Cinematic Futures: DKU Film Festival is excited for its inaugural edition, to take place February 6-7, 2026 at Duke Kunshan University!
The festival will feature a masterclass and screening events from our special guest, Palme d’Or winner, Qi Yang, a student film competition, and a global shorts film program. All selected filmmakers will be invited to attend and will be eligible for the Best of the Festival Award.
To submit your film as an entrant, please scan the QR code, or use the link: https://duke.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0im40TVwTrTmOrA
SUBMISSIONS GUIDELINES:
- Submissions are open to current university students, as well as those that graduated in 2025.
- The final submission deadline is January 14, 2026. Early submission is strongly encouraged and will increase likelihood of selection.
- Maximum length of submissions is 20 minutes, including credits, title sequence, and 10 seconds of black at the beginning and end of the file.
- The festival seeks to celebrate creative, artistic, personal forms of student filmmaking as these are more likely to exhibit in international festivals beyond DKU. Commercial forms, social media content, corporate or promotional media, etc., are not eligible for selection. Student facsimiles of Hollywood and Industrial models may be submitted but are unlikely to be selected for the festival.
- Each student is limited to a single submission. Choose your best work and make it as strong as possible.
- Films should have gone through post-production, meaning a sound mix with properly adjusted levels and color correction for consistent levels and add to your mood.
- Films that received a good grade in a class usually still need finishing/post-production work to improve their chance for exhibition and inclusion in film festivals. The Cinematic Futures Lab is a great place to receive feedback on what needs to be polished to complete your film.
- All selected films will be eligible for the Best of the Festival award. And provided laurels to add to their films to help promotion for other festivals, job applications, and grad school portfolios.
- Films may be in any language. For those not in English, please add English subtitles. Subtitles should be placed in the center of the lower third of the screen, use a readable sans-serif font with high contrast against the background, be on screen long enough to read, and limited to two lines per caption.
- Music may only be used if you have the rights to it. Be cautious to use it sparingly, or perhaps not at all, as it can negatively affect the perceived quality of your film.
For submissions questions, please email Prof. Erin Wilkerson: erin.wilkerson@dukekunshan.edu.cn
