Participation Conditions
The competition is announced on February 1, 2026, with a deadline of April 15, 2026, and is governed by the competition rules.
The competition is open to children from elementary schools, youth from secondary schools, and adults.
Amateur creators from children through adults to seniors may enter the competition, either as individuals or as groups from elementary schools, secondary schools, or basic art schools, as well as from children’s centers, with independent works.
Only persons over 18 years of age may register a work in the competition. For minor authors, their film is registered by a legal guardian or educator, with the author’s consent.
One author may register a maximum of 2 films under their name in one year.
Competition works are classified into age categories according to the author’s age (in the case of a competition team, according to the age of the oldest team member) at the time of registration. Jury members cannot participate in the competition with their own works (nor as members of a competition team). There is a separate category for students of film schools (both secondary and higher education).
Entry of Works into the Competition
Entry of works into the competition itself will be preceded by a pre-selection process, in which works that meet the entry conditions will be selected. The evaluation will primarily focus on meeting the criteria for each category, technical and overall quality of the films, and their maximum length.
The organizer reserves the right not to accept a work that does not meet the specified conditions, or conversely, to grant an exception and accept the work.
The organizer reserves the right to disqualify works with footage that encourages drug use, depicts cruel and inhumane behavior without justification, trivializes, excuses, or approves risky behavior. Works must not contain footage or scenes that incite hatred based on race, gender, religion, nationality, or membership in a particular population group, nor those that unjustifiably depict persons dying or subjected to severe physical or mental suffering in a manner degrading human dignity, or that could seriously disrupt the physical, psychological, or moral development of children and young people by containing pornography or crude gratuitous violence.
The decision of the organizer and jury is final and need not be justified.
Submitted media with competition works will not be returned.
By submitting their work to the competition and completing the registration form, authors of competition works consent to the publication of their competition work on the festival’s social networks, on the festival’s website, on the festival’s YouTube channel, and to further use for the promotion of the BAF festival, including educational purposes and screenings during Festival Day.
Registration
Only competition works with a properly completed online registration form on the BAF Festival website – Bílovec Amateur Film – containing all necessary information and required attachments will be entered into the competition.
Each competition work must have a separate registration form.
Registration of competition works will be possible from February 1, 2026.
All registrations must be submitted by April 15, 2026, 11:59 PM.
The following attachments are mandatory for online registration:
- Competition film; the film title must be in this format: Film_Title–Author
- Film annotation (online registration form). The annotation is very important for presenting the film on the festival’s website.
- For foreign language films (except Slovak), a file with Czech subtitles in SRT format must be attached.
The following attachments may be optionally added to the registration:
- 3 photographs or screenshots from the film in electronic format in JPG or PNG, resolution min. 300 DPI; file names must be in this format: FILM_TITLE_PHOTO_1 or 2 or 3.jpg/png
- 3 photographs from filming (of the film director / production team) in electronic format in JPG or PNG, resolution min. 300 DPI; file names must be in this format: FILM_TITLE_FILMING_1 or 2 or 3.jpg/tif
- Clip from the competition film (trailer)
These materials may be used to promote the film within the festival in the media, on the festival’s website, on the festival’s social networks, and on the festival’s YouTube channel. By submitting these materials, the author consents to their use for the promotion and presentation of the BAF festival and screenings during Festival Day.
Consent to Publication of Competition Work
By submitting the registration, the applicant consents to the festival organizer providing clips from registered films and poster images to any television station in the Czech Republic as part of festival promotion, or presenting them on the internet on the festival’s social networks, website, and YouTube channel.
By submitting the registration, the applicant consents to the publication of the work on the BAF website, on social networks, and the BAF festival YouTube channel. By submitting the registration, the applicant also consents to the publication of the work by any television station in the Czech Republic as part of BAF festival promotion and during Festival Day screenings.
By submitting the registration, the applicant consents to the use of the work for educational purposes of the BAF festival.
Competition Categories
Film Productions
- Maximum length: 15 minutes
- Elementary school students and youth up to 16 years
- Film school students
- Adults
Fiction films, documentaries, animated films, music videos, and experimental films may be submitted to the competition.
Vertical Stories (Svět na výšku)
Authorial videos intended for social networks in formats 9:16, 1:1, 4:5, or 16:9. Videos created for platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, or YouTube Shorts may be short, dynamic, or poetic; it is important that they carry an authorial statement.
- Creators up to 30 years
- Minimum length: 20 seconds, maximum length: 2 minutes
Technical Requirements
Film Productions
- Films are recommended to be uploaded in the highest possible quality (insufficient film quality may be grounds for exclusion from the competition).
- MPEG 4 – H264 codec, HD (1920×1080; 1080p)
- Audio: Stereo, 48 kHz, MPEG-4 AAC
- Each submitted file with a competition film must contain the film title and author’s name (or competition team).
- All submitted media (DVD, USB) must be labeled with the film title and author’s name (or competition team).
- For foreign language films (except Slovak), a file with Czech subtitles in SRT format must be attached.
Creative Author Videos – Vertical Stories Category
- Format: 9:16 (1080 x 1920), 1:1 (1080 x 1080), 4:5 (1080 x 1350), or 16:9 (1920 x 1080)
- MPEG 4 – H264 codec
- Audio: Stereo, 48 kHz, MPEG-4 AAC
- Each submitted file with a competition video must contain the video title and author’s name (or competition team).
- For foreign language videos (except Slovak), a file with Czech subtitles in SRT format must be attached.
Jury and Awards
Films for the competition finals are selected and evaluated by the festival jury.
The jury consists of representatives of culture, film and television production, theory, criticism, filmmakers, producers, and festival partners.
The jury will evaluate all competition categories.
It is expected that a main prize will be awarded to the winner in each category, a festival director’s award will be given, and special prizes and recognitions will also be awarded (for example, for promoting cultural monuments).
Prizes will be presented during the ceremonial Festival Day.
Creators are expected to attend the ceremonial announcement of results during Festival Day at Bílovec’s Kino Radost cinema on June 20, 2026.
Material prizes will be awarded only to authors present or authorized representatives. Unclaimed prizes are forfeited in favor of the next year’s festival.
The organizer reserves the right not to award some prizes.
Options for Submitting Competition Films
Upload your competition film or authorial videos in the World Upside Down category to cloud storage, for example https://www.uschovna.cz, iCloud, DrobBox, OneDrive and include the download link in the registration form.
Complete the competition work registration form at https://festivalbilovec.cz/en/application-form-2026/.
OR
The film can also be delivered in person or by mail (submission date no later than the deadline day, on USB, as a regular shipment to the festival organizer’s address:
PROBILUM, z.s. Sv. Čecha 750 74301 Bílovec
Costs associated with sending films are covered by the applicant.