The festival takes place within the following chronological prerequisites-timeline:

2 FEBRUARY 2017 OPENING DATE OF SUBMITTING PROPOSALS (filmfreeway.com)
20 MARCH 2017 CLOSING DATE OF SUBMITTING PROSPOSALS
5 APRIL 2017 DATE OF ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE FIRST PHASE CHOSEN PARTICIPANTS
5 APRIL 2017 OPENING DATE OF ONLINE PROJECTION AND PUBLIC VOTING
30 APRIL 2017 CLOSING DATE OF ONLINE PROJECTION AND PUBLIC VOTING (SECOND PHASE)
1-9 MAY 2017 SPECIAL PROJECTION OF THE CHOSEN FILMS FOR THE 3MEMBER COMMITTEE.
9 MAY 2017 OPENING DATE OF PROJECTION IN THE MOVIE THEATRE
10 MAY 2017 DATE OF THE CLOSING CEREMONY AND AWARDS IN THE MOVIE THEATRE (THIRD PHASE)
10 MAY 2017 AWARD ANNOUNCEMENT

• Works in progress are not taken into consideration. Please submit films that have reached their complete and final form.
• All the entries must be submitted with an online screener (vimeo link or any comparable site will be accepted). The films that will be chosen for the first action need to send a High Definition file (mpg, mxf, H264 or any other file that is compatible for projection), with wetransfer or something that can be feasibly downloaded.
• The projection on the website www.shortfilm.gr is done with online streaming by t-shOrt (organizing company) channel, especially created for the festival, on vimeo.com.
• Before viewing each movie, the festival’s short spot will be projected.
• The coordinators have the right to use a small amount of shots from each film to create a trailer, which aims to promote the festival and to project extracts from the films in the central theatre.
• All films need to either be in English or to (necessarily) have English subtitles.
• The winners will create a small greeting video which will be projected during the closing ceremony and has to be sent through the internet (via wetransfer). Apart from their personal views concerning the festival and the awards, winners are also invited to answer the following question: “Tell us something about the “unemployment” issue in your country and why did you choose this theme for your film?”

The films will be selected in three phases:

• The first phase consists of the selection of films that will have submitted their application on the platform filmfreeway.com
• The second phase consists of the online projection of the chosen films, where, through public voting, 30 films will be selected to create a top30. This will take place on the last day, 30 April 2017 at 12.00 pm Greek time.
• The third phase consists of the projection of the 30 selected films in a central theatre, where the final awards will be nominated by a 3 member jury.

Films that can take part in the festival:

Short films FICTION up to 30 min
Short films DOCUMENTARY up to 30 min
Short films ANIMATION up to 30 min

Entry fee:

The festival resigns from the entry film fees, since short film is a category which globally faces economical difficulties. Hence there is no cost for submission of proposals for the festival.

Date of film production:

The festival has a retrospective character. For this reason, it is also interested in older films which outline the issue of unemployment within the recent 5 year period. Thus, films of the last 5 years can also be submitted for the festival. The oldest date of a film production is 2012.

A world premiere is not necessary.

Procedure of film selection:

• From the films that will be submitted on filmfreeway, the artistic director with his advisor will select 60 (sixty) films for the first action (online projection and public voting).
• From the first action (online projection) the 30 best films will be selected through public voting (top 30).
• During the second action and after the projection of these 30 films in a central movie theatre in Athens, the three first prizes and twelve (12) special awards will emerge through the 3 member committee.

NOTE: In case that 30 or less films will be selected from the first phase, all the films will be projected in the central theatre and there will be an audience award through online voting.

The festival consists of 2 actions:

• 1st ACTION: Online top30 competition. The selected films will be posted all together on the 5th April 2017 on the following website www.shortfilm.gr and will stay online until the 30th April 2017. Meanwhile, they can be viewed freely with the aim to create a top30 through public voting. These 30 films will initiate the second active phase.
• 2nd ACTION: The 30 (thirty) films that will be selected from the first action (top30), will be screened in a central theatre in Athens (MICROKOSMOS THEATER), during the second action of the festival, giving the opportunity to a 3 member committee that will be formed to assign the 3 first prizes. These prizes and 12 special awards will be given on the night of the last day of the festival.

Our online cinema (1st action)

www.shortfilm.gr is one of the most important sites for Greek short films. Within the frame of this site, online short film competitions take place, under the name of BigBangShortFilmFestival. Unemployment International Short Film Festival is part of the actions of the BigBangShortFilmFestival. The films are projected through a website which has been worked on aesthetically, and is communicated to multiple viewers and internet users. You can get an idea here: http://www.bigbang.gr/movie.asp?id=22

The movie theatre (2nd action)

The films that will be selected for the top30 of the 1st action will be projected in a central theatre in Athens. This event will be a tribute to “Unemployment”. This movie theater called MICROCOSMOS, located at 106 Sygrou Street, 117 41 Athens, Greece. It is a very nice and friendly room with good orientation in the film and with special affection for short films. http://www.mikrokosmos.gr, mikosmos@otenet.gr

• The artistic director and his advisor will select films that will be given to filmfreeway. From all the films that will be submitted on filmfreeway, 60 will be chosen (approximately and according to their final length) for the 1st action.
• The viewers and online users will vote online during the 1st action on the following website www.shortfilm.gr and the top30 will be chosen for the 2nd action.
• The 3 member committee will assess them and give the 3 first prizes and the 12 special awards in the 2nd action. The jury consists of people from the cinema field who play an active and important role in the short film area. The names and characteristics of these people will soon be announced.

NOTE: In case that 30 or less films will be selected from the first phase, all the films will be projected in the central theatre and there will be an audience award through online voting.