Winter Film Festival, formerly Winter Film Awards, is a volunteer-run non-profit festival in New York City, founded in 2011 by a group of local filmmakers and film enthusiasts. Its focus is emerging and under-represented filmmakers: it considers work of all lengths and genres from any country, and roughly half of each year's selections are made by women and half by people of colour. Films compete in feature, short, documentary, animation, music video and web series sections and in Winter FEAR, the horror competition; the programme also includes discussion panels, professional development workshops and a closing awards ceremony. Winter Film Festival is an IMDb-qualifying festival.
The 15th edition runs 24–28 February 2027, with festival screenings at Regal Union Square in Manhattan.
Awards and prizes
All selected films compete for awards in their category. Awards cover narrative features and shorts, documentary features and shorts, animation, music videos, web series and Winter FEAR horror films, with additional awards for Best Director, Best Student Film and Best NYC Film. Nominees and winners are announced at the closing awards ceremony.
Festival rules
Films of any length and from any country are considered in narrative, documentary, animation, horror, music video and web series competitions. Entries must be in English or have English subtitles. Submit online through FilmFreeway or Hiike; films sent directly by email or on DVD are not considered. No premiere is required.
For the 2027 edition, the completion cutoff is after 1 January 2024. Films publicly available online or through a distribution service are ineligible, except for web series and music videos. Animation entries must contain animation for at least half their running time. Web series submissions are individual episodes, with limited combinations of short episodes permitted under the category rules.
Submitters must hold the necessary rights to the film, soundtrack and other material, and be authorised to exhibit the work in the United States. Selected films may be excerpted for festival promotion. Copyright disputes can result in removal from the programme.
Accepted films require a DCP, a signed screening agreement and publicity materials. Final materials must arrive by the festival's deadlines. The festival does not pay screening fees; filmmakers cover travel, accommodation and meals. Entry fees are non-refundable. Invited filmmakers have three weeks to accept or reject their screening; after accepting, they cannot withdraw their film.
