Call for Entries Now: 2025 MUST International Youth Film Festival & Golden Rooster Film Exhibition in Macao
Ⅰ. Event Overview
In 2025, the MUST Chinese Youth Film Festival will be upgraded to the MUST International Youth Film Festival. The event will continue its partnership with the official Chinese Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Film Festival. The official title of this year's film festival event is:"2025 MUST International Youth Film Festival and Golden Rooster Film Exhibition in Macao". The MUST International Youth Film Festival is a competition for young filmmakers worldwide. Its mission is to discover and support emerging international talents in Macao and beyond, foster global cultural exchange, nurture creativity talents in film and television for the new digital era.
Ⅱ. Event Organizing Unit
The“2025 MUST International Youth Film Festival and Golden Rooster Film Exhibition in Macao”will be held in Macao from November 21 to 27, 2025. The event is co-hosted by Macau University of Science and Technology Foundation and the China Film Association, and co-organized by the Academy of Film and Xiamen Film Festival Co., Ltd.the Center for Digital Innovation and Humanistic Education of Macau University of Science and technology, together with the Future Film and Television Innovation Research Center of the Chinese Collegiate Association for Film and Television, Macao.The event is funded by the Cultural Development Fund of the Macao Special Administrative Region Government, with award sponsorship for the “MUST International Youth Film Festival” provided by RED China.
Co-Hosts: Macau University of Science and Technology Foundation, China Film Association
Organizers: Academy of Film, MUST, Xiamen Film Festival Co., Ltd.
Co-Organizers: Center for Digital Innovation and Humanistic Education, MUST, Future Film and Television Innovation Research Center, Chinese Collegiate Association for Film and Television, Macao
Sponsors: Macao Special Administrative Region Government Cultural Development Fund, RED China
Ⅲ. Instructions for Registration
(1) The submitted works are subject to the relevant laws and regulations of the Macao Special Administrative Region;
(2) The entries must be original works of the participating teams, and the participating teams confirm that they own the copyright of the entries. In the event of any copyright dispute with the entry, the organizer shall not be held responsible and shall disqualify the entry and reserve the right to recover the award and losses;
(3) All authors of the entries agree to authorize the organizing committee for non-commercial promotional purposes;
Ⅳ. Competition and Submission Requirements
All film creators aged 14-40 from around the world (with one member of the creative team meeting the requirements) are eligible to submit.
(1) Entries must be video works created after September 1, 2023;
(2) Works must include complete opening titles, closing credits, dialogues, narrations, music, and credits for the creative team.
(3) Subtitles must be provided in both Chinese and English.
(4) There are no restrictions on themes. The short film categories include narrative, documentary, animated, and AIGC short films. Narrative, documentary, and animated films must not exceed 40 minutes, while AIGC films must be no longer than 10 minutes.
(5) There are no restrictions on the aspect ratio of the works; Videos files must be in the formats such as MOV, MP4,with a minimum resolution of 1080P(HD). Each video file should not exceed 10GB; please do not add any watermarks or marks that may affect viewing.
Ⅴ. Award Settings
The 2025 MUST International Youth Film Festival will feature two sections: the “Main Competition”, and the ”Greater Bay Area Section”, with over ten awards to be presented.
(1) MUST International Youth Film Festival「Main Competition Section」 Film Awards (Each award carries a prize of MOP10,000):
- Best Narrative Short Film
- Best Documentary Short Film
- Best Animated Short Film
- Best AIGC Short Film
(2) MUST International Youth Film Festival「Main Competition Section」Individual Awards (Each award carries a prize of MOP5,000):
- Best Directing
- Best Screenplay
- Best Cinematography
- Best Actor
- Best Sound Recording
- Best Art Direction
- Best Editing
- Best Visual Effects
and so on
(3) MUST International Youth Film Festival “Greater Bay Area Section” – Emerging Filmmakers of the Bay Area (each award carries a prize of MOP4,000)
(4) MUST International Youth Film Festival “Greater Bay Area Section” New Visuals of the Bay Area (each award carries a prize of MOP8,000)
Ⅵ. Registration and Submission process
Registration process
Participants must complete the registration form and email it to the festival committee at myff@must.edu.mo by October 31, 2025. The subject of the email should be formatted as "2025 MUST International Youth Film Festival + Category + Short Film Title + Duration". Each participant may submit or be involved in the creation of no more than two works.
(Note: For entries from the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao region applying to the “Greater Bay Area Section,” please indicate in the email subject: “2025 MUST International Youth Film Festival + Greater Bay Area Section + Category + Short Film Title + Duration.”)
Submission process
Participants must submit their entries via Baidu Netdisk or other means (such as Google Drive) with a link (download time set to permanent) to the organizing committee 's email or USB flash drive by 23:59 on October 31, 2025. Entries and their media will not be returned.
The submission should include:
① Short film and trailer, named by Category + Short Film Title + Duration
② One horizontal and one vertical poster of the work (along with JPG and PSD and AI files of the source file)
③ Two stills
④ Electronic copies of the front and back of the creative team's ID cards
⑤Word document of the application form and the signed document of the application form
⑥ Originality Commitment letter
If you choose to send it by mail, you will have to bear the cost of express delivery, insurance and other related expenses. The date of receipt is based on the actual date of arrival at the school. All materials will not be returned once received. Please make a backup in advance.
Ⅶ. Selection Process
Preliminary Selection Committee: The organizer will select nominees for each award category.
Final Selection Committee: Senior professionals from the film industry will serve as final judges.
Ⅷ. Event Timeline
Call for Entries: October 06 - October 31, 2025
Selection Period: November 2025
Festival Activities: November 21 – November 27, 2025
Ⅸ. Event Inquiries
Academy of Film, Macau University of Science and Technology
Email: myff@must.edu.mo
Contact Phone: 853-88973811
Address: Room 306, Building R, Macau University of Science and Technology, Avenida Wai Long, Taipa, Macao
Office Hours: Monday-Friday (excluding public holidays) 09:00-13:00 & 14:30-18:00
Ⅹ. Activity related attachments
2025 MUST International Youth Film Festival- Original Commitment：
2025 MUST International Youth Film Festival- Registration Form：
