the future is ours to see
Youth and student short film competition 2025
Project description:
The international film festival this human world (thw) is organising 2025 under the joint patronage of the Cultural Department of the City of Vienna (MA 7) and the Federal Ministry of Housing, Arts, Culture, Media and Sport (BMWKMS) a short film competition for young people and school pupils. The competition is open to schools nationally and internationally as well as via social media. Forwarding to educational institutions in Germany and abroad as well as on social media is encouraged, and anyone who fulfils the requirements (see ‘General conditions of the competition’ below) and is reached by this call for entries may submit.
The many conflicts of recent years clearly show that cooperation, solidarity and togetherness across borders, sectors and generations are needed to meet the challenges of our time.
We therefore invite young people and pupils aged 10-25 to make short films in class or individually on the following topic
MOVE TO CONNECT – BEWEGUNG ALS PRAXIS DER VERSTÄNDIGUNG
forget countries, borders, languages, colours... we got souls
Dance, sport, body language, performance, protest... movement as a practice of communication and expression can take many different forms. In a world full of different perspectives, how can these (or similar) forms of movement favour and promote interpersonal relationships ‘wordlessly’? We invite you to explore how movement can act as a form of communication as part of a short film project. Show us how movement becomes a dialogue. What experiences, questions or stories do you bring with you? How can movement bring people into dialogue beyond language, origin or reality?
Let your bodies speak. Let movement become a common language.
Framework conditions for the competition:
- Students and young people between the ages of 10 and 25 are invited.
- The focus is on a contemporary and sensitive approach - free of clichés, critical of dis-crimination and free of colonial images.
- Your film should be between 1 and 6 minutes long.
- Solo or group work is possible.
- All filmic means are permitted: documentary, performative, experimental, narrative or hybrid.
- The films can be made available to the schools and/or pupils using the
produced with any available means. From professional video cameras to mobile phones, everything is welcome and every genre is permitted.
- Please take care not to infringe any copyrights (e.g. by using music – here, for exam-ple, license-free pieces or your own compositions can be used)!
- Registration is due by 22. September 2025 at the latest by e-mail to schulfilmprojekt@thishumanworld.com
Closing date: October 24, 2025
The aim of this competition is to motivate young people to deal with questions of international and intercultural communication, with questions about the commonality of human existence while respecting cultural differences and overcoming prejudices.
At the same time, the fun and enjoyment of artistic creation should not be neglected and should also take centre stage. The work may also inspire the young people to engage with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. ‘The future is ours to see’ offers young filmmakers a platform to present their work. The works will be assessed by a jury. The short films that receive jury prizes will be shown and awarded prizes at the this human world international film festival in a Viennese cinema between 5 and 10 December.
Please be sure to mention this in your registration (by 22 September 2025):
* Name and address (also of the school if applicable)
* Name and contact details of the contact person (teacher, legal guardian, if applicable)
* Age and number of young people taking part
* By submitting the work (of their daughter/son), the students and legal guardians of un-derage participants agree that the visual material produced at the award ceremony (pho-tos of the winners/interviews with participants) may be published in the media, on the websites of the awarding institutions (BMWKMS, City of Vienna, this human world) and in social networks.
* Correspondence and registrations in German or English please!
Submissions can be made via filmfreeway.com (register → add project (please specify format) → upload film → search festival (this human world) → click on “Submit now” → category: Youth and student short film competition → Add to Cart (submission is free of charge)).
We look forward to your submissions!
