Small Town Shorts Film Festival 2026 - Festival Theme: New Beginnings

Screening & Awards: Thursday, October 1st at 6:00pm

It all begins with an idea! Marmora & Lake Public Library and Trent Hills Public Library wanted to create a collaborative event for their communities that would highlight the creativity that exists in small towns. From that starting point the Small Town Shorts Film Festival was born. 

Immediately, the two libraries thought the Aron Theatre Co-Op in Campbellford would be the perfect spot to hold a film festival that focuses on the local communities in the area. Stirling-Rawdon Public Library and Madoc Public Library soon joined to share in the celebration of small town creativity.  

The Small Town Shorts Film Festival will feature short films made by members of the communities of Trent Hills, Marmora & Lake, Stirling, Madoc, Asphodel-Norwood, Tweed, North Hastings, and Brighton. The festival will include jury prizes and audience prizes based on age level categories. Small Town Shorts Film Fest is designed to encourage collaborative creation, to give members of the community the opportunity to see what they have created on a big screen, and to encourage community members to move away from just consuming content to creating. Lastly, Small Town Shorts Film Fest is a fun local event that showcases how lucky we are to have an independent theatre!

Submission Deadlines:

Submissions open March 1st

Early Bird: August 20, 2026 at 5:00 PM

Final Deadline: September 8, 2026 at 5:00 PM ($5 submission fee after the early bird deadline)

Full festival details: https://www.smalltownshortsfilmfest.ca/