Best Short Film
The catch-all — for shorts whose strongest element is the whole.
July 29, 2026 · The Farm SoHo · New York City
Where Short Films
Get a Stage.
An intimate one-night curated short-film festival in Manhattan.
The Concept
There’s a certain electricity in New York when the lights warm up before a show. You feel it in the floor, in the voices, in the quiet right before something begins.
Broadway Indie Shorts lives in that moment.
This is a night for filmmakers who treat short films like stage pieces — precise, alive, and meant to be felt in one sitting. Stories that move fast, hit clean, and stay with you after the lights come back on.
Broadway is more than a street. It’s a rhythm the city knows by heart. Curtains rising every night. Actors stepping into light. Stories told in front of a room that breathes with them. It’s craft, timing, and presence. It’s where performance becomes memory.
The Night
A small theater
of its own.
Set in The Farm SoHo, the space turns into a small theater of its own. Close audience. Direct energy. No distance between the screen and the room.
After the screenings, the room stays open — conversations, Q&A, portraits, people meeting people. Like stepping out of a Broadway show and still carrying it with you down the street.
What We Look For
Stories that move fast,
hit clean,
and stay with you.
We’re looking for shorts with theatrical sensibility — timing, rhythm, presence over spectacle. Films that earn every second on screen.
All genres are welcome. Narrative, documentary, experimental — what matters is whether the work, played in front of a real room, holds the room.
Categories & Awards
Ten ways to be seen.
Best Director
For shorts where the directorial vision is the defining strength.
Best Screenplay
For shorts driven by the script — story, structure, dialogue.
Best Cinematography
For shorts whose visual storytelling carries the work.
Best Actor
For shorts championing a male-identifying lead performance.
Best Actress
For shorts championing a female-identifying lead performance.
Best Editing
For shorts where rhythm, cut, and pacing make the piece.
Best Sound Design
For shorts where sonic craft elevates the work — score, mix, design.
Best Experimental Film
For non-narrative, formally experimental, or abstract works.
Audience Choice Award
Voted by the live audience on the night, from among Official Selection films.
What Selected Filmmakers Receive
Beyond the laurels.
Laurels Pack
Official Broadway Indie Shorts laurels for use across your portfolio and press.
Custom Certificate
A digital certificate of selection, named to the film and the filmmaker.
Live NYC Audience
Your work plays in front of an engaged Manhattan film community — not an empty hall.
Official Photography
Professional photo coverage of the screening night, delivered to filmmakers post-event.
Post-Event Media
Selected stills and quotes used across festival channels — exposure beyond the night.
Rules & Eligibility
Simple, by design.
- LengthFilms must be under 40 minutes.
- GenresAll genres welcome.
- SubtitlesEnglish subtitles required if the film is not in English.
- CompletionProjects must be completed after January 1, 2022.
- PremierePremiere status not required.
- SubmissionsMultiple submissions allowed — one filmmaker, many films.
Submission Fees
Three windows.
One curtain call.
Submissions open May 13, 2026. The earlier you enter, the lower the fee.
Early Bird
Opening Night
$5
Regular
Spotlight
$8
Late
Final Curtain
$12
Selected filmmakers notified by July 21, 2026. FilmFreeway adds a small service fee at checkout.
Submit on FilmFreeway
Submissions open Wednesday, May 13, 2026. Click through to FilmFreeway to enter.
Frequently Asked
Questions filmmakers ask.
When do submissions open and close?
Submissions open Wednesday, May 13, 2026. Final Curtain (late tier) closes Friday, July 17, 2026 — that’s the last possible moment to enter.
What’s the entry fee?
Three tiers across three deadlines: $5 (Opening Night, closes May 29), $8 (Spotlight, closes June 26), $12 (Final Curtain, closes July 17). FilmFreeway adds a small service fee at checkout.
How long can my film be?
Under 40 minutes. We’re a shorts festival; longer cuts are out of scope.
Do I need English subtitles?
If the film is not in English, yes — burned-in or accurate sidecar subs both work.
Does my film need to be brand new?
No premiere status required. We accept films completed after January 1, 2022 — work that’s already played elsewhere is welcome.
Can I submit multiple films?
Yes. Each film is treated as a separate submission with its own fee. There’s no cap on how many you can enter.
When will I know if my film is selected?
All filmmakers — selected or not — are notified by Tuesday, July 21, 2026, eight days before the event.
What screening file do you need?
Selected filmmakers receive a brief tech spec — typically a 1080p or 4K H.264 master with stereo audio. We’ll handle the playback file in advance, so there are no surprises on screening night.
Do I have to attend in person?
You don’t have to — but if you can, we’d love to host you for the Q&A. Selected filmmakers attending in person are invited as guests of the festival.
How do you handle promotional use of my film?
We may use clips and stills from selected films for festival promotion (social, press, post-event coverage). Full-film distribution rights stay with you.
A short film can feel like
a full performance.
This is where it gets its stage.