INDIANAPOLIS — The 8th Annual Academy Award-Qualifying Indy Shorts International Film Festival (Indy Shorts) is running July 22-27, 2025. The festival will showcase 253 short films with screenings at Living Room Theaters, Newfields (The Tobias Theater, The Amphitheater and The Beer Garden) and available to stream at home.
The festival will feature short films from 36 countries and include 42 World Premieres, 18 U.S. Premieres and 112 Midwest Premieres. The 2025 festival is embracing a building/construction theme that encourages attendees to dig into 253 groundbreaking short films that are curated into 39 themed programs. From comedy to horror, there’s a shorts program for everyone. This year, there are also three Indiana Spotlight Programs made up of 19 films by filmmakers with Hoosier ties. Fest Pass and tickets are now on sale at www.IndyShorts.org. Tickets sell out quickly, and some are already nearly sold out.
Indy Shorts is an Academy Award-Qualifying Film Festival in all three short film categories (Live Action, Documentary and Animated) — less than 60 film festivals in the world hold this designation. Filmmakers are competing for more than $35,000 in cash prizes that will be awarded on Saturday, July 26. Selected award-winning films will be showcased at The Amphitheater (Newfields) for the Summer Nights: Award Winners Program. Before the films, attendees can enjoy free HotBox Pizza and summer activities.
Spotlight programs feature Ball State University Radiance Cinema Program on July 23, Children’s Resilience with Shine Global on Saturday, July 26 at Living Room Theaters, MPI Original Films Short Film Lab on Saturday, July 26 at Living Room Theaters, and The New Yorker on Friday, July 25 at Living Room Theaters.
Oscar Winner Doug Blush will help celebrate the 2025 Indy Shorts Pioneering Spirit Award honoree, with a special screening of his newly-produced short documentaries on Saturday, July 26 at Living Room Theaters.
