SCINEMA Science Film Festival

Across Australia National Science Week 2025

  • SCINEMA logo

    Call for Entries

    SCINEMA 2025 is open to receive entries on our FilmFreeway page.

  • SCINEMA logo

    Become a Venue

    Want to play SCINEMA at your community group, town hall, library? Register at NSWk.

  • SCINEMA logo

    Classroom Screenings

    Want to play SCINEMA at your school (or Home School)? Register at NSWk.

Winner of 2003 Best Short Film 'The Ocularist'

Tell me more

Want to be kept informed of future CALL FOR ENTRIES, the SCINEMA program as it takes shape, or where to find a venue near you?

Bringing Science Film to Australia Since 2000

Image of a robot arm pouring metal from the film 'Mint' by Georgia Arndell

SCINEMA, pronounced with a long ‘i’ to emphasise the science behind the cinema, is an international science film festival based in Australia, providing a platform on which filmmakers -professional, amateur and student - can showcase their science films, from dramas to documentaries, animations or epic natural history. The festival was founded with the aim of forging links between the sciences and the arts. SCINEMA accepts entries from all over the world.

THE HISTORY

Founded in 2000 by Rebecca Scott and Damian Harris, the first festival played only in Canberra (at the Centre Cinema) and was well attended, with some sold-out performances. Originally hosted by CSIRO, the festival grew steadily over the 2000s. The Festival was run by the Royal Institution of Australia from 2016, jumping from a small-scale festival to averaging 1,300 submissions from over 80 countries. The festival usually hosts a community screening program as part of National Science Week, where community groups and schools can register to run their own screening program. In 2016 over 240 events were held around Australia, with a screening even held on the Davis Station in Antarctica. In 2017, over 37,000 people participated in the festival which was screened at 317 events around Australia.

While COVID in 2020 saw the use of streaming technologies replacing cinema screenings, but a growing audience with 100,000 viewers registering.

In 2025, SCINEMA will be run by STEM Matters, with support from CSIRO, The Royal Australian Mint, Questacon & National Science Week.

Our
Team

  • CRIS KENNEDY

    Festival Director

  • DAMIAN HARRIS

    Festival Director

  • KYLIE AHERN

    STEM MATTERS CEO

What Our Filmmakers Say

  • "A wonderful festival, with a rich, interesting and eclectic programme"

    Cyrille Cornu

  • "I value having been a part of this festival. I appreciate the ease of participating, the thorough communication, the easy access to the online content and being shown alongside many wonderful films."

    Dan Kelin

  • "Scinema International Science Film Festival is a wonderful festival with science at its core. Great communication and very supportive. We were very happy to be part of it."

    Oktay Ortabasi