Tampere Film Festival brings together over 30,000 film enthusiasts, be it professionals or amateurs, every year in March. Tampere Film Festival is ranked amongst the top three most important short film festivals in the world. The heart of the programme is formed by International and National Short Film Competitions. The festival receives approximately 4000 submissions annually. Out of those, an estimated 110 films from 40 countries are selected.
The International Competition is amongst the most acknowledged short film competitions in the world. Tampere Film Festival’s International Competition is an Oscar®, BAFTA and EFA qualifying short film competition, meaning the world’s most trusted film organisations let us nominate films for their award categories. The National Competition showcases current feature-length documentaries alongside Finnish short films and is one of the most important platforms for Finnish filmmakers.
Films are screened outside of the competition series in Special Programmes. Retrospectives, tributes, guest curators, documentary films, you name it! To add to your festival experience, Tampere Film Festival offers a plethora of panels, seminars and workshops for professionals and the public alike.
When your head is filled with ideas and your butt is getting sore from sitting, head out to art exhibitions or clubs with live music performances – after all, it’s the people you meet (and party with!) that makes the festival truly special!
Outside the festival season, Tampere Film Festival is very active on bilateral activities regarding promotion, programming and consulting with a number of European and Asian festivals. Promoting Finnish and European Short Film is one of the festival’s primary missions.
Tampere Film Festival is carried out by the Tampereen elokuvajuhlat – Tampere Film Festival association. The association was founded by film enthusiasts in 1969 and first under the name of Tampereen Elokuvataide ry. The same year the first national short film event was organised. The first international film festival was held in 1970. In 1982, the title of the association changed to its current form Tampere Film Festival, but the mission is still the same: to bring film enthusiast around the world together under one roof.