Swedenborg Film Festival

About the Open Call

The Swedenborg Film Festival 2025 (SFF2025) is a renowned event in the UK film calendar, inviting entries from emerging and established independent filmmakers. Guest judges for 2025 are Chris Petit and Iain Sinclair. The festival has gained a reputation for the quality and diversity of its programming, supporting all genres, and particularly encourages submissions that draw upon the diverse and radical traditions influenced by Emanuel Swedenborg (1688–1772). Previous themes have included transcendence, symbolism, social reform, and psychogeography, inspired by artists like William Blake, Charles Baudelaire, and Ingmar Bergman. Shortlisted films for SFF2025 will be screened during a live event at CURZON SOHO on December 6, 2025, where winners will be selected and announced by the guest judges. Additionally, a longlist will be screened at Swedenborg House, London, over successive days in December, with some slots curated by the SFF2025 team. Swedenborg House serves as a fully inclusive not-for-profit publishing house, gallery, museum, and cultural venue in Bloomsbury, London, hosting a lively programme of events focused on the interface between arts, philosophy, and ethics.

What is Offered

Prizes will be presented in several categories. Shortlisted films will be shown alongside invited screenings by the Quay Brothers and other leading international filmmakers. Winners will receive a distinctive prize related to the festival. Longlisted films will be screened over subsequent days at Swedenborg House.

Requirements

Films must be 20 minutes or less in length. Filmmakers must confirm they have obtained all necessary written consents and hold relevant rights or permissions for public exhibition. Submission of an application form and film file/DVD/web link does not guarantee inclusion, and the decision of the Festival Selection Panel is final.

How to Apply

Films must be 20 minutes or less in length. Submissions are made via FilmFreeway, and an administration charge applies to each film submitted.