76th Berlin International Film Festival
CALL FOR ENTRIES
(Feature-length, all genres)
Telefilm Canada is currently accepting entries of feature-length narratives and documentaries with a world premiere status on behalf of the Berlinale’s next edition.
Telefilm Canada will organize a private screening session for the Berlinale’s co-director of film programming who will travel to Montreal. The screenings will be hosted in a private theatre from September 11-13.
IMPORTANT:
- The festival has expressed the wish to accept only features with a world premiere status for the screenings in Montreal. Films with an International or European status should be submitted directly to the festival and the festival’s registration fees will apply.
- Due to the increased number of feature-length film entries, and time constraints, not all submitted films will be screened by the delegate while in Montreal. Once the Berlinale programming committee receives the list of entries submitted to Telefilm Canada, it will take care to prioritize, identify and choose the titles to be watched by the delegate in Montreal. The festival waives its entry fees only for films screened in Montreal.
- All other titles with a world premiere status (and not screened in Montreal) would then have to be registered on the festival platform and will be watched in Berlin. In which case, the festival will offer the reduced fee of €100 per feature length film.
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
The films must:
- Meet the festival’s admissibility criteria (to be consulted on the festival website).
- Be completed in the 12 months preceding the festival.
- Have a running time of 60+ minutes.
- Not have been released commercially, nor telecast or webcast, outside their country of origin or in Europe.
- Short films and series must be submitted directly to the festival.
Please note that the submissions will be collected through Dialogue events
REGISTRATION PROCESS
- Complete the “Berlinale 2026 preselection screenings” form on Telefilm Canada’s Dialogue platform.
- Provide a private downloadable Vimeo link.
- Your image editing should be final. The programmers are used to viewing work at the post-production/rough cut stage (i.e. with no colour timing, no final mix, temporary music, etc.) and, as such, know how to “fill in the technical gaps.”
SELECTION PROCESS
Films entered through this process that meet the eligibility criteria for the festival will be screened by the festival programming committee. Telefilm Canada does not filter nor preselect films.
Once the Montreal’s screenings are over, if a film is preselected (“shortlisted”) by the delegate, we will inform the applicant by email after the screening session. Then, the shortlisted films will move to step 2 and be reviewed by the rest of the festival committee between October-December 2025. Final decisions taken will be communicated directly to the applicant by the festival in December 2025.
ABOUT
The Berlinale, along with Cannes and Venice, counts as one of the oldest and most important competitive festivals in the world. It is one of the largest public film festivals in the world, with more than 240 films and over 300 000 screening tickets sold. The last edition attracted 17 000 professionals from 157 countries, as well as 2 600 journalists.
Canadian films are eligible for consideration in different sections of the Berlinale, each with its own unique profile. The festivals comprises the Official Competition Berlinale Special, Perspectives, Panorama, Generation and Forum.
Telefilm Canada recognizes the selection of feature-length film to this festival for applications to its International Promotion Program.
If you have any questions regarding the festival, please contact Danielle Bélanger at 438-469-1129 or 1-800 567-0890.
If you have any questions about the application process, please contact Justin Clément at 438-469-1195
Promotion and Communications
Telefilm Canada, Montreal
DL-festivals@telefilm.ca
1 800 567-0890