Festival rules & permissions.

1. Identity and format

RTV stands for Real-Time Video. RTV International Film Festival is an independent festival distinct from RTV Monthly Awards and the creator directory. The inaugural 2026 edition is online. The proposed programme includes review, award announcements and authorized editorial presentations of films and filmmakers. Public screenings, if confirmed, will be announced with their separate rights and viewing conditions.

2. Entry route and fees

Enter directly through the RTV festival submission form, which returns a reference after the entry is saved. Subject to platform approval, Festhome at festhome.com is the planned submission route. A festival-specific link will be published after activation. RTV charges no festival entry fee for its first edition; third-party platform service charges may still apply and will be shown by that platform. Existing RTV submissions and Monthly Awards entries do not automatically enter the festival.

The 2026 calendar is September 7 direct opening; October 10 early milestone; November 10 regular deadline; November 30 final deadline; December 10 selection notices; December 20 jury winners; December 20–27 optional showcase. The target opening for the additional Festhome route is September 15, subject to platform activation; it does not delay direct entries. Festhome deadlines end at 00:00 CET/CEST on the following day; the final cutoff is December 1 at 00:00 CET. Website and platform information will be kept consistent.

3. Categories and eligibility

Awards: Best Short Film, Best Student Film, Best Director, Best Documentary Short, Best Animated Short, Best Experimental Short and Best AI Short Drama. Eligibility: short films up to 40 minutes including credits; all countries and production years welcome; no premiere requirement imposed by RTV. Films not in English should include English subtitles; dialogue-free works are welcome. Direct entries must supply an accessible screener link, contact email, synopsis, director, country and runtime. Keep the screener available to reviewers through December 20. Best AI Short Drama is intended for narrative shorts or short-form dramatic episodes, in vertical or horizontal format; episodic entries will require a representative episode and series overview.

The festival welcomes short films made with or without AI. Entrants in Best AI Short Drama must identify their meaningful AI use and creative contribution. Other categories do not require AI. Best Student Film is intended for work made while the filmmaker was a student; student status during production should be supported by an enrolment document or school confirmation supplied privately. Entrants must have the authority and relevant rights to submit the work, including music, imagery, performances and likenesses where applicable. Submitters must be adults with the authority to enter on behalf of the rights holder; younger directors may be represented by an authorized adult. Viewing links must work for reviewers. Final language, subtitle and technical requirements will accompany the call for entries.

4. Review and communication

RTV will review every valid entry it accepts, considering storytelling, direction, character or concept, visual and sound craft, originality and, where relevant, creative AI use. It will not determine prizes from YouTube statistics. Reviewers with a material conflict of interest must recuse themselves from that entry. Jury names will be published before selections; no named juror is claimed until confirmed. Direct entrants will receive selection decisions at their supplied email address by December 10. Receipt is shown on screen and is not an email confirmation. Final decisions for Festhome entries will be communicated through Festhome's tools.

Selection is not guaranteed. Official Selection, Finalist and Winner are distinct outcomes, not proof of platform endorsement or copyright ownership. Winners receive digital recognition. No cash prize or physical trophy is offered. Categories may remain unawarded if appropriate. Entries with inaccurate or unauthorized material may be disqualified; entrants can contact RTV with corrections or rights concerns.

5. Festival Submission License: private review

A screener and any access password are for authorized festival review. They will not be placed on public RTV pages or used to provide public playback. The festival will handle platform-submitted information confidentially and use the submission platform's permitted tools. It will not scrape the platform or assume that access permits republication.

6. Festival Submission License: agreed publicity materials

The direct entry form records express authorization for publicity materials supplied by the rights holder. These materials will be reviewed before publication; submitting a private screener alone never grants publicity rights to that film. Materials may include the poster, stills, synopsis, director biography, approved portrait, credits, production notes, an expressly approved trailer and announced selection result. The permission must identify the supplied materials and allow RTV to store, resize or format them for its festival website and film profile, with credit where supplied. The publicity scope is the 2026 edition and its credited festival archive, until withdrawal. Verified removal requests will be handled through RTV Contact; the target is five business days. Ownership remains with the rights holder.

This permission does not cover the full film, private screener credentials, unrelated uses or the resale of submitted materials. Wider advertising, third-party distribution or other uses beyond the agreed publicity scope require additional permission. RTV will retain a record of the permission and provide a route for corrections or withdrawal requests. A film's Festhome submission alone will not be treated as blanket publicity permission. Private screener passwords, email addresses and student evidence are not published.

7. Optional RTV Online Showcase licence

Public full-film playback is voluntary. Declining it does not affect festival eligibility, review, Official Selection, finalist status or jury awards. There is no mandatory public screening licence hidden in festival entry or publicity consent.

After selection, an interested rights holder will be asked to complete a separate agreement identifying the film and version, authorized signer, playback provider, authorized RTV domain, territory, exact start and end times and access model. Proposed window options are 7, 30 or 90 days; an ongoing option must expressly allow withdrawal. A window starts at the agreed publication time, not at submission. The proposed December 20–27 programme spans eight calendar dates; any seven-day licence must therefore have its own exact start and expiry rather than automatically covering the entire programme.

The separate opt-in wording will read: “I authorize RTV to publicly showcase the identified full film only under the dates, territories, platform and access conditions recorded in this agreement. I retain ownership. My decision does not affect festival jury consideration.” No box will be preselected, and an interest enquiry alone is not consent. The submission form records festival participation consent and optional showcase interest. It does not collect the separate full-film licence.

The licence will be non-exclusive and limited to agreed playback and the necessary technical hosting or embedding arrangements. It does not transfer copyright or permit resale, unrelated sublicensing, paid access, advertising against the film or AI training. Any commercial use or revenue arrangement requires a separate agreement. Approval of a poster or trailer does not authorize the full film.

Rights holders must identify applicable premiere commitments, music and performance permissions, distribution restrictions and territories they cannot license. RTV will not publish a film unless its viewing service can enforce the agreed time and territory restrictions. A public third-party link is not proof that those restrictions are enforceable. No private screener password will be published.

Withdrawal requests can be sent through RTV Contact, identifying the film and agreement. The service target is to disable RTV playback within five business days of a verified request; urgent rights or safety issues will be prioritized. The final agreement must specify the withdrawal and expiry process. RTV cannot remove copies independently controlled by a third-party uploader, but will remove its own player or link and stop uses under its control.

Planned homepage exposure, film pages, director profiles and audience metrics are editorial opportunities, not guaranteed placement or viewing totals. Audience Choice is not currently open. If introduced, voting dates, eligible titles, fraud controls and selection criteria will be announced separately, with results after voting ends. Jury awards will not be decided by audience counts.

8. Organizer contact, privacy, withdrawal and changes

Festival administration: RTV International Film Festival team. Enquiries and withdrawal requests: hello@rtv.com. Include your submission reference. No physical venue is announced for this online edition.

Contact details, review notes and private viewing credentials are not public publicity materials. The RTV Privacy Policy applies to information handled by RTV; a submission platform's policy applies to its own service. Requests concerning festival records, publicity permissions or rights should be made through RTV Contact, identifying the film and submission reference without including passwords.

Changes or cancellation will be communicated to entrants and coordinated with any active submission platform. Material rule changes will be dated and communicated to affected entrants; additional rights will require fresh consent. Authorization records retain the version accepted at submission.