Golden Raven

About

Arctic International Film Festival "Golden Raven" is being held annually on the territory of the Chukotka Autonomous Region and is the professional competitive screening of cinematic works from around the world

The festival sets its goals and objectives as following:

• search and promotion of the best modern films related to the Arctic and reflecting various aspects of life in this region;

• attracting the attention of the public and professional community to the topics relevant to the Arctic including ecology, interethnic relations, the continuity of generations, the preservation of traditions and culture, etc.;

• creation of a communication channel and strengthening of cooperation between Russia and the world community through the territories and cultural space of the Far North of the Russian Federation;

• popularization of event and ecological tourism on the territory of the Chukotka Autonomous Region;

• creation and development of a comfortable environment for residents of the Chukotka Autonomous Region;

• development of the film production infrastructure, as well as promotion of the Chukotka Autonomous Region as an attractive and comfortable location for filmmaking;

• search and support of young talented filmmakers creating films in the Arctic region;

• preservation and popularization of the cultural heritage of the indigenous peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East.

Besides competitive and non-competitive film screenings, in order to realize its mission, the Festival carries out social, cultural and educational activities, organizing and holding a number of official events.

 These activities may include:

• business program (master classes, meetings, public discussions, round tables, conferences with representatives of the professional film community, as well as with representatives of local authorities, Russian and foreign media, etc.);

• educational program (master classes, lectures, meetings held primarily for children and youth on the basis of schools, libraries and other social facilities, and aimed at transferring knowledge in the field of cinematography);

•cultural program (creative evenings of the guests of the festival, creative meetings, cultural presentations, concerts, open sports trainings, excursions for participants and guests of the festival, etc.).

Awards

The following prizes are awarded according to the results of the Festival:

• Statuette "THE BIG GOLDEN RAVEN" - Grand-Prix of the Festival for the best film in the full- length feature and documentary films competition according to the results of people's choice;
• Statuette "GOLDEN RAVEN" – the Festival prize for the best film in the full-length feature or documentary films competition according to the decision of the expert jury;
• Statuette "GOLDEN RAVEN" - The prize of the Festival for best directing in the full-length feature or documentary films competition according to the decision of the expert jury;
• Statuette "GOLDEN RAVEN" - The prize of the Festival for best script in the full-length feature or documentary films competition according to the decision of the expert jury;
• Statuette "GOLDEN RAVEN" - The prize of the Festival for best cinematography  in the full-length feature or documentary films competition according to the decision of the expert jury;
• Medallion "GOLDEN RAVEN" - The prize of the Festival for the best film of full-length animated films competition according to the results of people's choice;
• Medallion "GOLDEN RAVEN" - The prize of the Festival for the best film of short feature and documentary films competitions according to the results of people's choice;
• Medallion "GOLDEN RAVEN" - The prize of the Festival for the best short feature film competition according to the decision of the expert jury;
• Medallion "GOLDEN RAVEN" - The prize of the Festival for the best short documentary film competition according to the decision of the expert jury;
• Medallion "GOLDEN RAVEN" - The prize of the Festival for the best film of short animated film competition according to the results of children's choice;
• Medallion "GOLDEN RAVEN" - Special Jury Prize for the full-length feature and documentary films competition prize (the nomination and the recipient of the prize are determined by the jury);
• Medallion "GOLDEN RAVEN" - Special Jury Prize for the short feature and documentary films competitions prize (the nomination and the recipient of the prize are determined by the jury);
• Medallion "GOLDEN RAVEN" - The prize of the Festival for the best short documentary film competition "FilmRising!" according to the decision of the expert jury;
• Medallion "GOLDEN RAVEN" - Special Prize of the Organizing Committee of the Film (awarded as agreed by the Organizing Committee);
• The Festival Prize for the best film according to the decision of the representatives of the media, film critics and film scholars (Press Award)

None prize can be divided between two or more participants of competitive programs.

Besides the established prizes, the expert jury has the right to award no more than three films participating in each of any competitive programs of full-length feature and documentary films, short feature and short documentary films and "FilmRising!" with a diploma or special mention of the jury (the award includes a diploma; a statuette and a medallion are not provided for these categories of awards).

The Organizing Committee of the Festival, as well as the Partners of the Festival, have the right to establish special prizes and diplomas by agreement.

The Festival Jury and the Festival Organizing Committee have the right not to award any of the above awards based on the results of the Festival events.

Rules

The international competitions of full-length feature, documentary and animated films are open to:

• films with a running time of 52 minutes or more;
• films produced on or after January 1, 2025;
• films dedicated to Arctic or northern topics and reflecting the life of the population of the northern regions of the world, as well as films about the life, everyday culture and traditions of indigenous peoples in different parts of the world, environmental issues and the interaction between man and nature.

The international competitions of short feature, documentary and animated films are open to:

• films with a running time of less than 52 minutes;
• films produced on or after January 1, 2025;
• films dedicated to Arctic or northern topics and reflecting the life of the population of the northern regions of the world, including indigenous peoples, nature and wildlife, as well as films of other themes.

The Interregional Competition “FilmRising!” (“Kinovzlyot!”) is open to:

• short feature and documentary films with a running time of less than 30 minutes;
• films produced on or after January 1, 2025 by authors from the regions of the North, Siberia and the Far East of Russia residing in these territories — the regions of the North, Siberia and the Far East — which have not previously taken part in this Festival program;
• films dedicated to Arctic or northern topics and reflecting the life of the population of the North, Siberia and the Far East, including indigenous peoples, nature and wildlife, as well as films of other themes;
• debut and student works, as well as works created by non-professional filmmakers.

The out-of-competition screenings of full-length and short feature, documentary and animated films are open to works of various themes and production dates. Other media content may also be included in the out-of-competition program at the discretion of the Organizing Committee of the Festival.

The use of obscene language in films is not allowed.

The content of films participating in the competition and out-of-competition programs of the Festival must not contradict the legislation of the Russian Federation.

The Festival programs include Russian and foreign films selected by the Selection Committee that reflect universal spiritual and moral values and cultural traditions and carry the ideas of peacemaking, religious tolerance and humanism, in accordance with the main nominations of the Festival.

Submission Period

Entries for participation in the Festival are accepted from August 20, 2026 to November 30, 2026, inclusive.

Russian applicants must fill in the online form on the official Festival website, www.goldenravenfilmfest.ru, and submit links to all required materials in the following section:

https://goldenravenfilmfest.ru/zayavka

Foreign applicants must submit their entries to the Selection Committee via the FilmFreeway online platform:

https://filmfreeway.com/ArcticInternationalFilmFestivalGoldenRaven

The final decision on the participation of films in the Festival programs is made by the Selection Committee. The Selection Committee reserves the right not to provide comments or explain the reasons for negative decisions when reviewing submitted works.

The Selection Committee and the Organizing Committee of the Festival reserve the right to refuse participation in the Festival to a previously confirmed participant in the following circumstances:

• failure to provide, within the specified period, the information required for the Festival catalogue and media coverage;
• prolonged absence of feedback from the participant on current organizational matters during the preparation of the Festival without valid reasons;
• identification by the Organizing Committee of the Festival that the participant has provided false information on matters related to the screening of the film within the Festival.

The list of participants in the competition and out-of-competition programs is formed by the Selection Committee and published on the official Festival website, www.goldenravenfilmfest.ru, no later than March 25, 2027.

Materials for Selected Films

For each selected film, the following materials must be received by the Festival:

• dialogue lists with exact timecode and an srt file in English for films in a foreign language or in Russian;
• a digital copy of the film for subtitling — Full HD, mp4 or ProRes with maximum bitrate;
• a synopsis in English and/or Russian;
• a biography in English and/or Russian and a photograph of the director;
• the festival history of the film in English and/or Russian;
• stills from the film with a resolution of at least 300 dpi;
• a film poster in *psd and *jpeg formats, with parameters sufficient for high-quality printing in A1 format;
• a trailer or teaser of the film;
• a copy of the film’s distribution certificate, if available, for Russian participants;
• a copy of the national film certificate, if available, for Russian participants;
• consent of the copyright holder to the screening of the film within the Festival;
• other press, advertising and promotional materials, if available.

To participate in the Festival, the right holders of a participating film must provide the Festival with the film in DCP format in the original language, with Russian or English subtitles if the original language is neither Russian nor English.

Participation of a film in the Festival competition implies the possible presence of the director or the actor playing the leading role. If the director and/or the leading actor cannot attend the Festival, the Organizing Committee reserves the right to keep the film in the competition provided that the film is presented by a member of the film crew representing a leading creative profession.

The Festival has the right to use all visual materials of the participating films, as well as excerpts from the films of no more than 3 minutes, for the purposes of informing the audience and promoting the Festival and its events.

The main events of the XI Arctic International Film Festival “Golden Raven” will take place in Anadyr, Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, from March 29 to April 11, 2027.

For more detailed information on the participation rules, deadlines and procedures of the Festival, please refer to the Regulations of the XI Arctic International Film Festival “Golden Raven”.

Premiere Requirements

No premiere requirement

Jury and Organizers

The Festival is being held by the Youth Initiative Production Center, by the Committee for Culture and Tourism of the Chukotka Autonomous Region, by the Center of Development and Support of Cultural Projects "Golden Raven" and is supported by the Ministry for the Development of the Russian Far East and Arctic, the Governor of the Chukotka Autonomous Region, Presidential Fund for Cultural Initiatives, the Government of the Chukotka Autonomous Region, the Russian Filmmakers’ Union, AU CHAO Okrkinovideoprokat.

To award the prizes of competitive programs the special international juries will be set up. Russian and foreign filmmakers, festival managers, representatives of different artistic jobs and public figures can be invited as jury members. The number of jury members may vary, but is limited from three to seven people.