Call for filmmakers: Edinburgh Conservation Film Festival 2027

If you make films about nature, conservation or biodiversity – this one’s for you.

Edinburgh Conservation Film Festival 2027

The Edinburgh Conservation Film Festival (ECFF) is now open for submissions for its 2027 festival, and we’re delighted to share the call as an ECCAN network partner.

Founded by Edinburgh Conservation Science (ECoS), the festival celebrates short films exploring conservation, ecology and our relationship with the natural world. Family-friendly films and films made for children are especially welcomed, and there’s no set theme for 2027 – filmmakers are invited to bring their own perspective on what conservation means to them.

Now entering its fourth year, the festival has grown into one of Edinburgh’s most distinctive environmental events, bringing together organisations including National Museums Scotland and ECCAN around a shared belief in the power of storytelling to inspire action.

The kinds of stories the festival celebrates

This year’s programme gives a sense of the breadth of stories the festival embraces – from a young detection dog learning to sniff out otters in rural Wales, to community-led restoration projects and stories of Indigenous land stewardship and biodiversity protection.

We saw the power of this kind of storytelling at our recent Spring Assembly, where ECFF founder Simon Duresscreened a short film on rewilding at the National Museums Scotland archives in Granton. The room was completely absorbed – and it sparked exactly the kind of conversation and reflection the festival exists to encourage.

How to apply

Submissions are open now via FilmFreeway, with a deadline in September.