Call for films - Competition

[Regulations for the January 2026 edition]

Selection and admission requirements

Fifteen first feature films, twenty first shorts, thirty school films and twenty animated shorts are selected to take part in the Competition.

The films presented at the Premiers Plans Festival are chosen by a selection committee, under the responsibility of the general delegate and artistic director. The decision of the Premiers Plans selection committee is final. Each selected film will be screened no more than three times during the Festival.

Unless otherwise specified, films may be entered in the following competitive categories if they meet the conditions indicated (all films must be made after January 1, 2024):

First and second European feature films

First (priority) or second European feature films are accepted, and for French films, only firsts are accepted (earlier works, on video or made for television, are not counted).
Produced or co-produced mainly in Europe^[1].
Over 59 minutes in length
Not commercially distributed or broadcast in France

Diagonales^[2]

First films are accepted (earlier works, on video or made for TV, are not counted).
Produced or co-produced mainly in Europe^[1].
Of any length
Not commercially distributed or broadcast in France

First European shorts

Produced or co-produced mainly in Europe^[1](excluding schools)
With a running time of less than 59 minutes for dramas
Under 40 minutes for documentaries

First French shorts

Produced or co-produced in France^[1] (excluding schools)
Under 59 minutes for fiction films
Under 40 minutes for documentaries

School films

Produced in a European film school or faculty^[1].
Under 59 minutes in length

Animated shots / Animated films

First short film or school film
Produced or co-produced mainly in Europe^[1]
Running time under 59 minutes

Chenaplans / Youth Selection^[3]

First short film or school film (animated film)
Produced or co-produced mainly in Europe^[1]
Running time under 59 minutes
Accessible to young audiences aged 3 to 9

^[1] European countries and former Soviet Union countries

^[2] The selection of Diagonales films is drawn up by the programming team on the basis of feature-length and short film registrations.

^[3] The selection of films in Chenaplans is drawn up by the programming team on the basis of entries for animated shots.

Distribution format

For each competition (excluding Chenaplans), selected films must be supplied in DCP. Files must be named in accordance with the Digital Naming Convention. DCPs must be sent to us unencrypted (without KDM key).

For the Chenaplans competition, selected films must be supplied in DCP as well as in ProRes 422 HQ.

Registration

The application form must be completed online and signed Monday September 29, 2025 at the latest on our website.

Registration fees

Registration fees are as follows:

€30 for feature films
€10 for short films
€7 for school films

All payments are final; no refunds of registration fees will be made.

Selected films and transport of media (copies, DCP, files, etc.)

The selection of films will be announced no later than mid-December 2025.

Photos of the film and director must be provided.
For each film in competition, the Festival requests that the digital copy, if possible subtitled in French or, failing that, in English, be sent as soon as the selection is announced and no later than Friday, December 19, 2025.
For short films in DCP, a back-up copy in ProRes 422 HQ is required.
French-language films must be supplied with English subtitles.
Shipment of projection media to Paris or Angers is the responsibility of the sender.
No remuneration may be requested by production or distribution companies for the screening of films in competition.
Projection media will be returned within a fortnight of the end of the event, at the Festival's expense. Premiers Plans reserves the right to organize screenings of certain award-winning films before returning them.
In the event of loss or damage to the copy between receipt and return, the Festival will only be liable for the replacement value of the copy or part concerned.

Prizes

[The amount and number of prizes are given for information only, based on the previous edition and subject to change].

Several prizes are awarded by the juries and the public:

4 prizes for feature films
1 prize for Diagonales
6 prizes for short films
3 prizes for school films
3 prizes for animated shots
3 awards for script readings
4 acting prizes
2 prizes for the Chenaplans

The prizes will be paid within 3 months of the end of the event.

The winner may use the prize money within 18 months of the date of the awards ceremony.

Ballots can be viewed on request at info@premiersplans.org until February 27, 2026.

Communication

The winners, their producers and distributors are obliged to include a mention of their selection for the Festival or the full name of the prize, together with the Festival logo, on all advertising and promotional material (poster, credits, film announcement, press kit, website).
The Festival undertakes to supply the Festival laurels.

Protection of personal data

The Association Premiers Plans undertakes to comply with the provisions :

European Regulation (EU) No. 2016/679 of April 27, 2016 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data,
Law no. 2018-493 of June 20, 2018 on the protection of personal data,
Act no. 78-17 of January 6, 1978 on data processing, data files and individual liberties, as amended,

and, more generally, all regulations relating to the processing of personal data.

The rightful owners remain responsible for all personal data processing carried out within their entities and undertake to take all necessary administrative and legal measures.

Premiers Plans processes personal data in its capacity as data controller for the purpose of managing its relations with the entitled parties.

The legal basis for this processing is the present regulations.

Premiers Plans takes all organizational and technical measures in order to secure the personal data entrusted by the rightful claimants.

Premiers Plans only keeps the data for the time necessary for the operations for which it was collected and in compliance with the regulations in force. In this respect, the data of rightful claimants is deleted 10 years after the end of the settlement.

Rightful claimants may exercise their rights by sending a letter by post to Premiers Plans, for the attention of the Data Protection Referent, 9 rue Jeanne Moreau, 49100 Angers or to info@premiersplans.org accompanied by a copy of a signed identity document. Premiers Plans will reply within one month.

Premiers Plans is very attentive to find any solution in case of disagreement. However, if no solution is found, rightful claimants have the right to lodge a complaint with the Cnil via its website www.cnil.fr.

Please note

These rules are written in French and English. In the event of any dispute over the interpretation of the text, the French version shall prevail. The Festival management reserves the right to take any decision relating to matters not covered by these rules.
Applications for admission to the competition of the Festival Premiers Plans d'Angers imply unconditional acceptance of these rules.
The civil court of Angers has sole jurisdiction in the event of a dispute.

Contact and information

Programming Office: +33 7 61 40 56 70 / competition@premiersplans.org

The offices are closed from 19 July to 17 August 2025.