Submission Guidelines
Short Film
- Duration: Between 2 minutes and 30 minutes (including credits)
- Rules and Regulations:
- Films must be submitted in HD quality (minimum 1080p) through a Google Drive link provided in the application form. The link must be accessible and set to “Anyone with the link – Viewer.”
- Films may be in any language. Films in languages other than Hindi or English must have English subtitles.
- Only original content is eligible. Previously published or released films will not be accepted.
- There is no restriction on the number of film entries a filmmaker may submit.
- Films must not contain offensive, discriminatory or inappropriate content. The Festival reserves the right to reject or disqualify any entry deemed unsuitable.
- The decision of the Festival/Selection Committee regarding eligibility and selection of entries shall be final.
Feature Film
- Duration: Between 80 minutes and 180 minutes (including credits)
- Rules and Regulations:
- Films must be submitted in HD quality (minimum 1080p) through a Google Drive link provided in the application form. The link must be accessible and set to “Anyone with the link – Viewer.”
- Films in languages other than Hindi or English must have English subtitles.
- Films must be original and completed on or after January 2023. Both previously released and unreleased films are eligible for submission.
- There is no restriction on the number of film entries a filmmaker may submit.
- The content must not infringe any copyright or third-party rights, and filmmakers must have secured all necessary rights and permissions.
Documentary
- Duration: Between 5 minutes and 60 minutes (including credits)
- Rules and Regulations:
- Documentaries must be submitted in HD quality (minimum 1080p) through a Google Drive link provided in the application form. The link must be accessible and set to “Anyone with the link – Viewer.”
- Documentaries may be in any language. Films in languages other than Hindi or English must have English subtitles.
- The documentary must contain original content. Any archival material used must have the necessary rights and permissions.
- Documentaries should be factual and may cover a wide range of subjects, including social issues, environmental themes, cultural heritage and more.
- There is no restriction on the number of film entries a filmmaker may submit.
AI Short Film
- Duration: Between 2 minutes and 10 minutes long (including credits).
- Rules and Regulations:
- AI Films must be submitted in HD quality (minimum 1080p) through a Google Drive link provided in the application form. The link must be accessible and set to “Anyone with the link – Viewer.”
- Films may be in any language. Films in languages other than Hindi or English must have English subtitles.
- Only AI-generated content is eligible for this category. The film must be created using AI tools/applications.
- Live-action shooting, camera-shot footage, stock footage, archival footage or other non-AI-generated visual footage is not permitted. Any film found to contain such footage may be disqualified.
- Filmmakers must clearly credit the AI tools/software used in creating the film.
- Films must follow ethical standards and must not contain misinformation, harmful content, hate speech or deceptive/deepfake content.
- There is no restriction on the number of entries a filmmaker may submit. The film should maintain appropriate creative and technical quality.
Campus Film
- Duration: Between 2 minutes and 10 minutes, including credits.
- Rules and Regulations:
- The film must be created by a student or educational institution and may be submitted by a school, college, university or individual student.
- Individual student applicants must submit a valid Student ID Card along with the entry.
- Films must be original content and may be either previously released or unreleased.
- There is no restriction on the number of entries a filmmaker/student or institution may submit.
Music Video
- Rules and Regulations:
- Music videos may be in any language.
- The music video must be original, and the applicant must have all necessary rights and permissions for the music, lyrics, visuals, performances and other content used.
- There is no restriction on the number of entries that a director, producer, production house or artist may submit.
- The entry fee mentioned in the application form is applicable to one entry only. Applicants wishing to submit multiple entries may do so by paying the applicable entry fee for each additional entry.
- The filmmaker/applicant shall be responsible for ensuring that the submitted music video does not infringe any copyright or third-party rights.
General Submission Guidelines for All Categories:
- Deadline: The last date for submission is 15th November, 2026.
- Age Limit: Open to all ages; however, filmmakers under 18 must submit parental consent or consent from an authorised institution, such as their school or college.
- Content Ownership: The filmmaker retains ownership of the submitted work. By submitting the film, the filmmaker grants MERATV Film Festival permission to screen the film during the festival and its official programmes, and to use its title, poster, trailer, stills and short excerpts for festival promotion.
- OTT Rights: In case a film/content receives a Cash Prize, the winner agrees to grant MERATV a perpetual, worldwide, non-exclusive and royalty-free licence to host and stream the winning film/content on the MERATV OTT platform, as detailed in the Filmmaker Consent & OTT Declaration.
- Submission Format: Films must be submitted in HD quality (minimum 1080p) through a Google Drive screening link provided in the application form. The link must be accessible and set to “Anyone with the link – Viewer.”
- No Resubmission: Films previously submitted to the MERATV Film Festival cannot be resubmitted in any category.
- Rights & Permissions: The filmmaker/applicant must have all necessary rights and permissions for the submitted content and shall be responsible for any copyright or third-party rights claims.
- Jury Decision: The decision of the Festival Jury/Selection Committee shall be final. The Jury reserves the right to withhold an award in any category if the entries do not meet the required standards.