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Gabrielle Free
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Page 1 of 2 Film festivals provide an exceptional opportunity to expose, publicize, and even sell your film. Festivals also provide unique networking opportunities for producers as buyers, sellers, distributors, exhibitors, funders, programmers, creative talent, and agents all simultaneously convene in a single environment. If you’ve determined that a festival is the best way to debut your film, you’ll need to research festivals prior to submitting your film and to create a well-thought out plan once your film is accepted.
Where to submit your film
Be strategic about where you submit your film. Different festivals offer different advantages (biggest is not always best) so you’ll need to figure what you want to accomplish before you can determine which festival(s) will best support your goals.
If you are expecting a broadcast deal, then you won’t submit to a festival with a low concentration of television buyers. Conversely, if you’ve made a calling card film and are seeking funding for your next project, then you want to know which and how many funders attend a particular festival on a regular basis.
Does your film match the programming mandate? What support does the festival offer? Will the festival assign an in-house publicist to your film? What will it cost (e.g. travel costs, submission fees, etc.)? Who attends the festival? Is there a large public component or it is an industry event? Which media outlets cover the festival? Can you realistically meet all the deadlines? Does the festival demand premieres? Will participation in one festival compromise your chances of getting into another? Do you want to be one of 400 films at a large, prestigious festival or one of 40 at a smaller, niche festival? Do you have the resources to make your film stand out?
You’ll need answers to all these questions and more before you begin the submission process.
Researching festivals
Some preliminary research will help you determine which festival(s) best suits your needs. Split your research efforts into four arenas: objective, third-party sources; festival websites and publications; festival programming departments or programmers; and testimonials from past participants.
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