Glowflare Short Film Festival is an independent festival founded in 2024 by Daniel Smales, is produced and presented by Glowflare. The festival celebrates the art of short filmmaking, offering a platform for independent filmmakers from the UK and abroad to showcase their work. The festival is set to take place in Beverley, United Kingdom. The events are hosted at Parkway Cinemas an independent cinema known for its modern facilities and support for independent film events.
The festival welcomes short film entities of all genres that are under 40 minutes. Submissions are managed through FilmFreeway, a platform that simplifies the process for filmmakers to submit their works to festivals.
History Founded in 2024, submissions for the inaugural event were opened exclusively through FilmFreeway on 11 August 2024. Filmmakers were invited to submit their short films in genres such as narrative, animation, documentary, music video and experimental works. The festival was announced publicly by Daniel Smales, the festival director, in October 2024. In November, it was announced that its inaugural event would be held on 25 January 2025 at Parkway Cinemas. Tickets for the first festival were made available through the Parkway Cinemas website on 11 November 2024. A final call for submissions was issued in early December 2024, with submissions closing on 13 December 2024. Submissions have included works from both local and international filmmakers, with entries from the United States, Canada, and Europe, highlighting the festival’s openness to international participation. The official line-up was announced on 30 December 2024. Selections were announced on 20 December, with award nominations announced on 6 January 2025.
Submissions for the 2026 season opened on 1 January 2025, indicating the festival’s intention to operate as a recurring event on the film festival calendar. In January 2026, the festival announced its line-up for the upcoming season, which included the introduction of three new awards: Best Student Film, Best International Film, and Best Emerging Filmmaker.
In May 2026, Glowflare Short Film Festival became a member of the Film Festival Alliance.
Official Selection
The following is the list of films selected for the inaugural Glowflare Short Film Festival in 2025:
2025 Season (25 January 2025) Project Director(s) Runtime Type Country The Nose Knows: Foreignness and Fortune in China Bill Callahan, Kieran Hanson 22:59 Documentary Yen For Zen James Pyle 1:00 Animation Meeting Martin Keady 14:00 Narrative RCA Let The Artist Talk Sam Modder Carlos Patrick Haney 5:00 Documentary Like, Comment, Share Nick Noyes 10:11 Narrative Bruised Lou Burns, Aaron Burns 19:58 Experimental The Barber, The Astronaut and The Golf Ball Jonathan Richards 25:00 Documentary Roundabout Patrick Sheard 18:00 Narrative Der Hof Pete Mason 10:10 Animation Novablood Biblical Clive Tonge 4:25 Music Video The Westwood Cows Matthew McCloud 2:48 Experimental Cry Like a Guy Anthony Rubinstein 4:30 Experimental Turn Over Rick Endacott 13:18 Narrative Fahrenheit 2051 Hadrien Genest 2:30 Experimental The Appliance of Science Martin Cooper 2:07 Experimental Crashlanding the Persian Mothership Martin Cooper 29:59 Documentary Homeless Tobez Thomas Loone 36:25 Experimental In the Matter of Brian Franks Lauren Patrice Nadler 13:50 Narrative Te Amo Papá Dave Brown, Jake Zieman 7:45 Narrative Takeaway Lou Sumray 5:18 Animation Reception Lou Sumray 2:25 Animation Trigger-ed Tyson Green 11:12 Narrative Beholden Leon Lopez 13:56 Narrative Gretchen Dean Addison 18:19 Narrative Bo Jacquo Mikaël FITOUSSI, Grégory FITOUSSI 18:40 Experimental The Devil's Symphony Andy Winward 14:36 Narrative Speaker Alan Hamwan 6:57 Narrative Hunter Loading Sasa Numic 7:59 Narrative Where Have I Gone? Georgina May Haley, Elizabeth Bell 25:25 Narrative Echoes Christina Araujo 9:15 Animation The Visit Parmjit Kaur Gill 10:55 Narrative As We Fall Silent Brian Quintero 20:00 Narrative Still Here / Immerdar John Graham 10:24 Narrative The Dating Game Keith Murphy 10:58 Experimental Girl in the Shadows Herty Owusu 15:00 Narrative Pee Fright Matt Colin Evans 6:23 Experimental Stationary Robin Harvey 7:38 Experimental In Half Jorge Morais Valle 24:00 Animation Confession De Ville 3:00 Experimental
2026 Season (18 April 2026) Project Director(s) Runtime Type Country A Hidden Legacy Tom Hopper 08:47 Documentary Apocalips Lydia Barras 07:19 Narrative Bound by Blood Eddy Reilly 15:16 Documentary Brother Louis Akihito 14:46 Narrative Chimp Tristan Seever 13:04 Narrative Dance with the Reaper Carlota Massó 04:15 Animation Disparate Youth Chiara Aiello 11:37 Narrative Game Changer Paul Harker 28:45 Documentary Gan Canny Lou Burns, Aaron Burns 17:43 Narrative Guygu Chen Heifetz, Jordan Barr 07:11 Documentary I Want To Go Back To Yingcheng 思淇 程 Siqi Cheng 08:29 Narrative In Her Image Dominic Ashforth 09:04 Narrative Kalaviuka Qilu Gan 10:25 Animation Kill Ruth Sewell 05:07 Narrative Ku: A Love Story Anita George 03:24 Animation Mantle Peace Aidan Gibson 07:30 Narrative Masai Mara Andrea Bufi 03:00 Documentary Mod (Turn) Amit Baidya 16:13 Narrative No Strings Molly Lipson 10:31 Narrative Partners in Crime J. E. Dufton 14:53 Narrative Perpetuity Danny Turner 05:55 Narrative Rat Trap Emilia Stevens 12:33 Narrative Reparation Jordan Dean 19:59 Narrative SALT! Shay Thurmon 07:26 Narrative Sands of Purgatory Alex Bates 20:41 Narrative Son 16:05 Narrative Spectacle Shantelle-Ellysé English 10:00 Narrative Strings Attached Naren Gabriel Gurrier-Jones 15:20 Narrative Tea With Friends Farah Halime Hope 11:00 Narrative THE BOIIFRIEND – Shot Of You Suzana Juršič ‘Suki’ 02:45 Music Video The Family Photo John Norris Ray, Maria Victoria Sanchez 08:48 Animation The Irish Jonny Gray 08:21 Narrative The Missing Part Marv Hathim 12:02 Narrative The Paper Souls Véronique MÉRIADEC, Nathalie CAROLLO 19:11 Narrative The Quiet Room Kyle Brown 14:56 Narrative The Robe of Rainbow Feathers Wesley Price 06:21 Animation TWAIN Pip 15:54 Narrative UHURU Olz McCoy 09:55 Documentary Venus Flytrap Marc PUBREUIL 22:05 Narrative Why We Pride Benjamin Scarsbrook 08:35 Documentary
Awards The festival recognises the achievements of filmmakers in variety of the following awards.
Best Film Best Documentary Best Animation Best Director Best Screenplay Best Actor Best Actress Best Supporting Actor Best Supporting Actress Best Cinematography Best Editing Best Original Score Best Low Budget (Under £1000) Best Student Film Best International Film Best Emerging Filmmaker Audience Choice Award(s)
+ Key Award Nomination Award Winner
2025 Season Nominations & Award Winners Award Nominee / Award Winner Best Film Best Documentary Best Director Best Animation Best Screenplay Best Actor Best Actress Best Supporting Actor Best Supporting Actress Best Cinematography Best Editing Best Score Best Low Budget Audience Choice
2026 Season Nominations & Award Winners Award Nominee / Award Winner Best Film Best Director Best Screenplay Best Actor Best Actress Best Supporting Actor Best Supporting Actress Best Documentary Best Animation Best Cinematography Best Score Best Editing Best Low Budget Under £1000 Best Student Film Best International Film Best Emerging Filmmaker Audience Choice
References
External links
Official Website Glowflare Short Film Festival on FilmFreeway Glowflare Short Film Festival on IMDb Glowflare Short Film Festival on Mubi Glowflare Short Film Festival on Letterboxd Glowflare Short Film Festival on British Council Glowflare Short Film Festival on Facebook Glowflare Short Film Festival on Twitter Glowflare Short Film Festival on Instagram Glowflare Short Film Festival on Threads Glowflare Short Film Festival on YouTube