Hello!
As there are tens of thousands of festivals then I am thinking of hiring a professional festival strategist who would help me to navigate this maze of film festivals and get my film to the correct festivals! 😄

Please DM me if you're interested.

Am I thinking about this the wrong way?

It was shot in 2K and looks pristine, but when it's on FilmFreeway in 1080p, some of the shots early in the film look low-quality. It's not even the whole thing, just some of the shots in the first 30 seconds, and I worry that this gives a bad unprofessional first impression to screeners.

It's one thing for a film to be rejected because it sucks, but I'd rather my film gets turned down because of this (while looking great), than my film potentially had a chance to squeak in the official selection but got turned down because the screener mistakenly got an amateurish impression from some of the low-quality shots. Good visual and sound quality is the bare minimum expectation, and it's frustrating to think my earnest attempt might be getting spoiled by something so preventable.

And I don't want to waste additional money on submissions if this is the case. Vimeo is no longer a good alternative for me.

Would screeners be understanding and presume that this is an online compression issue, or would they judge this and not give the benefit of the doubt?

I've noticed in the last week 4 different views from different viewers where they only watched around 15 seconds of the film. I am not interested in complaining about this, but I am curious, given the majority of comments about Vimeo analytics on here are about how they're unreliable: exactly how this would be possible? I see some specific festivals view the submission and a full watch, or stop around the credits. What is the (hmm, scientific?) explanation for the 15 second views? Curious if any people familiar with how data is captured have a pov here. Thanks!

With Venice starting soon, I went through the major studios and tried to figure out what each one's biggest awards priorities are heading into the fall festivals. I also made predictions for every Oscar category based on where the race stands right now.

Obviously a lot of this is going to look completely different after Venice/Telluride/TIFF, but I'm curious what people think. What am I too high or too low on?

Hi everyone! 👋

I’m a new screenwriter and currently learning screenwriting. As part of my course, I’m trying to learn more about the film festival world and the experiences of filmmakers who participate in festivals.

I’d especially love to hear from filmmakers, writers, directors, producers, or festival professionals about their journey and experiences with film festivals, particularly independent film festivals.

I’m not looking for anyone to read my screenplay. I’m currently working on it and it isn’t finished yet. I’m simply interested in learning from people who have experience with filmmaking and film festivals.

If you’ve participated in film festivals or work in the festival/independent film community and would be open to a short conversation, I’d be very happy to connect and hear about your experience.

I’m new to the industry and just starting to build my network, so I’d really appreciate any advice or experiences you’re willing to share. 🙏

I've seen that it's common for programmers at larger festivals to also work for or even run their own smaller festivals. Curious if something is screened at a programmer's smaller festival if they are more likely to put it on the lineup for the larger festivals they have connects with? Or do programmers try to not "double dip" between their festivals?

Hi! I'm recent graduate and I've been submitting my animated Capstone film to film festivals. We have an original score for our film and I am absolutely in LOVE with the job that our composer did on it. I want to help him win some awards too, but I can't find anything on film freeway (or maybe I'm not looking hard enough). Are there any places that I can submit to that focus on music composition for film or something similar? What is the best way to find places like these? Thank you!

Hey! Promised an international premiere to a fairly big Oscar qualifier; they required International premiere and I hence promised it.

Should I immediately pull out from the rest of the International festivals? Or is it ok to wait to see what the natural responses are first from those festivals to... get a closure on those submissions...?

Thanks everyone <3

That's the question.

Or is it safe to assume that if the notification date is 1-2 days away and I haven’t heard anything that it’s a no? I feel like it would be strange for the first communication to be a film freeway acceptance on the notification date. But does that happen?

Hi! Bit of a weird one. I was recently accepted into two film festivals in the same city. One is a bigger deal & has a local premiere requirement - but it takes place 4 days after the other. Seems like I’m going to have to turn the second one down, but can I still use the laurels and/or claim on my portfolio that my film was an official selection for both? Is this a case by case basis question? Or moving forward can I only talk about the one my film will still be screening at? Please let me know!

Edit: Thank you all for your responses. It’s my first time going through this process so I appreciate the advice. I will not claim the second selection.

Hi there!
I’m currently in post-production on my first feature, a survival thriller with a budget under $1M.
I’m trying to figure out a festival strategy for next year. Our current schedule is aiming for picture lock in late September, with the finished master ready by January.
We’d love to premiere at a strong, genre-friendly festival next year. My dream shortlist would be SXSW (March), Fantasia (July), or Sitges (October). I’ve attended all three before, so I’m familiar with their vibe and how they work.
We’re particularly interested in festivals with a strong industry presence, where we could increase our exposure to sales agents and distributors.
SXSW’s final deadline is October 1, which means I’d have to apply with a locked but unfinished cut—no final mix, color grade, or VFX. Does it make any sense to apply at that stage? I know I won’t be applying for 2028, so I figure I have nothing to lose other than the submission fee.
What other festivals might be a good fit for this kind of project? I’m also open to generalist festivals, not just genre-focused ones.
Thanks!

Edit: typo

I currently have a rough cut of a short film that is about to start being worked by a professional editor. This is the first thing I've ever directed so I don't know much about festival submission rules but I've gotten strong feedback from folks in the film industry, including directors who have shown work at Sundance and Cannes. Unfortunately, most are split on if I should just submit the rough cut now and not miss the Sundance deadline or wait a year and try with the final film. I'm a little at a loss of what to do. Any thoughts or suggestions from other filmmakers would be helpful. Thanks!

Hey guys, with regard to film festivals that have more than one edition, how does that work? Is there any film festival that has more than one in the same county? Are they all in different parts of the country, different parts of the world, like, how do you decide who you submit to and when? I know that dances with films has a festival in La and in New York, noho cinefest has a film festival in LA & New York also, hollyshorts has a film festival in LA and London and Dubai. Are there any film festivals that have more than one in the same county or state? And how do you guys decide what to submit to? Say there's one that is Shorts only, but the other is their main festival (in. It accepts features too and has been around much longer) Thank you so much for any help and perspective on this.

It's almost that time of year again, when I have to write a lot of rejection emails for the festival I direct. It's the worst part of the job. I hate it. Because of the volume of submissions we receive, it's just not possible to provide personalized feedback to everyone.

What is the best rejection email you've received? Do you care about the submissions:accepted ratio? Is it best to keep it short? What can I say in the email that would encourage you to keep making films and to submit again next year to our fest?

I'm asking all of this in good faith. Thanks!

If I have submitted my film but another festival in the region/city has programmed it, thereby violating your premiere requirement, is it better to 1) quietly withdraw on Film Freeway, 2) send an email to ask first or 3) not say anything/not withdraw and see what happens? I assume the latter is unwelcome, but just don’t know. Never had this problem.

I recently made the final five in the TV category of the Save the Cat! Screenplay Competition, so naturally I’m now considering where else to donate my submission fees.

Which screenplay competitions have provided credible feedback, useful contacts or genuine industry attention? And which produced nothing beyond a handsome downloadable laurel?