The Complete Online Filmmaking Reference - Film Distribution ...

arrive in the mail your chances of being accepted are significantly lower than if you are one of the first to arrive.
A common mistake most filmmakers make is racing to get their film in under the deadline and submitting a
substandard movie in the process. They would be better off giving the final edit the time it deserves and
submitting to another of the top festivals or waiting until next year.
Never sacrifice the quality of your finished film to make the deadline on a festival. The best schedule slots get
filled early.
Make sure your film is appropriate for the festival. All festivals publish a mission statement or other description of
the types of films they are looking for. Sending a family film to a gay/lesbian festival isn't going to work.
Don't include any promotional materials in your submission unless requested, but anything you can do to make a
personal connection with the festival programmers to make your self memorable (in a good way), such as a phone
call asking a simple question that leads to a pleasant conversation.
The festival programmers are usually unpaid film fanatics who are overworked but would love nothing better than
to talk with a real filmmaker. If you have an interesting story about your film or yourself that might possibly get
a slot in the schedule.
Anything you can do to make you and your film memorable to the festival programmers will work in your favor.
Just don't do anything unpleasant or that might get you labeled as a pest.
Make sure that your press-kit biography and film synopsis are as interesting and exciting as you can make them.
Typically you will be notified a few months before the festival if you got in. Statistically you have about a 1 in 20
chance of getting into any festival. Of course, your odds go way up if your film is really good but judging is
extremely subjective and often biased by the mission of the festival to exhibit certain types of films.
Not all festivals notify you if you don't get in. You can find out from the Without A Box forums if people are
getting acceptances and then check with the festival to see if you were selected. Or you can wait until the festival
schedule is posted and see if you are in it.
Even the best films don't get selected to all festivals. Since festival directors often visit other festivals and talk
with other directors, they hear about the best received films. The filmmakers of those films will then get
invitations to submit their films, often with the fee waived.
Early planning
In addition to any friends, cast and crew members you can get to the festival to help promote the film, you
should consider signing on with a publicist, lawyer, agent producer's rep and manager.
Get together your marketing materials. You want to have your press kit together and available in printed form as
well as CD-ROM/DVDs. Printed posters, flyers, invitation to screenings and postcards. Your web site needs to be
in place by now. Order some promo items like clever T-shirts and hats and other giveaways.
Having custom giveaways is one of the best ways to draw a big audience to your screenings and make your film
memorable. Check out the catalogs of the top companies that produce custom promotional materials and see if
you can't come up with original and attention getting for not too much money.
Among the more unusual ways filmmakers have gotten their posters noticed are printing the back to look like
money and leaving them on the ground, and printing the back to look like a parking ticket and leaving them on
cars.
Don't forget to give out custom hats, buttons or other promotions for your film to the festival workers to wear.
They will think it fun and you'll get a lot of free advertising.