Ensuring our country’s presence among the respected festivals in the field of culture and art.
To promote Safranbolu, a World Heritage City, on national and international platforms, contributing to the development of “Cultural Tourism” by showcasing our country’s existing cultural riches.
By leading the creation of information, documents, and document archives through documentary film, transfer them from generation to generation.
Making the audience meet documentary films ensures that the documentary as an art form rece
Safranbolu 25th International Golden Saffron Documentary Film Contest is organized and managed by Safranbolu Municipality. The Secretariat of the Festival is carried out by the Directorate of Cultural and Social Affairs.
Documentaries produced after January 1, 2023 can participate in the contest. Films that have participated in the International Golden Saffron Documentary Film Competition previously are ineligible to participate. Except for the Golden Saffron Awards, having previously participated in and/or received awards from national or international competitions does not preclude participation in this competition.
2) The contest is held for amateur or professional documentary lovers over 18; however, members of the Festival Committee, Selective Committee, Festival Secretariat and Safranbolu Municipality cannot participate.
3) Participation is free.
4) The participants should indicate in which category they will participate in the application.
5) Competitors can participate in the contest with more than one work separately or in the same category.
6) Participants in the National Category of the competition must be citizen of the Republic of the Türkiye. Participants who are citizens of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) may also compete in this category.
7) The works must be submitted by the director or the producer of the film. If the film is directed by more than one director, the applicant must obtain the written permission of the others and attach it to the application. In this case, the award is given to the applicant. The Festival Committee, the Festival Secretariat and the selective committee are not responsible for the problems arising from the sharing of the award.
8) The productions which have been taken in full HD format and higher resolutions (with file formats mxf, mov, mp4, etc.) can be participated in the contest.
9) Documentary films applying for the competition must not have been broadcast on TV and digital platforms (satellite, website, IPTV, digital platform, etc.) before. Hidden links or unlisted uploads to websites for contest applications are excluded from this rule.
10) The duration of the works to be included in the contest, including credits, must be;
Participants can apply directly to the contest at www.filmfreeway.com and They can also reach detailed information via www.altinsafran.org and apply for the contest.
• Director's CV (Turkish and English)
• Brief summary of the film (Turkish and English)
• At least five frames (High Resolution) from the film
• 1 minute trailer of the movie
• If the film is in any language other than Turkish or English, both Turkish and English subtitles must be used. If the language of the film is in Turkish, only English subtitles are sufficient.
• Applicants of the films produced in other languages than Turkish, which made it to the finals, must submit the English (.srt) subtitle file.
• If deemed necessary, the Festival Secretariat may request documents / information about the director and the work.
• Films that pass the qualifiers and become finalists cannot be withdrawn from the competition in any way.
• The documents requested during the application are not returned to their owners. It is stored in the festival archive.
• Promotional films shot for commercial or touristic purposes are not considered documentaries by the festival.
Films which do not match criteria will not be evaluated by the selection committee
Best Documentary Short Film Award 50.000 TL + Golden Saffron Award Statuette
Special Jury Prize 25.000 TL + Golden Saffron Award Statuette
Suha Arın Best Documentary Award 50.000 TL + Golden Saffron Award Statuette
1) The committee can give a special award on behalf of the institutions and organizations that contribute to the festival.
2) The Selective Committee may award special prizes without any monetary prize, except for the determined prize.
3) The cash prizes won are paid by the Safranbolu Municipality within 3 (three) months from the date of the Festival, by making legal deductions after the required documents are completed.
1) Cargo, customs, freight and insurance costs arising from participation in the competition belong to the participant.
2) Safranbolu Municipality will send the prizes specified in the terms and conditions to the personal bank account/IBAN numbers that the beneficiaries will notify in writing. Suppose the beneficiaries do not send their Personal bank account/IBAN number and the documents and information requested by the organizing committee. In that case, the award time expires at the end of 1 (one) year from the result notification date. In the event of a statute of limitations, the right holder cannot claim any awards, royalties or similar.
3) With the participation in the contest, all regulations and conditions mentioned in this specification are deemed to have been accepted. The Festival Committee has the authority to decide on all matters not covered by this specification. The Festival Committee reserves the right to amend all of the issues specified in this specification.