(Bandar Seri Begawan, 27th) The 8th PRISM UBD Short Film Festival grandly opened on the 20th of this month at the Chancellor's Art Centre of Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD), with the opening screening of short films lasting over three hours.
This annual regional film festival aims to showcase student short film works from universities across the ASEAN region. The 8th edition of the festival has expanded in scale by adding a new S-Express 2025 short film screening program and a local feature film screening.
The PRISM UBD Short Film Festival has been held for four consecutive years and is one of the official events of the ASEAN University Network on Culture and the Arts (AUN-CA).
This year's festival received over 80 short film submissions from 17 higher education institutions across ASEAN, including Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Vietnam.
In addition, Myanmar also participated through the S-Express 2025 Myanmar segment, and UBD students co-produced a film with the University of Seville in Spain, adding a multicultural element to the festival.
After the opening screening, a two-week online screening event will be held on the "FASS UBD Official" YouTube channel, allowing audiences to watch all 27 finalist films covering six competition categories: Best Animated Short, Best Documentary Short, Best Narrative Short, Best Narrative Short (Horror/Thriller), Best Mobile-shot Short, and Best Public Service Announcement (themed around Sustainable Development Goals).
During this period, the public can register for free and vote for their favorite short film to compete for the “Audience Choice Award.”
This year's jury president is Nurlan Abdullah, producer and co-founder of Regalblue Production, with a judging panel that includes four jurors: representatives from Visual Dimensions Production (one of Brunei's leading production companies), Radio Television Brunei (RTB), Brunei Authority for Info-communications Technology Industry (AITI), and an international juror—a film producer from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Each category winner will receive a cash prize of 500 Brunei Dollars and a winner’s certificate.
Two in-person events will be held simultaneously with the online screenings: the “S-Express 2025 Short Film Showcase,” curated by producer Nurlan Abdullah, from November 24th to 28th at the Chancellor's Art Centre; and the “PRISM Feature Film Showcase,” which will run from November 18th to December 2nd at the Chancellor's Art Centre and Aman Hills Cinema.
The “PRISM Feature Film Showcase” will screen five Bruneian films, from "Gema Dari Menara" (1968) to the latest releases: "Gadong" (2024), "Durang Hadir" (2025), "Cam Cam Brit" (2025), and "Para.Doc" (2025).
This marks the first inclusion of a feature film screening section and themed short film showcases at the PRISM UBD Short Film Festival, further enriching its tradition of presenting excellent ASEAN student films.
Most of the awards are sponsored by AITI and Brunei LNG, while Regalblue Production, Visual Dimensions Production, AJ Film Production, Paperplane Media, and Arman Hills Cineleisure are all important partners of the 8th PRISM UBD Short Film Festival.
This annual regional film festival aims to showcase student short film works from universities across the ASEAN region. The 8th edition of the festival has expanded in scale by adding a new S-Express 2025 short film screening program and a local feature film screening.
The PRISM UBD Short Film Festival has been held for four consecutive years and is one of the official events of the ASEAN University Network on Culture and the Arts (AUN-CA).
This year's festival received over 80 short film submissions from 17 higher education institutions across ASEAN, including Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Vietnam.
In addition, Myanmar also participated through the S-Express 2025 Myanmar segment, and UBD students co-produced a film with the University of Seville in Spain, adding a multicultural element to the festival.
After the opening screening, a two-week online screening event will be held on the "FASS UBD Official" YouTube channel, allowing audiences to watch all 27 finalist films covering six competition categories: Best Animated Short, Best Documentary Short, Best Narrative Short, Best Narrative Short (Horror/Thriller), Best Mobile-shot Short, and Best Public Service Announcement (themed around Sustainable Development Goals).
During this period, the public can register for free and vote for their favorite short film to compete for the “Audience Choice Award.”
This year's jury president is Nurlan Abdullah, producer and co-founder of Regalblue Production, with a judging panel that includes four jurors: representatives from Visual Dimensions Production (one of Brunei's leading production companies), Radio Television Brunei (RTB), Brunei Authority for Info-communications Technology Industry (AITI), and an international juror—a film producer from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Each category winner will receive a cash prize of 500 Brunei Dollars and a winner’s certificate.
Two in-person events will be held simultaneously with the online screenings: the “S-Express 2025 Short Film Showcase,” curated by producer Nurlan Abdullah, from November 24th to 28th at the Chancellor's Art Centre; and the “PRISM Feature Film Showcase,” which will run from November 18th to December 2nd at the Chancellor's Art Centre and Aman Hills Cinema.
The “PRISM Feature Film Showcase” will screen five Bruneian films, from "Gema Dari Menara" (1968) to the latest releases: "Gadong" (2024), "Durang Hadir" (2025), "Cam Cam Brit" (2025), and "Para.Doc" (2025).
This marks the first inclusion of a feature film screening section and themed short film showcases at the PRISM UBD Short Film Festival, further enriching its tradition of presenting excellent ASEAN student films.
Most of the awards are sponsored by AITI and Brunei LNG, while Regalblue Production, Visual Dimensions Production, AJ Film Production, Paperplane Media, and Arman Hills Cineleisure are all important partners of the 8th PRISM UBD Short Film Festival.