Tribeca is getting a new film festival, and this one is for short films only. Satellite Collective's ORBIT Film Festival will run for two days, May 14 and 15, 2027, in Tribeca, and it opened submissions on November 2, 2026.

The organizers say it is designed to be the first short film festival of the calendar year in the greater New York City area, and the call is wider than most: a film does not have to be new. The festival page says an entry does not have to be a filmmaker's most recent work, and it sets no budget or premiere-status restrictions.

Who is behind it

Satellite Collective is an arts nonprofit that incubates performance, cross-media work and artist exchanges. It also runs Satellite ORBIT, a fiscal sponsorship fellowship for filmmakers, and the festival grows out of that program. Its co-founders are Nikhil Melnechuk, who heads the jury, and Philip Themio Stoddard, who directs the festival, with Satellite Collective's executive director Lora Robertson and artistic director Kevin Draper.

What a filmmaker can enter

There are three categories:

  • Narrative shorts, up to 40 minutes
  • Documentary shorts, up to 40 minutes
  • Short shorts, up to 5 minutes, which includes dance films and music videos

The festival is open to filmmakers anywhere. Films in languages other than English need English subtitles, the submitter must hold the copyright to everything in the film, including music, and AI-generated content is not allowed. Entries are judged on creativity, story, technical execution and overall artistic merit. Submissions go through the festival's FilmFreeway page, linked from Satellite Collective's site.

The prizes

  • Grand Prize, Best of Fest: $2,500, to the standout short across all categories
  • ORBIT Launch Mentorship Award: $1,000 plus one-on-one mentorship with Satellite Collective's core artists, for a filmmaker developing a short or proof-of-concept into a feature
  • Made in NY Prize: $500, for the standout short made and produced in the greater New York City area
  • Juried awards at the discretion of the festival jury

Every selected film is also featured on the festival website and on Satellite's own channel.

What the weekend will look like

The festival plans public screening blocks, filmmaker panels, an immersive opening night production, an awards ceremony and a closing party. The festival page names Tribeca as the setting but does not yet name the venue, and the organizers note that venue and screening times may be updated, so watch Satellite Collective's site for the address before May.

The details

  • What: Satellite Collective's ORBIT Film Festival, short films
  • When: May 14 and 15, 2027; submissions opened November 2, 2026
  • Where: Tribeca, venue to be announced
  • Top prize: $2,500
  • How to enter: through the festival's FilmFreeway page

Sources