Sony has announced the call for entries for their 2025 Catchlight Film Festival. Now in its fifth year, the Catchlight Film Festival once again celebrates the best short-form filmmaking shot on Sony cameras across Australia and New Zealand.
The festival continues its mission to encourage filmmakers at all levels, from passionate amateurs to those established in the film and television industry, showcasing the exceptional talent and abilities of cinematographers and filmmakers who are using Sony systems to capture their stories.   Â
CATEGORIESÂ Â
Fiction (scripted)Â Â
Fiction film, narrative film, or fictional film is a film that tells an original (undocumented) fictional or fictionalized story, event or narrative.  A fictional film is wholly unique and is considered original by the production team. Lighting and camera movement, among other cinematic elements such sound and musical components, and visual editing, are deployed to create a cohesive fictional narrative and are considerations for judging in this category.Â
Any film content depicting real life people, events, or narratives, is considered non-fiction and these films should be submitted into the Non-fiction category. Â
Non-Fiction Â
Non-fiction is any film that is presented as a depiction of real-life events, people, or narratives. Non-fiction (i.e. documentary) content may be presented either objectively or subjectively and can take the form of a story. Typical submissions for this category are documentary and mockumentary films.Â
Films that present information, events, or characters that are largely imaginary, or are fictionalisations of real events, are considered to be fiction and these films should be submitted into the Fiction category. Â
Music Video Â
A music video is a short film which is shot and edited to a pre-existing piece of music. The use of cinematic elements such as camera movement, lighting, and editing, are deployed to support the piece of music.Â
There is no restriction on music genre, and purely instrumental work is also eligible for submission.Â
If the video is largely made of a narrative and only partially features an original song/musical score, consider submitting the film into the Fiction or Non-fiction categories.Â
Student Fiction Â
Created to provide a platform to share the extraordinary work done by filmmakers who do not yet have the benefit of larger budgets and broader industry connections, the Student Fiction category is open to scripted films in which the Director, Cinematographer and Producer were all enrolled in a recognised tertiary education institution during the year in which the film was completed.Â
Cinematic Social Â
This category is for the kind of short form evocative content that has risen to prominence on Social Media in recent years, most often in the form of travel and lifestyle Reels. This content does not follow a typical fiction or non-fiction story line. The sequence of content may follow a theme, idea, location, or concept. The key is the visual identity of the content remains the same which unifies the short film.Â
PRIZES
In partnership with Sony Pictures Releasing, winners in Fiction, Non-Fiction and Student Fiction will be awarded with a unique mentoring experience in addition to the prize packages described below. Â
In addition, thanks to the support of the festival’s partners at Lemac, VA Hire, Videocraft and Camera Hire. Sony are continuing the Catchlight Laurel Awards, to celebrate and reward exceptional cinematography. Â
The Best Sony Lens Work Laurel will also continue, to recognise skilful use of Sony’s native lens range.
Fiction WinnerÂ
- VIP tickets for the Catchlight Film Festival award ceremony in Sydney for up to 5 people from the production crew.
- A filmmaker’s prize package consisting of:
- $5,000 worth of Sony Digital Imaging products.
- A Sony Digital Imaging product loan, up to the value of $5,000.
- A $5,000 grant.
- Up to 3 people from the production team will receive a Sony Pictures Professional Development/Mentoring Session with a Senior Executive at Sony Pictures Releasing and a prominent Australian Producer.
Fiction Runner-UpÂ
- VIP tickets for the Catchlight Film Festival award ceremony in Sydney for up to 5 people from the production crew.
Non-Fiction WinnerÂ
- VIP tickets for the Catchlight Film Festival award ceremony in Sydney for up to 5 people from the production crew.
- A film-maker’s prize package consisting of:
- $5,000 worth of Sony Digital Imaging products.
- A Sony Digital Imaging product loan, up to the value of $5,000.
- a $5,000 grant.
- Up to 3 people from the production team will receive a Professional Development Session with a panel of industry professionals.
Non-Fiction Runner-UpÂ
- VIP tickets for the Catchlight Film Festival award ceremony in Sydney for up to 5 people from the production crew.
Music Video WinnerÂ
- VIP tickets for the Catchlight Film Festival award ceremony in Sydney for up to 5 people from the production crew.
- A filmmaker’s prize package consisting of:
- $5,000 worth of Sony Digital Imaging products.
- A Sony Digital Imaging product loan, up to the value of $5,000.
- A $5,000 grant.
- Up to 3 people from the production team will receive the opportunity to work with the Sony Music team (and be credited on) visual content for a Sony Music emerging artist, relevant to your skills set and subject to acceptance of the terms.Â
Music Video Runner-UpÂ
- VIP tickets for the Catchlight Film Festival award ceremony in Sydney for up to 5 people from the production crew.
Student Fiction WinnerÂ
- VIP tickets for the Catchlight Film Festival award ceremony in Sydney for up to 5 people from the production crew.
- A film-maker’s prize package consisting of:
- $5,000 worth of Sony Digital Imaging products.
- A Sony Digital Imaging product loan, up to the value of $5,000.
- A $5,000 grant.
- Up to 3 people from the production team will receive a Professional Development Session with a panel of industry professionals.
Student Fiction Runner UpÂ
- VIP tickets for the Catchlight Film Festival award ceremony in Sydney for up to 5 people from the production crew.
Cinematic Social WinnerÂ
- VIP tickets for the Catchlight Film Festival award ceremony in Sydney for up to 5 people from the production crew.
- A film-maker’s prize package consisting of:
- $5,000 worth of Sony Digital Imaging products.
- A Sony Digital Imaging product loan, up to the value of $5,000.
- a $5,000 grant.
- An opportunity to work with Sony Australia Limited on a social media and digital marketing campaign
Cinematic Social Runner UpÂ
- VIP tickets for the Catchlight Film Festival award ceremony in Sydney for up to 5 people from the production crew.
The 5 Cinematography Laurels will be awarded one per category as follows:Â
- The Cinematography Laurel winner in the Non-Fiction category will receive a $2500 rental equipment package, courtesy of VA Digital Hire Pty Ltd.
- The Cinematography Laurel winner in the Fiction category will receive a $2500 rental equipment package, courtesy of Lemac Films Australia Pty Ltd.
- The Cinematography Laurel winner in the Music Video category will receive a $2500 rental equipment package, courtesy of Videocraft Australia Pty Ltd.
- The Cinematography Laurel winner in the Cinematic Social category will receive a $2500 rental equipment package, courtesy of Camera Hire.
Best Sony Lens Work LaurelÂ
- The Best Sony Lens Work Laurel winner across all submissions receives $2,500 worth of Sony lens gear from the promoter.
Entries for the Catchlight Film Festival 2025 are open now and close for submissions 11:59pm AEST, Monday 30th June. Judging will commence on Tuesday, 1st July, with all finalists notified from Monday, 28th July 2025. If finalists cannot be reached within five business days of initial outreach, their entry will be deemed invalid and another finalist will be selected in their place.Â
The Catchlight Film Festival Awards ceremony will take place in September 2025.Â
To enter and for more information about the 2025 Catchlight Film Festival, click here.Â
