Overview
NexT International Film Festival was Romania's largest event dedicated to short and medium-length films. Founded in 2007 by the NexT Cultural Society and producer Ada Solomon, the festival was created in memory of director Cristian Nemescu and sound designer Andrei Toncu, who both died in a car accident on August 24, 2006. Nemescu's California Dreamin' received the Un Certain Regard distinction at Cannes in 2007, posthumously.
The festival held its 12th and final edition from December 14 to 17, 2023, at Cinema Muzeul Țăranului in Bucharest. Across 11 editions prior to the final one, NexT presented over 1,200 short films to more than 60,000 spectators and hosted international guests including editor Walter Murch, director Peter Webber, and director Claire Denis. The 10th anniversary edition in 2016 received 1,411 film submissions from 75 countries.
The NexT Cultural Society continues to operate beyond the festival's conclusion through Caravana Filmelor (a traveling open-air screening program) and NexT Film Education (cinema education programs for students and teachers, including Education a l'image and CinEd). Filmmakers who competed at NexT have gone on to selection and awards at A-tier festivals including Cannes, Berlin, and Venice. Laszlo Nemes, who competed at NexT in 2010 and 2011, later won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film for Son of Saul in 2016.
Submission Details
NexT accepted submissions annually with a deadline typically in January. The festival was programmed in April for most of its run, with the final edition moving to December.
Competition eligibility:
- Narrative fiction films only (animation included, no documentaries)
- Maximum duration: 60 minutes
- Films must have been produced within 2 years preceding the festival
- Foreign films must be Romanian premieres
- Films must be subtitled in English
- Films previously submitted to NexT were not eligible
Submission process:
- Submissions were made through the festival's official website at nextfilmfestival.ro
- The festival covered accommodation and partial travel expenses for directors and sound designers of films in competition
Note: The festival has concluded after its 12th edition. The NexT Cultural Society continues its educational and traveling cinema programs but no longer accepts festival submissions.
Key Sections
- International Competition - short and medium-length narrative fiction films from around the world, competing for the NexT Trophy
- Romanian Competition - short and medium-length films by Romanian directors, competing for Best Romanian Film
- The Pitch - a short film project development competition organized in partnership with ShortsTV, awarding 5,000 EUR for the production of a new short film (launched in 2014)
- NexT Short Film Market - an industry event encouraging production of new Romanian short films (launched in 2014)
- Special Programs - non-competitive screenings including EFA Short Matters! selections, retrospectives, and thematic programs
- Seminars and Workshops - free educational sessions on directing, sound design, production, distribution, and screenwriting
What Filmmakers Should Know
NexT was one of the few European festivals dedicated exclusively to short and medium-length narrative fiction. The 60-minute maximum duration and fiction-only policy (no documentaries) distinguished it from general short film festivals. Documentary films were eligible only for non-competitive sections.
The festival's prize structure was notable for its focus on craft. The Cristian Nemescu Award for Best Directing and the Andrei Toncu Award for Best Soundtrack honored specific technical disciplines rather than general excellence. The 2016 edition awarded the NexT Trophy at 2,000 EUR, the Cristian Nemescu Award at 1,000 EUR, the Andrei Toncu Award at 1,000 EUR, and the Best Romanian Film Award at 1,000 EUR, with additional audience awards for both foreign and Romanian films.
The Pitch competition, organized with ShortsTV, was one of the few short film development funds at a Romanian festival. The 5,000 EUR production prize was awarded to developing short film projects, not completed films, making it one of the more substantial short film production grants in Southeast Europe.
The festival covered accommodation and partial travel expenses for competition filmmakers, making it accessible to independent filmmakers with limited travel budgets. The intimate format (the final edition returned to the festival's origins with a focused program at Cinema Muzeul Țăranului) allowed direct engagement between filmmakers and audiences.
Major Awards
- NexT Trophy - top prize in the International Competition (2,000 EUR in 2016; 4,000 EUR in earlier editions)
- Cristian Nemescu Award - Best Directing in the International Competition (1,000 EUR in 2016; 2,000 EUR in earlier editions)
- Andrei Toncu Award - Best Soundtrack in the International Competition (1,000 EUR in 2016; 2,000 EUR in earlier editions)
- Best Romanian Film - top prize in the Romanian Competition (1,000 EUR in 2016)
- Audience Award for Best Foreign Film
- Audience Award for Best Romanian Film
- The Pitch - 5,000 EUR production grant for a developing short film project
Past Winners
Notable NexT Trophy winners and their outcomes:
- 2018 (12th edition): Hector Malot: The Last Day of the Year - Dir. Jacqueline Lentzou (Greece). Lentzou later debuted her feature Moon, 66 Questions at Berlin 2021. The short also won the Leica Cine Discovery Award at Cannes Critics' Week.
- 2017 (11th edition): The Disco Shines - Dir. Chema Garcia Ibarra (Spain/Turkey).
- 2012 (6th edition): Mediterranees - Dir. Olivier Py (France).
- 2010 (4th edition): The History of Aviation - Dir. Balint Kenyeres (Hungary).
- 2010 Cristian Nemescu Award for Best Director: Laszlo Nemes for With a Little Patience (Hungary).
Notable Alumni Films and Where They Ended Up
- Laszlo Nemes competed at NexT in 2010 and 2011 with short films. His debut feature Son of Saul (2015) won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film and the Grand Prix at Cannes.
- Julia Ducournau won the Cristian Nemescu Award for Best Director at NexT 2012 for her short Junior. Her second feature Titane (2021) won the Palme d'Or at Cannes.
- Jacqueline Lentzou won the NexT Trophy in 2018 for Hector Malot: The Last Day of the Year. Her feature debut Moon, 66 Questions premiered at Berlin 2021.
- Cristian Nemescu, in whose memory the festival was founded, directed California Dreamin' which won the Un Certain Regard prize at Cannes 2007 posthumously.
Submission Tips Specific to This Festival
NexT accepted only narrative fiction films. Animation was included but documentaries were eligible only for non-competitive sections. The 60-minute maximum duration distinguished NexT from general short film festivals. Foreign films needed Romanian premiere status. Films previously submitted to NexT were not eligible for resubmission. The festival covered accommodation and partial travel expenses for competition filmmakers, making it accessible to those with limited budgets. The Cristian Nemescu Award for Best Directing and the Andrei Toncu Award for Best Soundtrack rewarded specific craft disciplines. Filmmakers with strong sound design or distinctive directorial vision had an edge. The Pitch competition offered 5,000 EUR for developing short film projects, not completed films. Note: The festival concluded after its 12th edition in 2023 and no longer accepts submissions.
Industry Reputation Notes
NexT occupied a distinctive niche among European short film festivals. Compared to Clermont-Ferrand, the world's largest short film festival, NexT was smaller but more focused on narrative fiction and craft-specific awards. Clermont-Ferrand accepts all genres including documentary, while NexT excluded documentaries from competition. Compared to Oberhausen, which emphasizes experimental and avant-garde work, NexT leaned toward more conventional narrative storytelling. The festival's connection to Cristian Nemescu and Andrei Toncu gave it a memorial dimension that no peer festival matched. Its alumni track record was strong. Both Laszlo Nemes and Julia Ducournau passed through NexT before winning top prizes at Cannes. The festival's closure in 2023 left a gap in Southeast Europe's short film ecosystem. The NexT Cultural Society continues through Caravana Filmelor and education programs.
Festival History
NexT was founded in 2007 by the NexT Cultural Society, established by producer Ada Solomon and a group of close friends of Cristian Nemescu and Andrei Toncu. The festival's mission was to preserve the memory of the two filmmakers, discover and promote innovative and imaginative cinema from around the world, support talented filmmakers at the beginning of their careers, and educate young audiences.
The festival grew steadily through its first decade. The 3rd edition in 2009 received submissions from films completed after January 2007. By the 10th edition in 2016, the festival received 1,411 submissions from 75 countries, totaling 21,365 hours of viewing material. The selection committee chose approximately 100 short films each year across two competitive sections and numerous special programs.
Starting in 2014, the festival expanded its industry footprint with The Pitch (a short film project development competition in partnership with ShortsTV) and the NexT Short Film Market, both designed to support developing projects and encourage new Romanian short film production.
The 12th edition in December 2023 was announced as the final edition. The festival returned to its origins with a focused program at Cinema Muzeul Țăranului, emphasizing competition short films and new voices in cinema. The NexT Cultural Society continues its mission through Caravana Filmelor (open-air traveling screenings) and NexT Film Education programs.
The festival was organized with support from the National Center of Cinematography, the Romanian Cultural Institute, the Union of Romanian Filmmakers, and the European Union's Creative Europe MEDIA sub-program.
Watch
See Also
For Romanian cinema context, see International Film Markets. For short film festival strategy, see Film Festival Strategy. To calculate the return on festival submission spending, use the Festival ROI Calculator. For European short film opportunities, browse the full Festival Directory.
