Update! The entire top 50 is now ranked, plus numerous new festivals added in top 100/250, all colored dark red. The list has become the most comprehensive and trusted resource of this kind on the internet, always coming at the top of Google search results for “top film festivals“, and being used regularly by thousands of filmmakers worldwide. It has greatly surpassed my initial genre list.
If you have anything to say (feedback, requests etc.), let me know via this contact form! I can offer quick advice if you need help submitting your film, but please understand that I can’t watch your movie or make a customized festival list for it for free. This top 250 takes a lot of time and effort and I’m not paid, I do it voluntarily to support fellow filmmakers and festivals. If you wish to support my work, please do so via Patreon or PayPal. Thank you, Adrian Țofei, October 5, 2022
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Seeing the success of my Top 150 Genre Film Festivals in helping thousands of filmmakers around the world, I decided to make a general list as well, with the most important international film festivals, regardless of genre (which will also help me select the best festivals for my upcoming movie We Put the World to Sleep). This list got shared by top festivals like Raindance and gradually became known and used in the industry as much as my initial genre list. I’m constantly researching festivals and updating it usually once a year.
I take into consideration in my research over 50 other lists (see below), the opportunities the festivals offer to filmmakers and actors (distribution, publicity, networking, representation, awards and Academy Awards, reviews, invitations to other festivals, talent discovery, new projects), the number of world premieres (can be an indicator for discovery festivals), the number of years running (as of 2022), their status/prestige in the film industry, the location, communication, hospitality, atmosphere and safety, how they make the selected/attending filmmakers feel, the size (the number of films screened and the audience), the quality of the films, the press and film industry attending, the festivals’ websites and social media, the entry fee, submission process and selection process, plus my own experiences when invited/selected/attended and the feedback I get from other filmmakers I trust.
Before starting the top, here are the lists that helped me make mine, with codes to identify on which lists each festival is mentioned (newly-added and updated lists are colored red):
- Top 5/10 Oscar Boosters: The festivals that premiered the most features to get Academy nominations for best picture, acting, directing, screenplay and international feature in 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018: Venice (24), Toronto (14), Cannes (11), Sundance (11), Telluride (8), Berlin (3), New York (2), AFI Fest (2), Directors’ Fortnight (1), SXSW (1), BFI London (1). [OB5/10]
- Indiewire’s Top 3/10 Best Festivals (2010) [IW3/10]
- Indiewire’s 100 Leading Film Festivals (2015) [IW100]
- Raindance’s Essential 100 Film Festivals (2013) [R100]
- Raindance’s Top 10 Film Festivals in Europe (2021) [Eu10]
- Raindance’s Top 10 Film Festivals in America (2022) [Am10]
- Raindance’s Top 7 Essential Horror & Fantasy Film Festivals (2013) [RGe7]
- Raindance’s Top 10 Best Film Festivals in Asia (2021) [As10]
- Variety’s 5/50 Unmissable Film Festivals (2007) [V5/50]
- MovieMaker’s 20 Great Film Festivals for First-Time Moviemakers (2022) [MM20]
- Moviemaker’s 50 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee (2022 21 20 19 18 lists) [MM50]
- Moviemaker’s 25 Coolest Film Festivals (2022 21 20, 19, 18 lists) [MM25]
- Moviemaker’s The World’s 5/10 Bloody Best Genre Fests (2017) [MMGe5/10]
- The Guardian’s Top 11 Film Festivals (2012) [TG11]
- FIPRESCI festivals (2021-2022) [FIP]
- FIAPF’s Competitive Feature Film Festivals (2020) [FIAPFc]
- FIAPF’s Specialised Feature Film Festivals (2020) [FIAPFs]
- FIAPF’s Noncompetitive Feature Film Festivals (2020) [FIAPFn]
- CNC’s approved festivals beyond the FIAPF lists (2021, 2019) [CNC]
- Melies Federation’s Member/Supporting Festivals (2022) [MIFF]
- Chris Gore’s Top 10 Feature Film Festivals Worldwide (not including US) (2009) [CG10wo]
- Chris Gore’s Top 10 US Feature Film Festivals for American Indies (2009) [CG10us]
- Horror Report‘s 3/10 Festivals with the Most Horror Movies Screened (1996-2016) [HR3/10]
- Awards Circuit’s Top 3/10 Awards Season’s Most Important Film Festivals (2018) [Aw3/10]
- iFilmFestival’s Top 50 Best Film Festivals (2021) [iFF50]
- StudioBinder’s Top 11 US Film Festivals (2020) [SB11us]
- StudioBinder’s Top 10 International Film Festivals (2020) [SB10int]
- LatinAmerican Post’s 4 Must See Film Festivals in Latin America (2018) [LA4]
- CNN’s Top 15 Asian Film Festivals (2010) [As15]
- WDish.com’s Top 10 Canadian Film Festivals (2015) [Ca10]
- The Rumpus’ top 5 US fests by no. of features selected via paid submissions (2016) [$ub5]
- Google’s first 10 featured results for Top/Best/Greatest Film Festivals (2022) [G10]
- My own Top 4/10/25/50 Genre Film Festivals (2022) [ATGe4/10/25/50]
- FilmFreeway’s top 100 best reviewed feature festivals (2022) [FF100] (at least 5 yo, selected from top 300) (this is different from FilmFreeway’s featured Best Reviewed list which only includes festivals open for submissions at the time of accessing the list)
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Important Notes:
- My top does not include festivals focused exclusively on short, documentary and animated films. Check out the 95th Academy Awards Short Film (Live & Animated) Qualifying Festivals, the 95th Academy Awards Short Documentary Qualifying Festivals, and the 95th Academy Awards Feature Documentary Qualifying Festivals.
- My top also does not include festivals focused exclusively on a specific category of filmmakers (one nationality, ethnicity, race, gender, sexual orientation etc.). Most festivals I list are international and have a wide focus, with a few exceptions (like those focused on genre films or a larger geographical region).
Top 50 Film Festivals:
[ranked]
Colored red are the newly-added festivals & those that went up in the top at the latest updates. Colored green are the festivals with direct FilmFreeway submission links. Festivals must be at least 10 years old to be included in top 50.
- Cannes Film Festival – Cannes, France, 75 years – IW3, IW100, R100, FIAPFc, TG11, CG10wo, G10, OB5, V5, SB10int, iFF50, Eu10, FIP
- Sundance Film Festival – Park City, Utah, US, 39 years – IW3, IW100, R100, TG11, CG10us, G10, CNC, OB5, V5, SB11us, iFF50, Am10
- Toronto International Film Festival: TIFF – Toronto, Canada, 47 years – IW3, IW100, R100, FIAPFn, TG11, Ca10, CG10wo, HR10, G10, Aw3, OB5, V5, SB10int, iFF50, FIP, Am10
- Berlin International Film Festival: Berlinale – Berlin, Germany, 72 years – IW10, IW100, R100, FIAPFc, TG11, CG10wo, G10, V5, OB10, SB10int, iFF50, Eu10, FIP
- Venice International Film Festival: Biennale Cinema – Venice, Italy, 79 years – IW10, IW100, R100, FIAPFc, TG11, G10, Aw3, OB5, V5, SB10int, iFF50, Eu10, FIP
- Telluride Film Festival – Telluride, Colorado, US, 49 years – IW10, IW100, R100, TG11, CG10us, Aw3, OB5, V50, SB11us, G10
- South by Southwest Film Festival: SXSW – Austin, Texas, US, 29 years – IW10, IW100, R100, TG11, CG10us, $ub5, V50, OB10, G10, Am10
- Tribeca Festival – New York City, US, 20 years – IW100, R100, TG11, CG10us, G10, CNC, V50, SB11us, iFF50, Am10
- AFI FEST – Los Angeles, California, US, 36 years – IW100, R100, CG10us, MM25-2018, Aw10, CNC, V50, OB10, iFF50
- Locarno Film Festival – Locarno, Switzerland, 75 years – IW100, R100, FIAPFc, MM50-2021-2022, iFF50, Eu10, FIP
- New York Film Festival: NYFF (features are invite-only) – New York City, US, 60 years – IW10, IW100, R100, Aw10, OB10, SB11us, iFF50
- Directors’ Fortnight Cannes (parallel section of Cannes Film Festival) – Cannes, France, 54 years – R100, OB10
- Critics’ Week Cannes (parallel section of Cannes Film Festival) (for 1st & 2nd features) – Cannes, France, 61 years – R100
- BFI London Film Festival – London, UK, 66 years – IW100, R100, TG11, CG10wo, Aw10, CNC, V50, OB10, Eu10
- Busan International Film Festival: BIFF (formerly Pusan) – Busan, South Korea, 27 years – IW100, R100, FIAPFs, As15, V50, SB10int, As10, MM25-2022, FIP
- International Film Festival Rotterdam: IFFR – Rotterdam, Netherlands, 51 years – IW10, IW100, R100, CG10wo, MM25-2018, CNC, iFF50, Eu10, FIP
- San Sebastian International Film Festival: SSIFF – San Sebastian, Basque Country, Spain, 70 years – IW100, R100, FIAPFc, TG11, V50, iFF50, Eu10, FIP
- Karlovy Vary International Film Festival: KVIFF – Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic, 56 years – IW100, R100, FIAPFc, V50, Eu10, FIP
- Raindance Film Festival – London, UK, 29 years – R100, MM50-2018, G10, V50, SB10int, iFF50, Eu10
- Slamdance Film Festival – Park City, Utah, US, 27 years – IW100, R100, MM50-2018-2019-2020-2021-2022, $ub5, SB11us, iFF50, MM20
- Seattle International Film Festival: SIFF – Seattle, Washington State, US, 48 years – IW100, R100, MM50-2018-2019, CG10us, V50, iFF50, FIP
- Atlanta Film Festival – Atlanta, Georgia, US, 46 years – IW100, MM50-2018-2019-2020-2021-2022, SB11us, iFF50, G10, MM20
- Melbourne International Film Festival: MIFF – Melbourne, Australia, 70 years – IW100, R100, CG10wo, iFF50
- Hong Kong International Film Festival: HKIFF – Hong Kong, China, 45 years – IW100, R100, As15, G10, As10, iFF50, FIP
- Austin Film Festival (focused on film writing) – Austin, Texas, US, 29 years – IW100, MM50-2018-2019-2020-2021-2022, SB11us, iFF50, MM25-2022
- Chicago International Film Festival – Chicago, Illinois, US, 58 years – IW100, R100, MM25-2018, CNC, SB11us, iFF50
- San Francisco International Film Festival: SFFILM – San Francisco, California, US, 65 years – IW100, R100, MM25-2018-2019, CG10us, iFF50
- Santa Barbara International Film Festival: SBIFF – Santa Barbara, California, US, 37 years – IW100, MM50-2019-2022, Aw10, V50, SB11us, iFF50
- Vancouver International Film Festival: VIFF – Vancouver, Canada, 41 years – IW100, MM50-2021-2022, Ca10, CG10wo, CNC, iFF50, Am10
- Festival du nouveau cinema: FNC – Montreal, Canada, 50 years – CNC, MM25-2020-2021, iFF50, FIP
- Palm Springs International Film Festival – Palm Springs, California, US, 33 years – IW100, R100, V50, CNC, MM25-2019, SB11us, FIP
- Hamptons International Film Festival – The Hamptons, New York State, US, 30 years – IW100, R100, MM50-2018-2020-2021-2022, Aw10, iFF50
- Cinequest (focused on film innovations) – San Jose, California, US, 31 years – MM50-2020-2022, CG10us, $ub5, iFF50, MM25-2021, MM20
- Sydney Film Festival (focused on new directions in film) – Sydney, Australia, 69 years – IW100, R100, FIAPFs
- Tokyo International Film Festival – Tokyo, Japan, 35 years – IW100, R100, FIAPFc, CG10wo
- Goteborg Film Festival – Gothenburg, Sweden, 45 years – IW100, R100, CNC, FIP
- Zurich Film Festival – Zurich, Switzerland, 18 years – R100, MM25-2018-2022
- Stockholm International Film Festival – Stockholm, Sweden, 33 years – IW100, R100, iFF50, FIP
- Warsaw Film Festival – Warsaw, Poland, 37 years – FIAPFc, MM50-2019-2020-2021-2022, V50, iFF50, FIP
- Sitges Film Festival (for genre films) – Sitges, Catalonia, Spain, 55 years – R100, FIAPFs, ATGe4, RGe7, MIFF, MMGe5, HR3, V50
- Fantasia International Film Festival (for genre films) – Montreal, Canada, 26 years – IW100, R100, MM50-2018-2019-2020-2021-2022, ATGe4, Ca10, MIFF, MMGe5, HR3, FF100, MM20, Am10
- Fantastic Fest (for genre films) – Austin, Texas, US, 18 years – IW100, R100, ATGe4, MIFF, MMGe5, MM50-2022, Am10
- Sarajevo Film Festival – Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, 28 years – IW100, R100, V50, CNC
- Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival: POFF – Tallinn, Estonia, 26 years – MM50-2019-2020, FIAPFc, FIP
- ACID Cannes (parallel section of Cannes Film Festival) – Cannes, France, 30 years – R100
- New Orleans Film Festival (for films reflecting diversity on and off screen) – New Orleans, Louisiana, US, 33 years – MM50-2018-2019-2020-2021-2022, MM25-2019-2021-2022, iFF50, FF100
- Cleveland International Film Festival – Cleveland, Ohio, US, 46 years – IW100, MM50-2019-2020-2022, iFF50, FF100
- Brooklyn Film Festival – New York City, US, 25 years – MM50-2018-2019-2021-2022, $ub5, iFF50, FF100
- Beyond Fest (for genre films) – Los Angeles, California, US, 9 years – ATGe4, MMGe10
- Nashville Film Festival: NashFilm – Nashville, Tennessee, US, 53 years – IW100, MM50-2018-2019-2020-2021-2022, iFF50
Top 100 Film Festivals:
[alphabetically from 51st to 100th]
Colored red are the newly-added festivals & those that went up in the top at the latest updates. Colored green are the festivals with direct FilmFreeway submission links. Festivals must be at least 7 years old to be included in top 100.
- Ann Arbor Film Festival (for experimental & avant-garde films) – Ann Arbor, Michigan, US, 60 years – IW100, R100, MM50-2019-2021, iFF50
- Atlantic International Film Festival: FIN – Halifax, Canada, 42 years – IW100, MM50-2018-2020-2021-2022, Ca10
- Beijing International Film Festival – Beijing, China, 12 years – CNC
- Buenos Aires International Festival of Independent Cinema: BAFICI – Buenos Aires, Argentina, 23 years – IW100, R100, FIP
- Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival: BIFFF (for genre films) – Brussels, Belgium, 40 years – ATGe10, RGe7, MIFF, HR10
- Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival: BiFan (formerly Puchon/PiFan) (for genre films) – Bucheon, South Korea, 26 years – R100, ATGe10, RGe7, MIFF, MMGe5, V50
- Cairo International Film Festival – Cairo, Egypt, 44 years – R100, FIAPFc, V50, FIP
- Calgary International Film Festival: CIFF – Calgary, Canada, 23 years – MM50-2019-2020-2022, Ca10, SB10int
- Camerimage International Film Festival (focused on cinematography) – Torun, Poland, 30 years – MM50-2018-2019-2020, V50, FIP
- Cartagena International Film Festival: FICCI – Cartagena, Colombia, 62 years – IW100, FIAPFs, LA4
- Dances With Films – Los Angeles, California, 25 years – IW100, R100, $ub5, FF100
- Denver Film Festival – Denver, Colorado, US, 45 years – IW100, CG10us, MM50-2018
- Durban International Film Festival – Durban, South Africa, 43 years – CG10wo
- Evolution! Mallorca International Film Festival – Palma de Mallorca, Spain, 11 years – MM50-2018-2019-2020-2021-2022, FF100
- Fantasporto International Film Festival (for genre films) – Porto, Portugal, 42 years – ATGe10, RGe7
- Film Fest Gent (focused on film music) – Ghent, Belgium, 49 years – IW100, R100, MM50-2020, CNC, V50
- Florida Film Festival – Winter Park / Maitland, Florida, US, 29 years – IW100, MM50-2018-2019-2022, iFF50
- FrightFest (for genre films) – London, UK, 23 years – ATGe10, RGe7, MMGe5, HR10, FF100
- Guadalajara International Film Festival: FICG – Guadalajara, Mexico, 37 years – IW100, LA4, V50, FIP, Am10
- Hawaii International Film Festival – Honolulu, Hawaii, US, 42 years – IW100, V50
- Heartland International Film Festival – Indianapolis, Indiana, US, 31 years – MM50-2018-2019-2020-2021-2022, V50
- International Film Festival of India, Goa – Goa, India, 53 years – FIAPFc, As15, SB10int
- Istanbul Film Festival – Istanbul, Turkey, 41 years – FIAPFs, MM25-2020, FIP
- Julien Dubuque International Film Festival – Dubuque, Iowa, US, 11 years – MM50-2020-2021-2022, FIP, FF100
- Mammoth Lakes Film Festival – Mammoth Lakes, California, US, 8 years – MM50-2018-2019-2020-2021-2022, MM25-2022, FF100
- Mar del Plata International Film Festival – Mar del Plata, Argentina, 37 years – R100, FIAPFc, LA4, V50, FIP
- Miami Film Festival – Miami, Florida, US, 39 years – IW100, MM50-2018
- Mill Valley Film Festival – Mill Valley, California, US, 45 years – IW100, Aw10, MM50-2020
- Morelia International Film Festival – Morelia, Mexico, 20 years – IW100, MM25-2021
- Moscow International Film Festival – Moscow, Russia, 44 years – IW100, R100, FIAPFc, FIP
- Munich Film Festival / Filmfest Munchen (invite-only) – Munich, Germany, 39 years – IW100, CNC, FIP
- New Directors/New Films (presented by MoMA) (invite-only) – New York City, US, 51 years – IW100, CNC
- NewFilmmakers Los Angeles: NFMLA – Los Angeles, California, US, 14 years – MM25-2022, FF100, MM20
- New Zealand International Film Festival: Whānau Mārama – Auckland, Wellington and 11 other cities across New Zealand, 54 years – R100
- The Overlook Film Festival (formerly Stanley Film Festival) (for genre films) – New Orleans, Louisiana, US, 8 years – IW100, ATGe10, MMGe10
- Panafrican Film & Television Festival of Ouagadougou: FESPACO (focused on African films) – Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, 28 years – IW100, R100
- Portland Film Festival – Portland, Oregon, US, 10 years – MM50-2018-2019-2020-2021-2022, iFF50, FF100
- Rhode Island International Film Festival – Providence, Rhode Island, US, 26 years – MM50-2019, FF100, iFF50
- Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 22 years – V50, FIP
- San Luis Obispo International Film Festival – San Luis Obispo, California, US, 28 years – MM50-2018-2019-2020-2021-2022, FF100
- Shanghai International Film Festival – Shanghai, China, 25 years – FIAPFc, As15, As10
- Singapore International Film Festival: SGIFF – Singapore, 33 years – iFF50
- Sofia International Film Festival – Sofia, Bulgaria, 26 years – R100, FIAPFs, V50, FIP
- Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival – Taipei, Taiwan, 59 years – R100, FIP
- Thessaloniki International Film Festival – Thessaloniki, Greece, 63 years – IW100, R100, CNC, V50, MM50-2021, FIP
- Torino Film Festival – Turin, Italy, 40 years – R100, FIAPFs, MM50-2021, FIP
- Toronto After Dark Film Festival: TADFF (for genre films) – Toronto, Canada, 16 years – ATGe10, RGe7
- Transilvania International Film Festival: TIFF – Cluj-Napoca, Romania, 21 years – IW100, R100, FIAPFs, FIP
- Traverse City Film Festival (invite-only, but accepts proposals) – Traverse City, Michigan, US, 18 years – IW100
- Vienna International Film Festival: Viennale – Vienna, Austria, 60 years – IW100, FIAPFn, FIP
Top 250 Film Festivals:
[alphabetically from 101st to 250th]
Colored red are the newly-added festivals at the latest updates. Colored green are the festivals with direct FilmFreeway submission links. Festivals must be at least 5 years old to be included in top 250.
- !f Istanbul Independent Film Festival – Istanbul / Ankara / Izmir, Turkey, 19 years
- Adelaide Film Festival – Adelaide, Australia, 19 years – R100, V50
- Africa International Film Festival: AFRIFF – Lagos, Nigeria, 10 years
- Anchorage International Film Festival – Anchorage, Alaska, US, 22 years – FF100, MM20
- A Night of Horror International Film Festival: ANOH (for genre films) – Sydney, Australia, 14 years – ATGe25
- Ankara Film Festival – Ankara, Turkey, 33 years
- Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival – Antalya, Turkey, 59 years – FIAPFs
- Ashland Independent Film Festival – Ashland, Oregon, US, 22 years – IW100, MM50-2018-2019-2021
- Athens International Film Festival – Athens, Greece, 28 years
- Athens International Film + Video Festival: AIFVF – Athens, Ohio, US, 49 years – iFF50, FF100
- Austin Revolution Film Festival – Austin, Texas, US, 10 years – MM50-2018, FF100
- Bali International Film Festival: Balinale – Sanur, Bali, Indonesia, 16 years – As10
- BAMcinemaFest – New York City, US, 14 years – IW100, MM25-2018-2020
- BendFilm Festival – Bend, Oregon, US, 19 years – MM50-2018-2019-2020-2021-2022, MM25-2019
- Bengaluru International Film Festival – Bengaluru, India, 13 years – FIP
- Bentonville Film Festival (for films reflecting diversity on and off screen) – Bentonville, Arkansas, US, 8 years – MM50-2018-2019-2020-2022
- Bergen International Film Festival – Bergen, Norway, 23 years
- Berwick Film & Media Arts Festival – Berwick-upon-Tweed, UK, 17 years – MM25-2020-2021
- Bogota Film Festival: BogoCine – Bogota, Colombia, 39 years
- Bosphorus Film Festival – Istanbul, Turkey, 9 years
- Brooklyn Horror Film Festival (for genre films) – New York City, US, 7 years – ATGe25, FF100
- Brussels Independent Film Festival – Brussels, Belgium, 42 years – iFF50
- Brussels International Film Festival: BRIFF – Brussels, Belgium, 5 years – FIP
- Bucharest International Film Festival – Bucharest, Romania, 18 years
- Burbank International Film Festival – Burbank, California, US, 14 years – MM50-2019, FF100
- Cambodia International Film Festival – Phnom Penh, Cambodia, 11 years
- Cambridge Film Festival – Cambridge, UK, 41 years
- Carthage Film Festival – Tunis, Tunisia, 56 years – FIP
- Catalina Film Festival – Los Angeles County, California, US, 12 years – MM50-2022, FF100
- Chicago Underground Film Festival: CUFF (focused on experimental & avant-garde films) – Chicago, Illinois, US, 29 years
- Cinema Jove: Valencia International Film Festival – Valencia, Spain, 37 years – sFIAPF
- Cork International Film Festival – Cork, Ireland, 67 years – CNC
- Cottbus Film Festival (for Central & Eastern European films) – Cottbus, Germany, 32 years – R100, CNC, V50, FIP
- Cucalorus Film Festival – Wilmington, North Carolina, US, 28 years – MM50-2018-2019-2020-2021-2022, MM25-2021
- Cyprus Film Days International Festival – Limassol/Nicosia, Cyprus, 20 years
- deadCenter Film Festival – Oklahoma City, US, 22 years – MM50-2018-2019, FF100
- Dhaka International Film Festival – Dhaka, Bangladesh, 20 years – FIP
- Dublin International Film Festival – Dublin, Ireland, 16 years
- Edmonton International Film Festival – Edmonton, Canada, 36 years – MM50-2019-2022, FF10
- L’Etrange Festival (for genre films) – Paris, France, 28 years – MMGe10, ATGe25
- Fajr International Film Festival – Tehran, Iran, 38 years – V50, FIP
- Fantaspoa (for genre films) – Porto Alegre, Brazil, 17 years – MIFF, ATGe25
- Far East Film Festival (formerly Udine) (for East Asian films) – Udine, Italy, 25 years – R100, V50
- Festival Premiers Plans D’Angers (for 1st & 2nd European films) – Angers, France, 34 years – CNC
- FEST – Belgrade, Serbia, 50 years
- FEST – New Directors/New Films Festival – Espinho, Portugal, 18 years
- Filmfest Bremen – Bremen, Germany, 7 years – FF100
- Filmfest Hamburg – Hamburg, Germany, 30 years
- Filmfestival Kitzbuehel (for new filmmakers: 1st to 3rd feature) – Kitzbuhel, Austria, 9 years – FIAPFs, MM50-2021
- FilmQuest (for genre films) – Provo, Utah, US, 9 years – MM50-2021-2022, ATGe25, FF100
- Galway Film Fleadh – Galway, Ireland, 34 years – IW100, MM50-2019-2021-2022
- Geneva International Film Festival (previously Tous Ecrans) (invite-only) – Geneva, Switzerland, 28 years – R100, V50
- Gijon International Film Festival – Gijon, Spain, 60 years – FIAPFs, MM50-2018, FIP
- Giornate degli Autori (parallel section of Venice Film Festival, formerly known as Venice Days) – Venice, Italy, 19 years
- goEast (for Central & Eastern European films) – Wiesbaden, Germany, 22 years – CNC, FIP
- Golden Apricot Yerevan International Film Festival – Yerevan, Armenia, 19 years – MM25-2021, FIP
- Gramado Film Festival – Gramado, Brazil, 50 years – LA4
- Guanajuato International Film Festival – San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, 25 years – iFF50
- Hamilton Film Festival – Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, 17 years – FF100
- Hanoi International Film Festival – Hanoi, Vietnam, 6 years (biennial)
- Havana Film Festival (for Latin American films) – Havana, Cuba, 43 years – IW100, FIP
- Haifa International Film Festival – Haifa, Israel, 38 years – CNC, V50
- Imagine Film Festival (for genre films) – Amsterdam, Netherlands, 33 years – ATGe25, MIFF, HR10
- IndieLisboa – Lisbon, Portugal, 19 years – MM50-2022
- Indie Memphis Film Festival – Memphis, Tennessee, US, 24 years – MM50-2018-2019-2020-2021-2022, MM25-2019, FF100
- International Filmfestival Mannheim-Heidelberg (for new filmmakers: 1st to 3rd feature) – Mannheim/Heidelberg, Germany, 71 years – FIP
- Jeonju International Film Festival – Jeonju, South Korea, 23 years – MM50-2018
- Jerusalem Film Festival – Jerusalem, Israel, 39 years – CNC, V50
- Kolkata International Film Festival – Kolkata (Calcutta), India, 28 years – FIAPFs
- Kustendorf Film Festival – Kustendorf, Serbia, 15 years – MM25-2021
- Kyiv International Film Festival: Molodist (for 1st professional feature) – Kyiv, Ukraine, 51 years – FIAPFs, FIP
- Las Palmas de Gran Canaria International Film Festival – Las Palmas, Canary Islands, Spain, 21 years – MM25-2020
- Leeds International Film Festival – Leeds, UK, 35 years – iFF50
- Les Arcs Film Festival (for European films) – Les Arcs ski resort, France, 14 years – CNC
- Lighthouse International Film Festival – Long Beach Island, New Jersey, US, 14 years – MM25-2018-2020, FF100
- Lisbon & Sintra Film Festival: LEFFEST – Lisbon/Sintra, Portugal, 16 years
- Ljubljana International Film Festival: LIFFE – Ljubljana, Slovenia, 33 years
- Love & Anarchy: Helsinki International Film Festival – Helsinki, Finland, 35 years – R100
- Lucca Film Festival & Europa Cinema – Lucca, Italy, 17 years
- Manchester Film Festival – Manchester, UK, 8 years – FF100
- Marrakech International Film Festival – Marrakesh, Morocco, 19 years – V50, MM25-2022
- The Method Fest (focused on film acting) – Beverly Hills, California, US, 14 years
- Macabro: Mexico City International Horror Film Festival (for genre films) – Mexico City, Mexico, 21 years – ATGe25
- Micheaux Film Festival (for films reflecting diversity on and off screen) – Los Angeles, California, US, 4 years – MM50-2022, MM20
- Middleburg Film Festival – Middleburg, Virginia, US, 9 years – IW100, Aw10
- Mons International Film Festival (focused on films about love) – Mons, Belgium, 37 years – CNC
- Morbido Fest (for genre films) – Mexico City, Mexico, 15 years – MIFF, MMGe10, ATGe25
- MOTELx: Lisbon International Horror Film Festival (for genre films) – Lisbon, Portugal, 15 years – ATGe25, MIFF, FIAPFs
- Motovun Film Festival (features are invite-only) – Motovun, Croatia, 22 years – FIP
- Mumbai Film Festival: MAMI – Mumbai, India, 22 years – FIAPFs, As10
- Nantucket Film Festival – New York City, US, 26 years – IW100, MM50-2020, V50, SB11us
- Neuchatel International Fantastic Film Festival: NIFFF (for genre films) – Neuchatel, Switzerland, 22 years – ATGe25, MIFF
- Nevada City Film Festival – Nevada City, California, US, 21 years – MM50-2019-2021-2022
- New Hampshire Film Festival – Portsmouth, New Hampshire, US, 20 years – MM50-2018-2019-2020-2021
- New Horizons Film Festival (focused on brave new directions in film) – Wroclaw, Poland 22 years – R100
- Newport Beach Film Festival – Newport Beach, California, US, 23 years – FF100
- New York International Children’s Film Festival – New York City, US, 24 years
- Nightmares Film Festival (for genre films) – Columbus, Ohio, US, 7 years – ATGe25, FF100
- The Norwegian International Film Festival (focused on Nordic films) – Haugesund, Norway, 50 years – R100
- Oak Cliff Film Festival – Dallas, Texas, US, 11 years – MM25-2019-2021, MM50-2020
- Odesa International Film Festival – Odessa, Ukraine, 13 years – MM25-2022, FIP
- Okinawa International Movie Festival (focused on comedy) – Okinawa Island, Japan, 14 years – As10
- Oldenburg International Film Festival – Oldenburg, Germany, 29 years – R100, CG10wo
- Omaha Film Festival – Omaha, Nebraska, US, 16 years – MM50-2019-2020, FF100
- On Vous Ment! Mockumentary Film Festival (for mockumentary & found footage films) – Lyon, France, 6 years – ATGe50
- Oxford Film Festival – Oxford, Mississippi, US, 19 years – MM50-2019-2020-2021, FF100
- Palic European Film Festival (for European films) – Palic, Serbia, 29 years – FIP
- Philadelphia Film Festival – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US, 31 years – MM50-2020
- Phoenix Film Festival – Phoenix, Arizona, US, 22 years – FF100, MM20
- Provincetown International Film Festival – Provincetown, Massachusetts, US, 24 years – IW100, MM25-2018-2022
- PriFest: Prishtina International Film Festival – Prishtina, Kosovo, 14 years – FIP
- Pula Film Festival – Pula, Croatia, 69 years
- Pyongyang International Film Festival – Pyongyang, North Korea, 16 years (biennial) – R100, V50
- Queens World Film Festival – New York City, US, 12 years – MM50-2021, MM20, FF100
- Rabat International Author Film Festival: FICAR – Rabat, Morocco, 27 years
- Revelation Perth International Film Festival – Perth, Australia, 25 years – FF100
- Reykjavik International Film Festival – Reykjavik, Iceland, 19 years – R100
- Riga International Film Festival (focused on Baltic and Nordic films) – Riga, Latvia, 9 years
- RiverRun International Film Festival – Winston-Salem, North Carolina, US, 23 years – MM50-2018, FF100
- Rome Film Festival – Rome, Italy, 17 years – R100, FIAPFn
- Santa Fe International Film Festival (formerly Santa Fe Independent FF) – Santa Fe, New Mexico, US, 14 years – MM50-2018-2019-2020, iFF50
- Santiago International Film Festival: SANFIC – Santiago, Chile, 18 years
- Sao Paulo International Film Festival – Sao Paulo, Brazil, 45 years – R100, V50
- Sarasota Film Festival – Sarasota, Florida, US, 24 years – IW100, MM25-2018, MM50-2020
- SCAD Savannah Film Festival – Savannah, Georgia, US, 25 years – MM50-2020-2021-2022
- Screamfest (for genre films) – Los Angeles, California, US, 22 years – ATGe25, RGe7, MIFF, FF100
- Sedona International Film Festival – Sedona, Arizona, US, 28 years – IW100, FF100
- Seminci: Valladolid International Film Festival – Valladolid, Spain, 67 years – CNC, FIP
- SENE Film Festival – Providence, Rhode Island, US, 14 years – MM50-2018-2019-2020, MM20
- Seville European Film Festival (for European films) – Seville, Spain, 19 years – FIP
- Sidewalk Film Festival – Birmingham, Alabama, US, 24 years – FF100, MM20
- Taormina Film Fest – Taormina, Sicily, Italy, 68 years – CNC
- The South African Independent Film Festival – Cape Town, South Africa, 5 years
- St. Louis International Film Festival – St. Louis, Missouri, US, 31 years – FF100
- Stony Brook Film Festival – Stony Brook, New York State, US, 27 years – MM50-2018-2019
- Strasbourg European Fantastic Film Festival: FEFFS (for genre films) – Strasbourg, France, 15 years – MIFF, ATGe25
- Tacoma Film Festival – Tacoma, Washington State, US, 17 years – MM50-2018-2019, MM25-2020, MM20
- Taipei Film Festival – Taipei, Taiwan, 24 years – As15
- Tallgrass Film Festival – Wichita, Kansas, US, 20 years – MM50-2018-2020-2021-2022, FF100
- Telluride Horror Show (for genre films) – Telluride, Colorado, US, 13 years – ATGe25
- Tirana International Film Festival – Tirana, Albania, 20 years
- Trieste Film Festival (for Central & Eastern European films) – Trieste, Italy, 33 years – CNC
- Tromso International Film Festival – Tromso, Norway, 32 years – FIP
- Unnamed Footage Festival (for found footage & mockumentary films) – San Francisco, California, US, 5 years – ATGe50
- Urbanworld Film Festival (for films reflecting diversity on and off screen) – New York City, US, 26 years – MM25-2018-2022
- USA Film Festival – Dallas, Texas, US, 52 years
- Valdivia International Film Festival: FICValdivia – Valdivia, Chile, 29 years – MM25-2020
- Victoria Film Festival – Victoria, Canada, 27 years – MM50-2020-2021
- Vilnius Film Festival: Kino Pavasaris (focused on European films) – Vilnius, Lithuania, 27 years – CNC, FIP
- Whistler Film Festival – Whistler, Canada, 22 years – Ca10, MM50-2020-2022, Am10
- Woods Hole Film Festival (focused on cinematography) – Woods Hole, Massachusetts, US, 31 years – MM50-2019, FF100
- Woodstock Film Festival – Woodstock, New York State, US, 23 years – IW100, MM25-2020
- Zagreb Film Festival – Zagreb, Croatia, 20 years – CNC
- Zlin International Film Festival for Children and Youth – Zlin, Czech Republic, 61 years – R100
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Submission Tips:
(the newly-added submission tips are colored red)
- First of all, if you’ve never made a film before, but you’re thinking of making one, don’t listen to advices about what’s required, if that puts you down. You don’t necessarily need a script or a professional camera or a team or a lot of money. Escape the mental entrapment about what filmmaking is. The best is to find your own ways.
- In case you have no idea whatsoever about how festivals work, here are the basics: the film is not considered a professional artistic film until vetted by at least one festival which has a certain degree of recognition in the industry. The festivals are the gatekeepers. Thousands of them are listed on submission platforms where you put your film out (via private link with password), and then you choose which festivals to submit to (some also accept submissions via email or directly on their websites). Most festivals hire programmers to watch all the films and select a few. In continental Europe, Asia and South America, a lot of fests get funded from the state budget, but in North America, UK and Australia, almost all of them take submission fees, which can still be waived in some cases. For feature films, make sure to have the world premiere in a top festival. Your success will depend on that.
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Promote your film (project) like crazy. Use social media, send press releases, anything you can to ignite people’s interest and ultimately the interest of the film industry. A good percentage of your film’s success will be about the expectation and buzz surrounding it.
- Keep your feature film below 100 minutes if possible and never above 120 minutes. And if you have a genre feature film, keep it below 90 min if possible and never above 100 min. Most festivals are commercially oriented and don’t wanna risk boring their audiences and fade away in popularity.
- Keep your short film below 10 minutes if possible and never above 15 minutes. Festivals prefer to screen a bigger number of shorter short films instead of a single longer short film. Cannes doesn’t even accept short films above 15 min in the main competition.
- Some festival programmers won’t watch your feature film entirely and might reject it based on the first 10-20 minutes. Try to have a powerful beginning or one that shows potential for a powerful development and entices the viewer to watch more.
- Get feedback about your final cut from people with experience in the film industry that you trust before submitting to festivals.
- For feature films, it’s very important to have the world premiere in a big festival. All the selections after the world premiere will be in smaller or at best similar festivals, never in bigger festivals. Plan carefully your world premiere (and also the premieres at continental and country/state/big city level), don’t settle for a little-known festival if you think your movie can do more than that.
- For short films you don’t necessarily need to have the word premiere in a big festival. A short film can travel the festival circuit in smaller festivals, gathering publicity, before being selected to a bigger one. Although premiering in a big one is still an advantage.
- Don’t waste your money and/or chances submitting to world premiere your feature film in festivals which don’t screen world premieres, but select most of their films from other festivals. Focus initially on discovery festivals known for screening world premieres and leave the rest for your regional premieres.
- Check out the genres & types of films the festival usually screens. If you’ve made a low budged mockumentary, but the festival never screened low budget mockumentaries in the past, you might want to keep the money to submit to festivals which are more relevant for your film. Check out also the geographical region the festival focuses on (if 9 out of 10 world premieres were American films last year and you plan paying to submit a German film for the world premiere, better keep the money for another festival).
- Keep the cover letter very short – about three phrases of essential info if possible. Programmers are very busy and might not read long letters. Same for the synopsis, try to keep it short and catchy, similar to an IMDb plotline.
- Include in the short cover letter the best things about your movie and yourself, to catch the programmers’ interest, like known cast & crew, past known films of yours, awards and top festivals, diversity or nice focus, anything else unique or sensational about your film. When submitting for any type of premiere (world, regional, local), mention that in your cover letter.
- A lot of important European, Asian, South-American & African film festivals have no submission fees, because they get state support. Find them and definitely submit your film (also keep in mind that some festivals with fees for features have no fees for shorts).
- Don’t fall for partial discount offers received via email, thinking they are personalised and the festival is interested in your film. Most of the times they are not, those are discount codes listed publicly on the submission platform or mass-sent to filmmakers. When a festival is interested in your film, they offer you a 100% discount code or fee waiver. With a few exceptions, the partial discount is just a marketing strategy.
- Ask for fee waivers before submitting if you have good reasons to do so which are relevant for the festival, like important awards & festivals for your current or previous film, known actors, being an alumni or anything else sensational, unique or valuable that would make the festival staff think “we might need this film“.
- Knowing someone in the festival or with more power in the industry can help with at least getting a fair consideration. I used to advise against this practice, but since the established names have so many advantages, it is only fair that indie filmmakers try to use whatever they got to increase their chances of selection.
- Do your online research and also submit to major competitions like the Academy Awards, the Golden Globes, the European Film Awards and other regional or national major film awards not listed here. For a chance at the Oscars, don’t miss the Academy Awards Qualifying Festivals for documentary features, documentary shorts, and short films (including animated shorts), and the 5 festivals known to be top Oscar boosters for feature films (Toronto, Venice, Telluride, Sundance, Cannes).
- Some of the top 10 festivals have very powerful and popular sections for genre films (TIFF, Sundance, SXSW, Tribeca & Cannes’ side sections). But if you don’t get accepted, try my Top 100 Genre Film Festivals.
- When you get accepted and/or win an award in an important festival, email the other festivals you are waiting a decision from and inform them about your success (but try not to bother them with too many emails).
- And finally, if you get into festivals and distributors express interest in your film, always negotiate an advance payment (minimum guarantee – MG) or at least a gross corridor. Otherwise chances are you will see little to no money later. Go without an advance or gross corridor only if the backend split is great and you trust the distributor, or if no other distributor wants your film and that’s your only chance of distribution.
Festivals to Avoid:
- Award events, online festivals, monthly festivals and seasonal festivals (that happen multiple times a year) listed on submission platforms. Most are scams and won’t help your career or film in any way, no matter how well rated and reviewed they are (unless they are big festivals that went online temporarily during the pandemic, established award events like the European Film Awards, or monthly festivals with credible recognition like NFMLA). Most award events and monthly festivals have many positive ratings usually because they award/select tons of movies regardless of quality, and are not worthy of submitting.
- Festivals that appear valuable, but are just cash-cows for the owners. Some are outright fake (the event doesn’t happen), while most are pseudo-festivals or half-scams organised to get as much money as possible from filmmakers while offering them as little value as possible (most of the times zero value). I’d go as far as to say that most festivals listed on submission platforms are pseudo-festivals. Do your research before submitting.
- Festivals that send invitations to submit via email (sometimes even personalized with your name and/or your film’s title), but offer only a discount code and not a full fee waiver. They are not interested in your film, the email is part of a marketing campaign and most probably numerous other filmmakers received it. When a festival is interested in your film, they always offer a full waiver.
- Warning signs: multiple different festivals in various locations around the world or the US run by the same company or person(s), huge number of submission categories with high fees, huge number of awards given (in order to satisfy filmmakers’ ego and buy their silence), the festival happens multiple times a year (monthly or every season), big sounding titles that have no recognition in the industry and just sound similar to established festivals, the event happens far away (different country or city) from the administrative headquarters, the festival mass-sends discount codes to filmmakers to attract more submissions, they take advantage of selected filmmakers by making them pay for promo materials, trophy, the award gala or party, the festival happens in a hotel, in the city outskirts or other improper venue/location, there’s no industry or press or even audience present besides the attending filmmakers, the films selected in previous editions have little to no online presence, the event generally looks more like a business than a film event.
- Established festivals that don’t offer you a fee waiver and you have info that they view paid submissions mainly as a source of revenue and select/invite most of their films directly from premium sources like sales agents, distributors, contacts or other festivals. These festivals can offer you a lot of value if selected, but you can pay big money submitting thinking you have a chance, when you actually don’t. Here’s what a former TIFF programmer had to say: “The top of the festival food chain feasts on submission fees. These festivals have deep industry networks, do extensive tracking of productions, and actively solicit works for their events. At the major festivals and most credible film festivals, submission fees remain a tax on the outsiders and unsolicited entries are merely revenue-generating fodder.” Therefore, unless you’re sure you’ve made a masterpiece (I’m not ironic, if you feel that, go for it), don’t waste your money openly submitting your indie film to top tier festivals.