Newsletter
for Professionals
The ITFS is one of the most important festivals for artistic animated film. Being selected for the competition means your film will be screened on the big screen to an international audience of industry professionals and festival-goers. The films are judged and awarded prizes by international juries. The Grand Prix in the ITFS International Competition, worth 10,000 euros, automatically qualifies the winning film for the Academy Awards longlist. Furthermore, at the ITFS you’ll meet filmmakers, producers, distributors, publishers, studios and other industry representatives from all over the world. It’s the perfect opportunity for exchange and networking.
Open from 1 September
Regulations (PDF)Submission Deadline: 15 November 2026
Short Film Competitions
ITFS International Competition
International animated short films up to 30 minutes in length
ITFS Student Competition
Animated short films by students or graduates of a film, art or media university up to 30 minutes in length
ITFS Tricks for Kids Competition
Animated short films and series episodes for children up to 12 years of age, up to 30 minutes in length
ITFS Trickstar Nature Award
Animated short films on climate protection, biodiversity, the environment and sustainability up to 30 minutes in length
Open from 1 September
Regulations (PDF)Submission Deadline: 15 January 2027
ITFS AniMovie Competition
Animated feature films with a running time of at least 60 minutes
Open from 2 November
Animated Games Award Germany
Award for the best german animated game
Open from 2 November
Trickstar Business Award
Award for the best innovative and groundbreaking business model for a particular project or a company in the field of animation
Awards
Film Awards
All short and feature-length films in the competitions have the chance to be honoured. The prizes are awarded by international juries made up of outstanding personalities from the industry and our children’s jury.
Project Awards
We honour outstanding and innovative projects, business models, and games.
The Animation Screenplay Awards will be suspended for ITFS 2027, and the AniX Awards will no longer be held as a separate awards ceremony. Instead, we will be focusing our available resources on creating a diverse and strong festival programme.
