools
The OFF Schools section hosts screenings of short films produced by some of Europe’s most prestigious audiovisual institutes. Participation in this section requires a representative for each short film to directly act on behalf of their school of origin
- SUBMISSIONS
- Filmfreeway.
- The submission includes a festival registration fee of 20,00 euros for fiction feature films and documentaries in competitive and non-competitive sections. 10,00 euros for short movies
To submit a film to the festival, please include the following material:
- Synopsis (Italian-English)
- Description of Film and Credits
- Poster and photo of the film in high resolution jpg, tif or pdf format
- Biography and Filmography of the filmmaker (Italian-English)
- For the Feature Films: The Press Kit
- Stream movie link with password
- Italian and english subtitles
The link to watch the movie in streaming must be valid until the end of the festival.
- TERMS AND SHIPPING DETAILS
The registration containing the requested material must be made no later than 11.30 pm on June 30th, 2026, the receipt of the email will be considered valid.
Per ulteriori info: video@ortigiafilmfestival.it
- SCREENINGS and SCHEDULES
The screenings schedule will be communicated by ORTIGIA FILM FESTIVAL.
9.1 REQUESTED MATERIALS FOR SELECTED FILMS:
Producers and/or filmmakers invited to participate will be notified by the festival and must be sending the requested materials ASAP (film stills, text, dialogue list, posters, trailers, clips, subs etc.). The material may be used in the Festival Catalogue, Festival Program, Festival Website, and may be made available to the Press for the purposes of promoting the film. Films must be received in DVD, HD or Blu-Ray no later than September 5th, 2026. For screening purposes, we require the DVD to be in PAL format. Due to technical incompatibility, NTSC formats will not be screened.
- TERMS AND CONDITIONS
9.1 The producers or filmmakers invited to the festival are responsible for the submitted film and declare to have fulfilled any obligations towards third party Copyright holders.
9.2 The producer or filmmaker is responsible for all costs associated with sending the DVD to the Festival. By sending the DVD the producer or filmmaker accepts these Regulations in full, and, if they are invited, irrevocably agree to the screening of the film at the 2024 edition of OFF.
9.3 OFF will only pay the out-bound freight for films invited to the festival
9.4 By submitting the film and sending the DVD the producers or filmmakers agree with these Regulations. In the case of disputes which cannot be resolved by the application of these Regulations, the Festival Artistic Director reserves the right to make the final decision. The Italian version of these Regulations is the Official version. The competent court is the Foro di Siracusa, Italy.
For enquiries or for further information, please contact the Festival’s Administration Office at: video@ortigiafilmfestival.it
(please do not use this email to submit applications).
For applications: https://filmfreeway.com/OrtigiaFilmFestiv
