straight 8 2025

be with us when we screen

thank you + congrats to everyone who has entered straight 8 2025

it’s you and your attitude staring fear in its face and turning your camera on whatever you did that makes this what it is!

results will be announced BY may 1st

meantime everyone can PLAN TO COME to the screenings in cannes (may 19/20) + bfi imax(may 24th)

AND you can prepare to enter straight 8 2026

which WILL open very soon

and don’t forget

you can always come to A straight8th - our monthly meet up on the 8th of every month - london based

and you can buy film and rent cameras from us for any project

if YOU’RE THINKING ABOUT ENTERING straight 8 2026

here’s how it works

-

can you make a 3-minute film on just one roll of super 8 ?

editing only with each pull of YOUR super 8 camera’s trigger ?

with no opportunity for retakes or postproduction ?

submitting your original soundtrack without even seeing your film ?

for a decent chance of SCREENING at OUR packed world premieres - WITHOUT EVEN SEEING YOUR FILM BEFOREHAND !

DO YOU THINK YOU MIGHT BE game for the ANALOG filmmaking thrill ride that is straight 8 ?

SIGN UP TO OUR MAILING LIST AND FOLLOW OUR SOCIALS TO BE THE FIRST TO HEAR WHAT’S HAPPENING!

THE SMALLEST FILM FORMAT ON THE UK’S LARGEST SCREEN: DREAM BIG - OR SMALL !

put the date in your diary now! evening of may 24th 2025 at bfi imax - there’s no better way to get inspired for your 2026 entry than to see the 2025 premiere for real

meantime back in straight 8 2025 land

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT…

TOP 25 SELECTION PROCESS

our pre-screeners are trusted members of our community who’ve made a great straight 8 in the past, but are not entering this year!

most years we receive 150-200ish films. each film is watched by at MINIMUM two of our pre-screeners

meet this year’s confirmed pre-screeners - and click them to find out more!

the pre-screeners’ recommendations go to our longlist which is not disclosed

next comes careful review and debating as we finalise our annual top 25 selection which will premiere at BFI IMAX LONDON

the top 25 is shared with our jury

TOP 8 JURY

OUR JURY IS MADE UP OF TALENTED FILMMAKERS AND INDUSTRY DECISION MAKERS WORKING AT THE TOP OF THEIR GAME

the jury’s job is to agree the top 8 from the top 25 selection. the top 8 will be joint winners and this year they will premiere at cannes

our 2025 jury will be announced soon. meantime meet some of the people who have been on our jury in recent years. search them up for more info!

we thank them all for their honest opinions and insights.

due to the fact they all work hard in the world of film, we accept that some of them occasionally have to bail when it comes to crunch time, but are happy they do it reluctantly - they love seeing your films!

screenings

EVERYONe who enters straight 8 CAN ENJOY a mindblowing PREMIERE

because they haven’t seen their film at that point!

it’s nerve-janglingly thrilling for filmmakers and uniquely exciting for the audience

put this year’s three big premiere dates in your diary now - we hope to see you and your film there

THE TOP 8 PREMIERE AT CANNES FILM FESTIVAL

MAY 19TH 2025 (date TBC)

THE TOP 25 PREMIERE AT LONDON’S BFI IMAX!

MAY 24TH 2025

TOP 25 + UNSELECTED FILMS PREMIERE WORLDWIDE

MAY 31ST 2025

INVITE YOUR CAST AND CREW, FRIENDS AND FAMILY FOR A CRAZY RIDE - RIGHT AS THE TOP 25 GLOBAL LIVESTREAM ENDS YOU WILL BE ABLE TO SCREEN YOUR straight 8 FILM

need inspiration ?

watch some of the 3000+ straight 8 films made so far !

a small selection of amazing straight 8 films are below - find more on our watch page, and see the top 25 of 2024 here

a massive shoutout to cinelab film & digital for supporting straight 8 since 2016

every single straight 8 film since then has been processed by them. literally - your films share a warm bath with some of the world’s biggest feature films

so if you’re looking for best in class film processing for your projects, don't forget they also process and scan 16mm, 35mm and even 65mm… and now they have full digital capability too from on-set through the entire workflow. oh - and best of all: they’re top people