9th Annual OC Film Fest

Banner for 9th annual Ocean City Film Festival that took place from March 6-9, 2025.

OCEAN CITY, Md. - The Ocean City Film Festival is now accepting applications for their 2026 event.

Founded by the Art League of Ocean City in 2017, the festival will be returning for their tenth season from March 5-8, 2026. Every year, the festival showcases over 100 films, both short films and fill length features, from around the world.

For their tenth season, the Art League says they will be expanding the festival to include the Maryland High School Film Showcase, open to students across the state to submit their films. The Art League hopes that this showcase will also allow students to connect with veteran filmmakers.

B.L. Strang-Moya, creative director of the Film Festival, says that there are special events planned as a celebration of the festival's tenth year.

"Local and regional content has always been and will continue to be the primary focus of our festival while also giving a platform to artists from all over the world," says Strang-Moya. "Our program is consistently diverse and equitable in the array of unique artists we showcase.”

Submission categories include narrative features, narrative shorts, documentary features, documentary shorts, and the Maryland High School Film Showcase. The submissions will be judged by a panel of film experts, and the Art League says submitting early increases an applicant's chances of being selected.

Get our all-good news weekly newsletter
FEEL GOOD FRIDAY

Submission dates and entry fees are as follows:

  • Early bird deadline: May 31 - $40 entry fee for feature films, $15 for shorts.
  • Regular deadline: Sept. 1 - $45 entry fee for feature films, $25 for shorts.
  • Late deadline: Oct. 31 - $50 entry fee for feature films, $35 for shorts.

High school students who wish to submit may do so at no cost by contacting the Film Festival for instructions at oceancityfilmfest@gmail.com.

The festival will notify filmmakers on Dec. 1, if their submission has been accepted.

Complete rules and entry forms are posted here and general information about the film festival can be found on their website.