About the festival
The Moinho Cine Fest is an international festival dedicated to short, micro and nano films, encompassing fiction, documentary, animation, music videos and videodance. Created and directed by André Almeida Rodrigues, the festival celebrates short‑form cinema as a space for experimentation, diversity and artistic freedom.
It is a genuine and unique festival that values, above all, the intention, vision and sensitivity of each filmmaker. Technical quality is appreciated and recognised, but it is never the sole criterion. The festival seeks films with soul — works that reveal authenticity, purpose and a unique perspective on the world, regardless of production scale or available resources.
Submissions are made annually through several international film‑submission platforms, ensuring broad accessibility for filmmakers worldwide.
Mission
The mission of the Moinho Cine Fest is to value short‑form cinema and make it accessible to everyone. It welcomes participants of all ages — from children to older adults — and of all levels of experience, including first‑time creators, amateur filmmakers, students and professionals.
It fosters an inclusive space where different voices, styles and artistic paths can coexist, celebrating the creative diversity of short, micro and nano films.
Identity
Since 2019, the festival has established itself as an international platform for discovery, bringing together works from around the world and fostering encounters between emerging and established filmmakers. The programme is competitive and may include, when appropriate, films invited by the festival’s direction.
The selection seeks, whenever possible, to include films from Portugal, Europe, Africa, Asia, Oceania and the Americas, reflecting the global diversity that characterises the Moinho Cine Fest.
Origin and Purpose
The Moinho Cine Fest was born from the journey of its founder, André Almeida Rodrigues, offering a new opportunity for other filmmakers to showcase their work. It also emerged from the desire to bring cinema to Matosinhos, a territory where film exhibition is largely limited to commercial spaces, reinforcing the importance of an independent cultural event that is accessible to the community.
Without aspiring to the scale of major international festivals, the Moinho Cine Fest seeks to be close to both audiences and filmmakers, rigorous in its selection and meaningful in the cultural impact it aims to generate.
Its objectives include celebrating and promoting contemporary Portuguese and international cinema, entertaining and enriching audiences, and contributing to their visual literacy. Whenever possible, the programme brings together films from all five continents, offering a broad and diverse view of the world through short‑form cinema.
The festival also aims to establish itself as a benchmark for good practices, namely through the payment of screening fees.
Audience
The festival maintains a close relationship with the local audience. In its 8th edition, it recorded an average of around 30 spectators per screening, approximately half of the venue’s capacity. Although the number of spectators is modest, the atmosphere is warm, attentive and participatory, reinforcing the community‑focused identity that characterises the event.
For the 8th edition, there was an opportunity to use a larger venue, but the festival chose to remain in its usual, smaller and more intimate screening room, as it offers better conditions for audience engagement and aligns more closely with the festival’s identity.
At the end of each screening, when filmmakers are present, they have the opportunity to talk with the audience and answer questions, creating a direct dialogue that enriches the experience. The presence of filmmakers is optional, as the festival does not cover travel expenses, but they may suggest the screening in which they would like to present their film, making their participation easier.
International Impact
Throughout its editions, the Moinho Cine Fest has received films from dozens of countries, establishing itself as a meeting point for different geographies, cultures and cinematic sensibilities. This diversity contributes to a plural and representative programme of contemporary short‑form cinema.
Institutional Overview
The Moinho Cine Fest presents itself as an independent, inclusive festival that values creativity, experimentation and authenticity in short‑form cinema. Its identity is built on proximity to audiences, curatorial rigour and the promotion of good practices within the sector.
Territory
The festival takes place in Matosinhos, a territory that gives it identity, context and a strong connection to the local community. Its name refers to the memory of the old mills that once existed along the Leça River and have since disappeared. This reference symbolises the relationship between heritage and contemporary artistic creation, while also evoking the essence of cinema as a continuous process of movement, transformation and renewal.
Direction
The festival was created and is directed by André Almeida Rodrigues, a filmmaker and programmer who develops the project with a focus on innovation, diversity and the appreciation of short‑form cinema.