Tabor New Frame Film Festival 2025
TNFF: 4 world premieres and
49 short films from 32 countries
After more than two decades, the International short film festival at Veliki Tabor enters a new chapter — with a new name, a new vision, and a focus on young filmmakers. Tabor New Frame Film, an international short film festival dedicated to filmmakers under the age of 35, presents a progressive view of short film as a powerful form of artistic expression. The two-day festival edition will take place on July 4–5 in the unique setting of the medieval Veliki Tabor Castle, located near Desinić in the heart of Hrvatsko Zagorje, Croatia.
According to the selection by program director and selector Dalibor Jakus, the audience can expect 49 short films of all genres, divided into three competition categories — international, Croatian, and student competition. The films come from 32 countries, including four world premieres, one international premiere, and 22 Croatian premieres. The audience will have the opportunity to see titles previously screened at major international festivals, including Cannes, Berlinale, Locarno, Animafest, Annecy, and others, confirming the high quality and diversity of the program.
This year’s selection is marked by strong generational authenticity — a powerful, honest, and often deeply personal view of the world from young filmmakers. The films explore contemporary themes such as identity, self-acceptance, the body and emotions, as well as intergenerational relationships, conflicts, climate anxiety, and attitudes toward violence, society, and heritage. What connects these films is courage — not only in the choice of themes, but also in film language. The authors push the boundaries of form, experiment, take risks, and open space for new cinematic experiences. That is why we believe the audience will feel how relevant, alive, and deeply connected to the present moment these films are.
Dalibor Jakus
The best films, as selected by the professional jury, will be awarded the festival’s unique trophy — Melusine, inspired by the two-tailed mermaid, a popular artistic motif associated with Tabor and, according to legend, a creature said to live in the castle. Along with special awards for creative achievement, cash prizes will also be given to support the further work of young filmmakers.
The festival’s side program includes film workshops for young participants titled “Frame from the Legend”, where participants will explore how to create a powerful story using only a mobile phone — without a studio or expensive equipment, but with plenty of imagination — as well as a workshop for adults Frame It Yourself: “Castle Shadows – A Photo Story of the Past”, focused on visual storytelling through a series of photos taken by phone, with an emphasis on contemporary or fictional narratives.
The program also features two panel discussions — one on the influence of artificial intelligence in film, and another on sustainable green initiatives.
The festival opens on Friday, July 4, 2025, at 8 PM, with a performance by musician Darko Rundek.
Admission to all festival events is free, and visitors will also have the opportunity to stay under the stars in an organized campsite located near the castle.
TNFF 2026
Submit a film
TNFF 2025
Grand Prix of the Tabor New Frame Film Festival awarded to the Portuguese-French film “The Hunters” by David Pinheiro Vicente
TNFF 2025
Final day of TNFF marked by the Melusine awards for the best films
TNFF 2025
Tabor New Frame Film Festival officially opened
PROGRAM
SCHEDULE
JURY
TEAM
TABOR
NEW FRAME FILM
After more than two decades of the cult Tabor Film Festival, a new chapter begins. Tabor New Frame Film Festival is an international celebration of short film, spotlighting bold filmmakers under the age of 35. Set in the spectacular surroundings of Veliki Tabor Castle, all film programs, workshops, and concerts are free of charge for all visitors.
PROGRAM
SCHEDULE
JURY
TEAM
TABOR
NEW FRAME FILM
After more than two decades of the cult Tabor Film Festival, a new chapter begins. Tabor New Frame Film Festival is an international celebration of short film, spotlighting bold filmmakers under the age of 35. Set in the spectacular surroundings of Veliki Tabor Castle, all film programs, workshops, and concerts are free of charge for all visitors.
2026
International Competition
2026
Croatian Competition
2026
Student Competition
Submissions for the Tabor New Frame Film Festival 2026 competition programs are now open.
MEET THE JURY
Lev Slivnik
Slovenia
Lev Slivnik is originally from Ljubljana and is currently based in Amsterdam, where he earned a Master’s degree in Preservation and Presentation of the Moving Image from the University of Amsterdam. He works in the field of film programming and curation, with a primary focus on film festivals. Lev currently serves as a Program Producer at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) and as a Pre-Selector for the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. He is also the co-organizer of Working Progress, a monthly work-in-progress screening series at Filmhuis Cavia in Amsterdam, which offers filmmakers the opportunity to receive audience feedback on their unfinished films. Previously, he was part of the pre-selection teams for Giornate degli Autori (Venice Days) and Lago Film Fest, and in 2023, he served on the Selection Panel for the LUX Audience Award.
Mário Macedo
Portugal
Mário Macedo (1989) was born and raised in a small town in the north of Portugal. His films have been selected for several festivals, such as Cannes Film Festival, Cairo IFF, Doclisboa IFF, Sarajevo Film Festival, Mostra São Paulo IFF, Clermont-Ferrand IFF and was awarded the Grand Prix and the European Film Academy Award at Curtas Vila do Conde 2024, the Best Director award at Curtas Vila do Conde 2021 and also got the National Grand Prix at FEST New Directors/New Films 2017. He published with Lebop (PT) and Editions Loco (FR), together with Olhar de Ulisses, his first photobook ‘Running Away Into You’, that premiered at Rencontre d'Arles in 2024.
Maruška Aras
Croatia
Maruška Aras is an actress born in 1996 in Zadar. She completed a five-year acting program at the Academy of Dramatic Art in Zagreb, where she currently lives. Maruška works as an external associate – assistant in the acting course at the Academy in the class of Borna Baletić. In addition, she occasionally leads drama workshops and film workshops for children and youth. Since graduating in 2019, she has performed in productions at the Croatian National Theatre in Varaždin, Split, and Zagreb, as well as at Teatar &TD, Teatro Verrdi, Eurokaz, Žar ptica, and others. Alongside productions in which she is engaged as an actress, she also collaborates with Teatro Verrdi on her own projects, developing her authorial expression. She played the lead role in the award-winning film Nun of Your Business directed by Ivana Kragić, and has taken on other roles in collaboration with various Croatian directors such as Tomislav Šoban, Nikica Zdunić, Vanja Juranić, Mate Ugrin, and others.
Abhishek Verma
India
Abhishek Verma is an animation filmmaker, screenwriter and design educator. He has been directing and producing independent animation films since 2014: Chasni – The Sugar Syrup (2014); Lukka Chuppi – Hide and Seek (2018); Manhole (2021), Into the Manhole VR experience (2024). His film Maacher Jhol (Fish Curry) from 2017, won the prestigious Indian National Film Award and the Annecy Award at the Annecy International Film Festival. He was honoured with an award at the Académie des César in 2019. His upcoming animation films are Kitchen - The World Within (a 2D animation short film) and a 2D animation feature film, Marita-Jeevita (Purity-Impurity), based on the notion of caste in India. He is presently a faculty member at the School of Design, IIT Bombay, India.
Sabina Krešić
Croatia
Sabina Krešić is a producer with many years of experience working in the cultural sector. Since 2016, she has been professionally engaged in film production as the lead producer at Fade In, a production company based in Zagreb. Her films have been screened and awarded at numerous renowned international festivals, including Sheffield Doc/Fest, DocLisboa, Trieste Film Festival, Sarajevo Film Festival, Tallinn Black Nights, True/False, Motovun Film Festival, DokuFest, FIPADOC, Liburnia Film Festival, and ZagrebDox. One of her most acclaimed recent projects is the documentary Factory to the Workers by Srđan Kovačević, considered one of the most awarded and critically praised Croatian documentaries in recent years. While she primarily collaborates with Croatian directors, she also works internationally, having co-produced with partners in Italy, Belgium, Slovenia, Spain, Serbia, Turkey, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Her main focus is on documentary films and series, although she has also produced a fiction feature film – Full Speed Ahead (Punim plućima, dir. Radislav Jovanov Gonzo), which won two Golden Arenas at the Pula Film Festival in 2022. In 2023, she launched her own production company, Rastika, and co-founded the Mezzanine Collective, a studio dedicated to film production and image post-production.
Mladen Stanić
Croatia
Mladen Stanić is a film director and screenwriter from Split, Croatia. He graduated from the Academy of Dramatic Art in Zagreb with a Master's degree in Film Directing. He is currently developing his debut feature-length project. His short films have won awards at domestic and international film festivals. The most famous among them are: A Small Detail (2017), White Room (2018), Ark (2024) etc.
