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Algarve International Film Festival

The Algarve International Film Festival is the one single event with the longest film tradition in Portugal. Its chief aim is to promote and distribute short films with a maximum duration of half an hour, 35 mm. It will enter its 34th edition this year. The event attracts laymen and film professionals alike. The official selection of short films will be presented in Portimao from May 15 to May 20 every day starting at 21.30. At the present time submissions are no longer accepted. Applications from here on will be reviewed from May 14 to May 20 in 2007, the festival's 35th edition.

All films have subtitles in Portuguese, and some in French or English. Portimao is the main center of projections, a modern hall equipped with state-of-the-art technology, including Dolby surround sound. Films are accepted from independent as well as professional directors in two categories: fiction and animation. The best film of each edition is awarded the Grand Prize of Portimao City. The trophy presented for the best film in either category is an authentic statue. The winner of the Grand Prize of Portimao also receives an additional cash prize and an authentic statue of pure gold. There are special prizes for Best film about nature and environment, Best film about the Algarve, Best Film by a Portuguese Director and Best film with a message of love and peace amongst men. The total prize fund exceeds 20 000 euros / 25 000 dollars. The films must be produced no sooner than 2003. Films are also accepted in Beta SP/PAL and DVD format. The films can be in black and white or color with their own soundtrack. The festival is markedly democratic in that all filmmakers can enter, even if they are not part of film sections and film clubs. Films that have been awarded previously can enter as well, as long as they haven't been submitted in former seasons of the Algarve International Film Festival.

A wide variety of alternative and commercial films are presented in every season of the festival. The Algarve International Film Festival organizes a special film section for senior viewers since 2004. The initiative in question is supported and cherished by the entire Algarve region and its citizens and a large number of municipalities. The festival offers these special viewers an extensive series of public viewings with films of superior quality, full of tenderness, sensibility and emotion.

Another initiative in the context of the festival is entitled School Goes to the Movies. It has been organizing this event for over two decades with the aim to promote films toward this target group - school children in the Algarve. These films are broadcast throughout the region and selected in line with education criteria and considerations. This initiative gives more than 3000 children five days of film, color and joy.

The festival also prepares an international rally paper, a mobile event gradually covering the territory between the different marinas in the Algarve. It is comprised of sightseeing, photography, questions about films, the region and more. The aim is to bridge the gap between the cities of the Algarve and offer foreigners insight into the culture and lifestyle of this unique Portuguese region.