Oberhausen International Short Film Festival

Oberhausen, Germany
Tier ATrustedOscar Qualifying
100
Legitimacy Score

Major legitimate festival with strong credentials

The Oberhausen International Short Film Festival, founded in 1954, is the oldest short film festival in the world and a major global platform for the short form, attracting around 7,600 submissions from 124 countries annually. It showcases innovative, artistic, and avant-garde short films—including documentaries, animations, experimental works, and music videos—with a reputation for curatorial rigor and a focus on new technical developments. The festival is historically significant as the birthplace of the 1962 Oberhausen Manifesto that launched New German Cinema and remains a key industry hub hosting Germany's largest short film market.

Last updated Jul 16, 2026

Legitimacy Analysis

Positive Indicators (+58 pts)

  • Oscar Qualifying Festival
  • 72 years of verifiable history
  • Physical screenings at Lichtburg Filmpalast
  • Named jury members
  • Verified trusted status

Red Flags (-0 pts)

No red flags found

Festival Details

Founded

1954

Venue

Lichtburg Filmpalast

Screenings

Physical screenings confirmed

Award Categories

8

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Quick Stats

Legitimacy Score100/100
TierTier A
Reviews0
Community Reports0

How scoring works

Scores are calculated from structural indicators: accreditations, physical screenings, award category count, submission frequency, and acceptance rate. Higher scores reflect more verifiable legitimacy signals.

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