What happened
The COP31 Türkiye Climate Short Film Competition is accepting short projects in fiction, documentary and animation. The initiative is organised jointly by Türkiye’s Ministry of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change and COP31 Türkiye.
Applicants have until 10 October 2026 to submit through FilmFreeway. Each entry costs €3. According to the competition information, the ministry will convert that fee into a sapling donation for a COP31 memorial forest.
Films need to engage with at least one qualifying subject. The listed areas include the global climate crisis; environmental disasters linked to climate change; water shortages and drought; recycling, zero waste and circularity; ecological damage, biodiversity decline and harm to nature; climate migration; and connections between people and the natural world.
Works selected for the programme are due to be screened in Antalya during the festival period from 11 to 19 November 2026. Awards will cover first, second and third place, alongside a jury special award and a COP31 documentary special award. Each of the six finalists will also receive a screening royalty.
Why it matters
The competition creates a defined route for filmmakers to present climate and environmental narratives to an audience during a COP31 Türkiye-linked festival. Its eligible topics span several issues central to sustainability communication, including water stress, material circularity, biodiversity loss and climate-driven displacement.
For producers and organisations supporting environmental storytelling, the immediate practical step is to assess whether a short project meets one or more of the specified themes and submit it before the October deadline. The published details describe a cultural competition rather than a corporate compliance, disclosure or policy programme.
What to do next
Prospective entrants should review their project against the stated thematic criteria, prepare a FilmFreeway submission and allow for the €3 entry charge. Projects selected for the festival will be shown in Antalya in November 2026.
