Adrian Țofei, August 2016
Latest Major Update: May 2020
Latest Update: June 2020
Main changes in the June updates: I’ve removed FilmFreeway’s list of best reviewed festivals as a support list (too many scam festivals rated high on FilmFreeway, like Madrid & Nice IFF, which have been exposed as scams), I’ve added The Rumpus’ list of top 5 US festivals by number of features selected from paid submissions as a support list, and I’ve added at the end a descriptive list of scam festivals to avoid. I’ve also expanded the list from top 100 to top 250, since the initial “beyond top 100” section ended up having 150 festivals which are greater than honourable mentions.
Main changes in the May update: In order to emphasise discovery festivals, I’ve researched & included the number of world premieres of feature films screened by most top festivals on my list in their latest edition (excluding special/gala screenings), which has caused major changes in the top. For the world premiere of their movies, filmmakers have a higher chance of selection when submitting to festivals which usually screen world premieres, compared to festivals which mostly screen regional premieres of movies coming from other festivals. I’ve also extended the “beyond top 100” section to over 150 festivals, I’ve updated the support lists, added more submission tips for indie filmmakers at the bottom of the page and updated the existing ones.
All major changes in the last two updates are colored green.
Seeing the success of my Top 100 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 type (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 or twice a year, but sometimes even every month.
I take into consideration in my research over 40 other lists (see below), the opportunities the festivals offer to indie filmmakers and actors (distribution offers, publicity, networking, awards, attracting reviews in relevant publications and selections/invitations to new festivals, boosting the chances for the Academy Awards, discovering new talents, boosting the chances for getting new projects), the number of world premieres they screen (which can be an indicator for discovery festivals), the number of years running, their status 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 selected and the number of audience, press and film industry members attending), the quality of the selected films, the quality of the information on their websites and social media, the entry fee, submission process and selection process, plus my own experiences with my first movie Be My Cat: A Film for Anne, my premiere preferences for my upcoming movie We Put the World to Sleep and other various recommendations. I only included international film festivals with live screenings.
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Before starting the top, here are the lists that helped me make mine, with codes to identify on which lists each festival is mentioned (updated & newly-added lists are colored in green):
- FIAPF’s Competitive Feature Film Festivals (2020) [cFIAPF]
- FIAPF’s Specialised Feature Film Festivals (2020) [sFIAPF]
- FIAPF’s Noncompetitive Feature Film Festivals (2020) [nFIAPF]
- FIAPF’s Documentary & Short Film Festivals (2020) [dsFIAPF]
- CNC’s approved festivals beyond the FIAPF lists (2019) [CNC]
- Indiewire’s Top 3/10 Best Festivals (2010) [IW3/10]
- Indiewire’s 100 Leading Film Festivals (2015) [IW100]
- Indiewire’s Top 12 Documentary Film Festivals (2014) [IWDo12]
- Raindance’s Essential 100 Film Festivals (2013) [R100]
- Raindance’s Top 7 Essential Horror & Fantasy Film Festivals (2013) [RHoFa7]
- Raindance’s 10 Top Documentary Film Festivals (2013) [RDo10]
- Raindance’s Top 5 Short Film Festivals (2016) [RSh5]
- Variety’s 5/50 Unmissable Film Festivals (2007) [V5/50]
- Moviemaker’s 50 Film Fests Worth the Entry Fee (2020, 2019, 2018 & 2017 lists) [MM50-year(s)]
- Moviemaker’s 25 Coolest Film Festivals (2019, 2018 & 2017 lists) [MM25-year(s)]
- Moviemaker’s The World’s 5/10 Bloody Best Genre Fests (2017) [MMGe5/10]
- The Guardian’s Top 11 Film Festivals (2012) [TG11]
- 93rd Academy Awards’ Documentary Feature Qualifying Festivals (2020) [AADo]
- 93rd Academy Awards’ Short Film Qualifying Festivals (2020) [AASh]
- 93rd Academy Awards’ Documentary Short Qualifying Festivals (2020) [AAShDo]
- Chris Gore’s Top 10 Feature Film Festivals Worldwide (not including US) (2009) [wCG10]
- Chris Gore’s Top 10 US Feature Film Festivals for American Indies (2009) [usCG10]
- EFFFF’s Affiliated & Supporting Festivals (2020) [EFFFF]
- 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]
- LatinAmerican Post’s 4 Must See Film Festivals in Latin America (2018) [LaAm4]
- CNN’s Top 15 Asian Film Festivals (2010) [CNNAs15]
- WDish.com’s Top 10 Canadian Film Festivals (2015) [Ca10]
- Animation Career Review’s Top 3/10 Animation Film Festivals (2017) [An3/10]
- Film Daily’s Top 3 Best Female-Focused Film Festival (2018) [FDWo3]
- The Film Reporter’s Top 3 Black Film Festivals [FRBl3]
- The Rumpus’ top 5 US fests by no. of features selected via paid submissions (2016) [Sub5]
- Google’s first 3/5/10/20/50 results for Top Film Festivals (Jun 2020) [G3/5/10/20/50]
- Google’s first 3/10/20 results for Top Documentary Film Festivals (Jun 2020) [GDo3/10/20]
- Google’s first 3/10 results for Greatest Genre Film Festivals (Jun 2020) [GGe3/10]
- Google’s first 3/6 results for Best Animated Film Festivals (Jun 2020) [GAn3/6]
- Google’s first 3 results for Best Underground Film Festivals (Jun 2020) [GUn3]
- Google’s first 3 results for Top Film Festivals for Children (Jun 2020) [GCh3]
- Google’s first 3 results for Top LGBT Film Festivals (Jun 2020) [GLGBT3]
- Google’s first 3/10 results for Top / Best Film Festivals in Asia (Jun 2020) [GAs3/10]
- Google’s first 3/6 results for Top Film Festivals in South / Latin America (Jun 2020) [GLA3/6]
- Google’s first 3/6 results for Top film Festivals in Africa (Jun 2020) [GAf3/6]
- Google’s first 3 results for Top Black Film Festivals (Jun 2020) [GBl3]
- Google’s first 3 results for Top Indigenous Film Festivals (Jun 2020) [GIn3]
- My own Top 3/7/25 Genre Film Festivals (Jun 2020) [ATGe3/7/25]
- Top 5 Oscar Boosters: the festivals that premiered the most features to get Academy nominations in top categories (picture, acting, directing, writing) in 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017: Venice (15 premieres), Toronto (11), Cannes (8), Telluride (7), Sundance (6) [Os5]
Top 10 Film Festivals:
Colored in green are the newly-added festivals & those that climbed in the top at the latest update. The number of world premieres is for features only, excluding special/gala premieres (the 2nd number is for movies from outside of the festival’s country or region). Festivals must be at least 15 years old.
- Cannes Film Festival / Festival de Cannes – Cannes, France, 73 years – IW3, IW100, R100, cFIAPF, AASh, RSh5, TG11, wCG10, AADo, G3, Os5, V5 – 38 world premieres in 2019 in the main & un certain regard competitions
- Toronto International Film Festival: TIFF – Toronto, Canada, 45 years – IW3, IW100, R100, nFIAPF, TG11, Ca10, wCG10, HR10, G3, Aw3, AASh, Os5, V5 – 82 / 65 world premieres in 2019 in the sections discovery, platform, docs, wavelengths, contemporary world cinema & midnight madness
- Berlin International Film Festival / Berlinale (focused on art films) – Berlin, Germany, 70 years – IW10, IW100, R100, cFIAPF, AASh, TG11, wCG10, AADo, G5, V5 – 84 world premieres in 2020 in competition & the sections encounters, panorama & forum
- Sundance Film Festival (focused on US films) – Park City, Utah, US, 43 years – IW3, IW100, R100, AADo, AASh, AAShDo, RSh5, TG11, usCG10, G3, CNC, Os5, V5 – 72 / 26 world premieres in 2020 in the US & world competitions for dramatic & documentary features, and the sections next & midnight
- Venice International Film Festival (focused on Hollywood films) – Venice, Italy, 77 years – IW10, IW100, R100, cFIAPF, AASh, TG11, G5, Aw3, Os5, v5 – 44 world premieres in 2019 in the main & orizzonti competitions, and the section sconfini
- Telluride Film Festival (focused on Hollywood films) – Telluride, Colorado, US, 47 years – IW10, IW100, R100, TG11, usCG10, Aw3, Os5, G50, V50 – 14 / 4 world premieres in 2019
- Locarno Film Festival – Locarno, Switzerland, 73 years – IW100, R100, cFIAPF, AASh, MM25-2017, G20 – 58 world premieres in 2019 in the piazza grande, moving ahead, concorso internazionale & cineasti del presente competitions
- Tribeca Film Festival (focused on US films) – New York City, US, 19 years – IW100, R100, AASh, AADo, AAShDo, TG11, usCG10, G10, CNC, V50 – 47 / 18 world premieres announced for 2020 in the US & international narrative competitions, documentary competition, and the sections viewpoints & midnight
- South by Southwest / SXSW Film Festival (focused on US films) – Austin, Texas, US, 27 years – IW10, IW100, R100, MM25-2017, AADo, AASh, AAShDo, TG11, usCG10, Sub5, V50 – 42 / 8 world premieres announced for 2020 in the documentary & narrative competitions and the sections visions, midnighters & global
- Directors’ Fortnight / Quinzaine des Realisateurs (parallel section of Cannes Film Festival) – Cannes, France, 52 years – R100, G50 – 21 world premieres in 2019
Top 25 Film Festivals:
(in alphabetical order from 11 to 25)
Colored in green are the newly-added festivals & those that climbed in the top at the latest updates. The number of world premieres is for features only, excluding special/gala premieres (the 2nd number is for movies from outside of the festival’s country or region). Festivals must be at least 15 years old.
- ACID (parallel section of Cannes Film Festival) – Cannes, France, 28 years – R100 – 7 world premieres in 2019
- AFI FEST – Los Angeles, California, US, 50 years – IW100, R100, AASh, usCG10, MM25-2018, Aw10, CNC, G50, V50 – 1 / 1 world premiere in 2019
- BFI London Film Festival (focused on UK films) – London, UK, 64 years – IW100, R100, TG11, wCG10, Aw10, CNC, G20, V50 – 10 / 3 world premieres in 2019 in the official, first feature & documentary competitions, and experimenta section
- Busan International Film Festival (formerly Pusan) (focused on Asian films) – Busan, South Korea, 25 years – IW100, R100, sFIAPF, CNNAs15, GAs3, G20, V50 – 82 / 15 world premieres in 2019 in the sections world cinema, flash forward, new currents, wide angle, midnight passion, a window on Asian cinema & Korean cinema today vision
- Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival – Clermont-Ferrand, France, 42 years – IW100, R100, AASh, RSh5, CNC, G50, V50
- Critics’ Week / Semaine de la Critique (parallel section of Cannes Film Festival) – Cannes, France, 59 years – R100, G50 – 7 world premieres in 2019 in competition
- International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam: IDFA – Amsterdam, Netherlands, 33 years – IW10, IW100, RDo10, IWDo12, AADo, AaShDo, GDo3, CNC, G50
- International Film Festival Rotterdam: IFFR – Rotterdam, Netherlands, 49 years – IW10, IW100, R100, wCG10, MM25-2018, CNC, G20 – 25 world premieres in 2020 in the tiger, big screen & bright future competitions
- Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (focused on European films) – Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic, 55 years – IW100, R100, cFIAPF, AADo, G50, V50 – 25 world premieres in 2019 in the main, east of the west & documentary competitions
- New York Film Festival (accepts submissions for short films only, features are invitation based) – New York City, US, 58 years – IW10, IW100, R100, Aw10, G10
- Raindance Film Festival – London, UK, 28 years – R100, MM50-2018, AASh, AAShDo, G10, V50 – 2 / 2 world premieres in 2019
- San Sebastian International Film Festival / Donostia Zinemaldia (focused on Spanish & Portuguese language films) – San Sebastian, Basque Country, Spain, 68 years – IW100, R100, cFIAPF, TG11, G50, V50 – 15 / 7 world premieres in 2019 in the main, new directors, zabaltegi-tabakalera & horizontes latinos competitions
- Seattle International Film Festival: SIFF (focused on US films) – Seattle, Washington State, US, 46 years – IW100, R100, MM50-2019-2018, AASh, AAShDo, usCG10, G50, V50 – 11 / 1 world premieres in 2019
- Sitges Film Festival / Festival Internacional de Cinema Fantastic de Catalunya (for horror & fantasy films) – Sitges, Catalonia, Spain, 53 years – R100, sFIAPF, AASh, ATGe3, RHoFa7, EFFFF, MMGe5, HR3, GGe3, G50, V50 – about 12 world premieres in 2019 in the fantastic competition and the sections noves visions, panorama, midnight x-treme, brigadoon & orbita
- Slamdance Film Festival (focused on US films) – Park City, Utah, US, 26 years – IW100, R100, MM50-2020-2019-2018-2017, AASh, AAShDo, G10, Sub5 – 10 / 3 world premieres in 2020
Top 50 Film Festivals:
(in alphabetical order from 26 to 50)
Colored in green are the newly-added festivals & those that climbed in the top at the latest updates. The number of world premieres is for features only, excluding special/gala premieres (the 2nd number is for movies from outside of the festival’s country or region). Festivals must be at least 10 years old.
- Annecy International Animation Film Festival – Annecy, France, 44 years – R100, AASh, An3, CNC, G50, V50, GAn3
- Aspen Shortfest (for short films) – Aspen, Colorado, US, 29 years – IW100, AASh, AAShDo, RSh5, MM50-2018-2017
- Austin Film Festival (focused on film writing) (focused on US films) – Austin, Texas, US, 28 years – IW100, MM50-2020-2019-2018-2017, AASh, AAShDo, G20 – at least 4 / 1 world premieres in 2019
- Chicago International Film Festival – Chicago, Illinois, US, 56 years – IW100, R100, AASh, AAShDo, MM25-2018-2017, CNC, G50 – 0 world premieres in 2019 in the competitions
- Cinequest Film & Creativity Festival (focused on film innovations) (focused on US films) – San Jose, California, US, 29 years – MM50-2020-2017, AASh, usCG10, Sub5 – 35 / 6 world premieres announced for 2020
- Edinburgh International Film Festival (focused on UK films) – Edinburgh, UK, 74 years – IW100, R100, TG11, G20, V50 – 12 / 4 world premieres in 2019
- Fantasia International Film Festival (for horror & fantasy films) – Montreal, Canada, 24 years – IW100, R100, MM50-2020-2019-2018-2017, ATGe3, Ca10, EFFFF, MMGe5, HR3, GGe10 – 11 world premieres in 2019
- Fantastic Fest (for horror & fantasy films) – Austin, Texas, US, 16 years – IW100, R100, MM25-2017, ATGe3, EFFFF, MMGe5, GGe3 – 18 world premieres in 2019
- Goteborg Film Festival – Gothenburg, Sweden, 43 years – IW100, R100, AADo, CNC
- Hamptons International Film Festival (focused on Hollywood films) – The Hamptons, New York State, US, 28 years – IW100, R100, MM50-2020-2018, AASh, AAShDo, MM25-2017, Aw10
- Hong Kong International Film Festival (focused on Asian films) – Hong Kong, China, 44 years – IW100, R100, CNNAs15, AADo, G20 – at least 4 world premieres in 2019
- Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival – Toronto, Canada, 28 years – IW100, R100, AAShDo, RDo10, IWDo12, Ca10, MM50-2020-2018-2017, AADo, AAShDo, GDo3, G50
- Melbourne International Film Festival (focused on Australian films) – Melbourne, Australia, 69 years – IW100, R100, AASh, AAShDo, wCG10, G50 – 7 / 0 world premieres in 2019
- Palm Springs International Film Festival – Palm Springs, California, US, 31 years – IW100, R100, MM25-2019, G10, CNC, V50 – 4 / 3 world premieres in 2020
- Palm Springs International ShortFest – Palm Springs, California, US, 26 years – IW100, R100, AASh, AAShDo, RSh5, CNC, V50
- San Francisco International Film Festival: SFFILM – San Francisco, California, US, 63 years – IW100, R100, MM25-2019-2018, AADo, AASh, AAShDo, usCG10, G20 – 3 / 1 world premieres announced for 2020
- Santa Barbara International Film Festival (focused on US films) – Santa Barbara, California, US, 35 years – IW100, AASh, MM50-2019, Aw10, G20, V50 – 22 / 4 world premieres in 2020
- Sarajevo Film Festival (focused on South-Eastern European films) – Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, 26 years – IW100, R100, AASh, V50 – 12 world premieres in the main & documentary competitions
- Shanghai International Film & TV Festival (focused on Asian films) – Shanghai, China, 23 years – cFIAPF, CNNAs15, GAs10, G50 – at least 30 / 7 world premieres in the main, documentary & Asian new talent competitions, and panorama sections
- Sheffield Doc/Fest (for documentary films) – Sheffield, UK, 27 years – IW100, AAShDo, RDo10, IWDo12, MM25-2017, AADo, GDo3, G50
- Sydney Film Festival (for new directions in film) (focused on Australian films) – Sydney, Australia, 67 years – IW100, R100, sFIAPF, AADo, AASh, G50 – 7 / 2 world premieres in 2019
- Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival: POFF – Tallinn, Estonia, 24 years – MM50-2020-2019-2017, cFIAPF, AASh, G50 – 26 world premieres in 2019 in the first feature & rebels with a cause competitions, and the official selection section
- Tokyo International Film Festival (focused on Asian films) – Tokyo, Japan, 33 years – IW100, R100, cFIAPF, wCG10, GAs3, G50 – 21 / 3 world premieres in the main, Asian future & Japanese cinema splash competitions
- Vancouver International Film Festival (focused on Canadian films) – Vancouver, Canada, 39 years – IW100, MM50-2017, Ca10, wCG10, CNC, G50 – 8 / 3 world premieres in 2019 in the sections contemporary world cinema, vanguard, true north, impact, gateway & altered states
- Warsaw Film Festival – Warsaw, Poland, 36 years – cFIAPF, AASh, AAShDo, MM50-2020-2019, V50 – 15 world premieres in 2019 the international, 1-2, free spirit & documentary competitions
Top 100 Film Festivals:
(in alphabetical order from 51 to 100)
Colored in green are the newly-added festivals & those that climbed in the top at the latest updates. The number of world premieres is for features only, excluding special/gala premieres (the 2nd number is for movies from outside of the festival’s country or region). Festivals must be at least 10 years old.
- AFI DOCS (formerly Silverdocs) (for documentary films) – Los Angeles, California, US, 18 years – IW100, R100, RDo10, IWDo12, GDo10, AAShDo
- Ann Arbor Film Festival (for experimental & avant-garde films) – Ann Arbor, Michigan, US, 58 years – IW100, R100, AASh, MM50-2019, G50 – 2 world premieres in 2019
- Atlanta Film Festival (focused on US films) – Atlanta, Georgia, US, 44 years – IW100, MM50-2020-2019-2018, AASh, AAShDo, G20 – 3 / 0 world premieres announced for 2020
- Atlantic International Film Festival: FIN (focused on Atlantic films) – Halifax, Canada, 40 years – IW100, MM50-2020-2018, Ca10
- Brooklyn Film Festival – New York City, US, 23 years – MM50-2019-2018, Sub5 – 6 / 2 world premieres in 2019
- Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival: BIFFF (for horror & fantasy films) – Brussels, Belgium, 38 years – ATGe7, RHoFa7, EFFFF, HR10, GGe10 – 8 world premieres announced for 2020
- Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival: BiFan (formerly Puchon/PiFan) (focused on Asian horror & fantasy films) – Bucheon, South Korea, 24 years – R100, ATGe7, RHoFa7, EFFFF, MMGe5, GGe10, V50 – 20 world premieres in 2019 (mostly Asian genre films)
- Cairo International Film Festival – Cairo, Egypt, 42 years – R100, cFIAPF, AASh, V50
- Camden International Film Festival (for documentary films) – Camden, Maine, US, 16 years – IW100, MM50-2020-2019-2017, AAShDo, IWDo12, GDo20
- Camerimage International Film Festival (focused on cinematography) – Bydgoszcz, Poland, 28 years – MM50-2020-2019-2018, AAShDo, V50
- Cartagena International Film Festival: FICCI (focused on Latin-American films) – Cartagena, Colombia, 60 years – IW100, sFIAPF, MM25-2017, AADo, AAsh, LaAm4, GLA3
- Cleveland International Film Festival – Cleveland, Ohio, US, 44 years – IW100, AASh, AAShDo, MM50-2020-2019
- Cottbus Film Festival / FilmFestival Cottbus (for Central & Eastern European films) – Cottbus, Germany, 30 years – R100, CNC, V50 – 3 world premieres in 2019
- CPH:DOX (for documentary films) – Copenhagen, Denmark, 17 years – RDo10, AADo, CNC, GDo10
- Dances With Films (focused on US films) – Los Angeles, California, 23 years – IW100, R100, Sub5 – 18 / 3 world premieres in 2019 in the sections narrative features, documentaries & midnight series
- DOC NYC (for documentary films) – New York City, US, 11 years – IW100, AAShDo, IWDo12, GDo10
- DOK Leipzig (for documentary & animated films) – Leipzig, Germany, 63 years – MM50-2019, RDo10, AADo, AAShDo, AASh, CNC, GDo20
- Dubai International Film Festival (focused on films from the Arab world) – Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 17 years – IW100, R100, G50, V50
- Durban International Film Festival – Durban, South Africa, 41 years – wCG10, AADo, GAf3
- Fantasporto: Oporto International Film Festival (for horror & fantasy films) – Porto, Portugal, 40 years – ATGe7, RHoFa7, GGe10 – 6 world premieres announced for 2020 in the fantastic, directors’ week & orient express competitions
- Festival du nouveau cinema – Montreal, Canada, 49 years – AASh, CNC – 4 / 2 world premieres in 2019
- Film Fest Gent (focused on film music) – Ghent, Belgium, 47 years – IW100, R100, MM50-2020, CNC, V50
- FrightFest (for horror films) – London, UK, 21 years – ATGe7, RHoFa7, MMGe5, HR10, GGe10 – 10 world premieres in 2019
- Full Frame Documentary Film Festival – Durham, North Carolina, US, 23 years – IW100, AADo, AAShDo, IWDo12, MM25-2017, GDo10
- Guadalajara International Film Festival: FICG (focused on Latin-American films) – Guadalajara, Mexico, 35 years – IW100, AASh, LaAm4, G50, V50, GLA3
- HollyShorts Film Festival (for short films) – Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, US, 16 years – IW100, MM50-2019-2018-2017, AASh
- imagineNATIVE Film Festival (for Indigenous filmmakers worldwide) – Toronto, Canada, 21 years – GIn3, AASh
- International Film Festival of India, Goa – Goa, India, 51 years – cFIAPF, CNNAs15, GAs10, G50
- International Short Film Festival Oberhausen – Oberhausen, Germany, 66 years – dsFIAPF, AASh, MM25-2017, MM50-2018, G50
- Mar del Plata International Film Festival – Mar del Plata, Argentina, 35 years – R100, cFIAPF, LaAm4, V50, GLA3
- Mill Valley Film Festival (focused on Hollywood films) – Mill Valley, California, US, 43 years – IW100, Aw10, MM50-2020, G50 – 11 / 2 world premieres in 2019
- Moscow International Film Festival – Moscow, Russia, 42 years – IW100, R100, cFIAPF, AADo
- Nashville Film Festival: NashFilm – Nashville, Tennessee, US, 52 years – IW100, MM50-2020-2019-2018, AASh, AAShDo
- New Orleans Film Festival (focused on underrepresented, female and color filmmakers) – New Orleans, Louisiana, US, 31 years – MM50-2020-2019-2018-2017, AAShDo, MM25-2019-2017, AASh
- New York International Children’s Film Festival – New York City, US, 24 years – AASh, GCh3
- New Zealand International Film Festival: NZIFF – Auckland, Wellington and 11 other cities across New Zealand, 49 years – R100
- Outfest Los Angeles LGBTQ Film Festival – Los Angeles, California, US, 39 years – IW100, MM50-2017, AASh, GLGBT3
- Pan African Film+Arts Festival (for films by & about people of African descent worldwide) – Los Angeles, California, 28 years – FRBl3, AASh, GBl3
- Panafrican Film & Television Festival of Ouagadougou: FESPACO (focused on African films) – Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, 27 years – IW100, R100, GAf3
- St. John’s International Women’s Film Festival – St. John’s, Canada, 31 years – IW100, Ca10, RWo8, FDWo3
- Stockholm International Film Festival – Stockholm, Sweden, 31 years – IW100, R100, sFIAPF
- Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival (focused on Asian films) – Taipei, Taiwan, 41 years – R100, CNNAs15, AADo
- Tampere Film Festival (for short films) – Tampere, Finland, 50 years – R100, dsFIAPF, AASh, AAShDo
- Thessaloniki International Film Festival – Thessaloniki, Greece, 61 years – IW100, R100, CNC, V50
- Transilvania International Film Festival: TIFF – Cluj-Napoca, Romania, 19 years – IW100, R100, sFIAPF
- Traverse City Film Festival (invitation based, but accepts proposals) – Traverse City, Michigan, US, 16 years – IW100, AAShDo
- True/False Film Fest (for documentary films) – Columbia, Missouri, US, 17 years – IW100, R100, MM25-2019-2018, RDo10, IWDo12, GDo10, AADo
- Vienna International Film Festival / Viennale – Vienna, Austria, 58 years – IW100, nFIAPF, MM25-2017
- Visions du Reel (for documentary films) – Nyon, Switzerland, 51 years – AAShDo, RDo10, IWDo12, AADo, GDo10, CNC
- Zurich Film Festival – Zurich, Switzerland, 16 years – R100, MM25-2018
Top 250 Film Festivals:
(in alphabetical order from 101 to 250)
Colored in green are the newly-added & re-added festivals at the latest updates. The number of world premieres is for features only, excluding special/gala premieres (the 2nd number is for movies from outside of the festival’s country or region). Festivals must be at least 5 years old.
- !f Istanbul Independent Film Festival – Istanbul / Ankara / Izmir, Turkey, 19 years
- Adelaide Film Festival (focused on Australian films) – Adelaide, Australia, 10 years – R100, V50
- Africa International Film Festival (focused on African films) – Lagos, Nigeria, 10 years – GAf3
- American Black Film Festival (for films by & about people of African descent worldwide) – Miami Beach, Florida, US, 24 years – MM25-2018, GBl3, FRBl3
- American Indian Film Festival (for films by & about North-American indigenous natives) – San Francisco, California, US, 45 years – GIn3
- A Night of Horror International Film Festival (recently reopened after a two years hiatus) – Sydney, Australia, 13 years – ATGe25 – at least 2 world premieres in 2020 (first wave announcement)
- Animafest Zagreb (for animated films) – Zagreb, Croatia, 30 years – MM25-2018, AASh, An3, GAn6
- Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival – Antalya, Turkey, 57 years – sFIAPF
- Ashland Independent Film Festival – Ashland, Oregon, US, 19 years – IW100, MM50-2019-2018
- Athens International Film Festival – Athens, Greece, 26 years
- Austin Revolution Film Festival – Austin, Texas, US, 9 years – MM50-2018
- Bali International Film Festival / Balinale – Sanur, Bali, Indonesia, 14 years
- BAMcinemaFest (focused on US films) – New York City, US, 12 years – IW100, MM25-2018-2017 – 3 / 0 world premieres in 2019
- BendFilm Festival – Bend, Oregon, US, 17 years – MM50-2020-2019-2018, MM25-2019
- Bergen International Film Festival – Bergen, Norway, 21 years
- Beyond Fest (for horror & fantasy films) (accepts submissions for short films only, features are invitation based) – Los Angeles, California, US, 8 years – ATGe25, MMGe10
- BFI Flare: London LGBTQ+ Film Festival – London, England, UK, 34 years – GLGBT3
- Big Sky Documentary Film Festival – Missoula, Montana, US, 17 years – IW100, AAShDo, MM50-2020-2019-2018-2017, GDo20
- Bosphorus Film Festival – Istanbul, Turkey, 8 years
- International Festival of Documentary and Short Film of Bilbao: ZineBi – Bilbao, Spain, 62 years – dsFIAPF, AAShDo, AASh
- Brooklyn Horror Film Festival – New York City, US, 5 years – ATGe25 – 1 world premiere in 2019
- Buenos Aires International Festival of Independent Cinema: BAFICI – Buenos Aires, Argentina, 22 years – IW100, R100, GLA3
- Calgary International Film Festival – Calgary, Canada, 21 years – MM50-2020-2019-2017, AASh, Ca10, G50 – possibly 0 world premieres in 2019
- Cambodia International Film Festival – Phnom Penh, Cambodia, 10 years – GAs10
- Carthage Film Festival – Tunis, Tunisia, 31 years – AADo, AAShDo, GAf6
- Chagrin Documentary Film Festival – Chagrin Falls, Ohio, US, 11 years – MM50-2020-2019-2018-2017
- Chicago International Children’s Film Festival – Chicago, Illinois, US, 37 years – AASh
- Chicago Underground Film Festival (focused on experimental films) – Chicago, Illinois, US, 27 years – GUn3 – 0 world premieres in 2019
- CineDays (for European films) – Skopje, North Macedonia, 19 years – sFIAPF
- Cinema du reel (for documentary films) – Paris, France, 42 years – R100, CNC, GDo10
- Cinema Jove / Valencia International Film Festival – Valencia, Spain, 35 years – sFIAPF
- Cinepocalypse (formerly Bruce Campbell’s Horror Film Fest) (for horror & fantasy films) – Chicago, Illinois, US, 7 years – ATGe25 – 5 world premieres in 2019
- Cork International Film Festival – Cork, Ireland, 65 years – AASh, AAShDo, CNC
- CPH:PIX – Copenhagen, Denmark, 12 years – CNC
- Cucalorus Film Festival – Wilmington, North Carolina, US, 26 years – MM50-2020-2019-2018-2017
- Cyprus International Film Festival (Golden Aphrodite) – Nicosia, Cyprus, 15 years
- DC Shorts International Film Festival – Washington DC, US, 17 years – MM50-2019-2018-2017
- Denver Film Festival – Denver, Colorado, US, 40 years – IW100, usCG10, MM50-2018-2017
- DocumentaMadrid (for documentary films) – Madrid, Spain, 17 years – AADo, AAShDo
- Doc Edge (for documentary films) – Auckland / Wellington, New Zealand, 15 years – AADo, AAShDo
- Doclisboa (for documentary films) – Lisbon, Portugal, 22 years – AAShDo, MM50-2020, CNC
- Docville (for documentary films) – Leuven, Belgium, 16 years – AADo
- DOXA Documentary Film Festival – Vancouver, Canada, 20 years – R100, GDo20
- Dublin International Film Festival – Dublin, Ireland, 16 years
- Edmonton International Film Festival – Edmonton, Canada, 34 years – MM50-2019-2017, AASh
- Encounters Film Festival (for short films) – Bristol, UK, 25 years – AASh, CNC
- Eurasia International Film Festival – Kazakhstan, 16 years – sFIAPF
- Evolution! Mallorca International Film Festival – Palma de Mallorca, Spain, 9 years – MM50-2020-2019-2018
- Fajr International Film Festival – Tehran, Iran, 38 years – V50
- Fantaspoa (for horror & fantasy films) – Porto Alegre, Brazil, 16 years – EFFFF, ATGe25 – 5 world premieres in 2019
- Female Eye Film Festival (for films directed by women) – Toronto, Canada, 18 years – MM50-2020-2019-2018-2017, FDWo3
- FEST – Belgrade, Serbia, 48 years
- Filmfestival Kitzbuehel (focused on young directors’ films) – Kitzbuhel, Austria, 8 years – sFIAPF
- FilmQuest (for fantasy, horror & sci-fi films) – Provo, Utah, US, 7 years – MM50-2017-2015, ATGe25 – 2 world premieres in 2019
- Florida Film Festival (focused on US films) – Winter Park / Maitland, Florida, US, 29 years – IW100, AASh, AAShDo, MM50-2019-2018 – 2 / 0 world premieres in 2019 the narrative & documentary competitions
- Frameline: San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival – San Francisco, California, US, 44 years – IW100, MM25-2018
- Flickerfest (for short films) – Sydney, Australia, 30 years – AASh, AAShDo
- Galway Film Fleadh – Galway, Ireland, 32 years – IW100, AASh, MM50-2019, AAShDo
- Geneva International Film Festival (previously Tous Ecrans) (invitation based) – Geneva, Switzerland, 25 years – R100, V50
- Gijon International Film Festival (focused on films for young people) – Gijon, Spain, 58 years – sFIAPF, MM50-2018, AASh
- Global Film Festival – Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, 13 years – sFIAPF
- goEast (for Central & Eastern European films) – Wiesbaden, Germany, 20 years – CNC
- Golden Apricot Yerevan International Film Festival – Yerevan, Armenia, 17 years
- Hamilton Film Festival – Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, 15 years
- Hanoi International Film Festival (once in 2 years) – Hanoi, Vietnam, 6 years – GAs10
- Havana Film Festival (for Latin-American films) – Havana, Cuba, 41 years – IW100
- Heartland International Film Festival – Indianapolis, Indiana, US, 29 years – MM50-2020-2019-2018-2017, AASh, AAShDo, V50
- Hawaii International Film Festival – Honolulu, Hawaii, US, 40 years – IW100, V50
- Hiroshima International Animation Festival – Hiroshima, Japan, 18 years – AASh, An10
- Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival – Hot Springs, Arkansas, US, 29 years – MM50-2017, AAShDo, GDo20
- Huesca Film Festival (for short films) – Huesca, Spain, 48 years – AASh, AAShDo
- Imagine Film Festival (for horror & fantasy films) – Amsterdam, Netherlands, 36 years – ATGe25, EFFFF, HR10 – 1 world premiere announced for 2020
- Indie Memphis Film Festival – Memphis, Tennessee, US, 23 years – MM50-2019-2018-2017, MM25-2019
- Inside Out Toronto LGBT Film Festival + Inside Out Ottawa LGBT Film Festival – Toronto/Ottawa, Canada, 30/14 years – MM25-2019, GLGBT3
- International Documentary & Short Film Festival of Kerala – Trivandrum, India, 13 years – sFIAPF, AADo, AAShDo
- International Filmfestival Mannheim-Heidelberg – Mannheim/Heidelberg, Germany, 69 years – MM50-2017
- Istanbul Film Festival – Istanbul, Turkey, 39 years – sFIAPF
- It’s All True International Documentary Film Festival – Sao Paulo / Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 25 years – AADo, AAShDo
- Izmir International Short Film Festival – Izmir, Turkey, 20 years – AASh
- Jeonju International Film Festival – Jeonju, South Korea, 21 years – MM25-2017, MM50-2018, GAs10
- Jerusalem Film Festival – Jerusalem, Israel, 37 years – AASh, CNC, V50
- Jihlava International Documentary Film Festival – Jihlava, Czech Republic, 24 years – AADo, AAShDo, CNC, GDo20
- Kolkata International Film Festival – Kolkata (Calcutta), India, 26 years – sFIAPF
- Krakow Film Festival (for documentary & short films) – Krakow, Poland, 60 years – dsFIAPF, AADo, AAShDo, AASh
- Kyiv International Film Festival / Molodist (focused on young directors’ films) – Kyiv, Ukraine, 49 years – sFIAPF
- LA Shorts International Film Festival – Los Angeles, California, US, 24 years – AASh, AAShDo
- Leeds International Film Festival – Leeds, UK, 34 years – AASh
- Love & Anarchy: Helsinki International Film Festival – Helsinki, Finland, 33 years – R100
- Mammoth Lakes Film Festival – Mammoth Lakes, California, 6 years – MM50-2020-2019-2018-2017
- Marrakech International Film Festival – Marrakesh, Morocco, 19 years – V50
- Message to Man International Film Festival (for documentary, short & animated films) – St. Petersburg, Russia, 30 years – dsFIAPF
- The Method Fest (focused on acting) – Beverly Hills, California, US, 14 years
- Miami Film Festival – Miami, Florida, US, 37 years – IW100, MM25-2017, MM50-2018-2017
- Middleburg Film Festival (focused on Hollywood films) – Middleburg, Virginia, US, 8 years – IW100, Aw10
- Minsk International Film Festival / Listapad (for films from the Eurasian region) – Minsk, Belarus, 27 years – sFIAPF
- Morbido Film Fest (for horror & fantasy films) – Mexico City, Mexico, 13 years – ATGe25, EFFFF, MMGe10
- Mons International Film Festival (focused on films about love) – Mons, Belgium, 35 years – CNC
- Morelia International Film Festival (focused on Latin-American films) – Morelia, Mexico, 18 years – IW100, AADo, AAShDo, AASh
- MOTELx: Lisbon International Horror Film Festival – Lisbon, Portugal, 14 years – ATGe25, EFFFF, sFIAPF – 1 world premiere in 2019
- Mumbai Film Festival – Mumbai, India, 22 years – sFIAPF
- Munich Film Festival / Filmfest Munchen (invitation based) – Munich, Germany, 38 years – IW100, CNC
- Nantucket Film Festival – New York City, US, 25 years – IW100, MM25-2017, MM50-2020, G50, V50
- New Directors/New Films – New York City, US, 49 years – IW100, AAShDo, CNC – 0 world premieres announced for 2020
- New Hampshire Film Festival – Portsmouth, New Hampshire, US, 20 years – MM50-2020-2019-2018-2017
- New Horizons Film Festival – Wroclaw, Poland 20 years – R100
- Neuchatel International Fantastic Film Festival (for horror & fantasy films) – Neuchatel, Switzerland, 20 years – ATGe25, EFFFF – at least 3 world premieres in 2019
- New York City Horror Film Festival – New York City, US, 18 years – ATGe25 – 1 world premiere in 2019
- Nightmares Film Festival (for horror, fantasy & thriller films) – Columbus, Ohio, US, 5 years – ATGe25 – 5 world premieres in 2019
- Odesa International Film Festival – Odessa, Ukraine, 11 years
- Oldenburg International Film Festival – Oldenburg, Germany, 27 years – R100, wCG10
- On Vous Ment! Mockumentary Film Festival (for pseudo-documentaries and found footage films) – Lyon, France, 5 years – ATGe25
- Ottawa International Animation Festival – Ottawa, Canada, 44 years – AASh, Ca10, An3, GAn3
- Outfest Fusion LGBTQ People of Color Film Festival – Los Angeles, California, US, 17 years – IW100, MM50-2017, GLGBT3
- The Overlook Film Festival (formerly Stanley Film Festival) (for horror & fantasy films) – New Orleans, Louisiana, US, 7 years – IW100, ATGe25, MMGe10 – 2 world premieres in 2019
- Philadelphia Film Festival – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US, 29 years – MM50-2020
- Pyongyang International Film Festival – Pyongyang, North Korea, 18 years – R100, V50
- Reel Sisters of the Diaspora Film Festival (for films directed, written and produced by women of color worldwide) – New York City, US, 23 years – AASh, FDWo3
- Reykjavik International Film Festival – Reykjavik, Iceland, 17 years – R100
- Rhode Island International Film Festival – Providence, Rhode Island, US, 24 years – MM50-2019-2017, AASh, AAShDo
- Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 22 years – V50, GLA3
- RiverRun International Film Festival – Winston-Salem, North Carolina, US, 21 years – MM50-2018, AAShDo, AASh
- Rome Film Festival – Rome, Italy, 15 years – R100
- San Francisco Jewish Film Festival (for Jewish-subject films) – San Francisco, California, US, 40 years – IW100, AAShDo
- San Luis Obispo International Film Festival – San Luis Obispo, California, US, 26 years – MM50-2020-2019-2018-2017
- Santa Fe Independent Film Festival – Santa Fe, New Mexico, US, 12 years – MM50-2020-2019-2018-2017
- Sao Paulo International Film Festival / Mostra Iternacional de Cinema – Sao Paulo, Brazil, 44 years – R100, V50
- Sarasota Film Festival – Sarasota, Florida, US, 23 years – IW100, MM25-2018, MM50-2020
- Screamfest Horror Film Festival – Los Angeles, California, US, 20 years – ATGe25, RHoFa7, EFFFF, GGe3 – 1 world premiere in 2019
- Seminci / Valladolid International Film Festival – Valladolid, Spain, 65 years – CNC
- SENE Film Festival – Providence, Rhode Island, US, 12 years – MM50-2020-2019-2018-2017
- Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia – Tokyo, Japan, 22 years – AASh, AAShDo, GAs10
- Shriekfest: The Indie Horror/Sci-Fi Film Festival – Los Angeles, California / Orlando, Florida, US, 20 years – ATGe25 – 3 world premieres in 2019
- Singapore International Film Festival – Singapore, 31 years – AASh, GAs3
- Sofia International Film Festival – Sofia, Bulgaria, 23 years – R100, sFIAPF, V50
- Strasbourg European Fantastic Film Festival (for horror & fantasy films) – Strasbourg, France, 13 years – EFFFF, ATGe25 – 3 world premieres in 2019
- Stuttgart Festival of Animated Film – Stuttgart, Germany, 27 years – AASh, An10, GAn3
- Taipei Film Festival – Taipei, Taiwan, 23 years
- Tel Aviv International Documentary Film Festival: DocAviv – Tel Aviv, Israel, 22 years – AADo, AAShDo, IWDo12, CNC, GDo20
- Thessaloniki Documentary Festival – Thessaloniki, Greece, 22 years – IW100, R100, RDo10, AADo, CNC
- Tirana International Film Festival – Tirana, Albania, 18 years – AASh
- Torino Film Festival – Turin, Italy, 38 years – R100, sFIAPF
- Toronto After Dark Film Festival (for horror films) – Toronto, Canada, 15 years – ATGe25, RHoFa7, GGe10 – 3 world premieres in 2019
- Trieste Film Festival (for Central & Eastern European films) – Trieste, Italy, 31 years – CNC
- Valdivia International Film Festival: FICValdivia – Valdivia, Chile, 27 years
- Vilnius Film Festival – Vilnius, Lithuania, 25 years – CNC
- Women Make Waves (focused on women’s films) – Taipei, Taiwan, 27 years – GAs10
- Women Over 50 Film Festival (for women over 50 in the main team or as central characters) – London, UK, 6 years
- Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival – Yamagata, Japan, 17 years – AADo, GDo20
- Zagreb Film Festival – Zagreb, Croatia, 17 years – CNC
- Zlin International Film Festival for Children and Youth – Zlin, Czech Republic, 60 years – R100, GCh3
For more festivals, check out also Wikipedia’s list and New York Film Academy’s lists (but do your research before submitting, they are not all major festivals, and the NYFA’s list is not at all comprehensive as they claim, missing some of the most important festivals).
Submission Tips:
(the newly-added submission tips are coloured in green)
- 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 needed, 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. Find your own ways.
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If you just finished shooting your first indie film and have no idea 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 (private link with password) together with info about the film, and then you choose which festivals to submit to (some festivals also accept submissions via email or directly on their websites). Most festivals receive hundreds or thousands of submissions, and for that they hire programmers to watch all the films and select only a few. In continental Europe, Asia and South America, a lot of festivals get funded from the state budget, but in North America, UK and Australia, almost all of them take submission fees, which can be as low as $2 and as high as $200 per film. So you pay in order for someone to watch the film and decide if it’s going to be selected or not. When the festival gets enough money from the state and doesn’t ask for a fee, it is paid from taxes by the community, because it is assumed that any healthy community needs art.
- Promote your film even before you start the production. 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 created around 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.
- 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. I’ve mentioned the number of world premieres for most top festivals in my list, but I might not find the time to finish my research on all of them, since most do not mention it in their press releases or programs and I need to manually check out every movie. I’m also excluding special or gala premieres from my count, which are irrelevant for most filmmakers.
- 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, 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. Find them and definitely submit to those ones (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 want this film“.
- Knowing someone in the festival can help. I used to advise against this practice, but since the established names in the industry have so many advantages, it is only fair if indie filmmakers try to use whatever they can for fee waivers and a fair consideration.
- 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 Horror & Fantasy 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 at distribution.
Festivals to Avoid:
- Online festivals and award events 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, or well established award events like the European Film Awards).
- 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 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).
- Warning signs: multiple different festivals in various locations around the world or the US run by the same company or person(s) (like the multiple festivals run by the company Film Fest International around the world: Madrid International Film Festival, Nice International Film Festival, London International Filmmaker Festival, Milan International Filmmaker Festival), huge number of submission categories with high fees, huge number of awards given (in order to satisfy filmmakers’ ego and buy their silence), 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.