A lot of people are sometimes confused as to what type of film festivals they should enter, but Gary you say, I think it is easy, I made a zombie film I should enter a horror film festival correct? Yes and No.
One of the things I have learned about film festivals, is even genre specific festivals are very picky about the material they want to have at their festival. However, I have seen friends make other types of horror films, and try to send them to all types of festivals and they were rejected left and right, and you may say, well the film must of sucked... no, it was actually a good film, but entering the wrong festival is just throwing money away. (Example, you don't send a zombie horror flick to a Festival about Romance and Drama)
Lets say you have a zombie film, its not the greatest, but you have some well done FX, decent acting, for an indie, and a good, but simple story. Well you can try and send it to Cinequest, Sundance, Toronto International, no one is saying you can't, but, your chances of getting into those festivals is slim to none. Now take that same film and send it to the different Horror festivals such as, Zompire, Fright Night, Madison, Eerie, Paranoia, Texas Frightmare, etc, and your chances of success increase that your film will be accepted.
I have told many people to go and check out the film festivals websites and look at previous entries, watch the trailers, read the synopsis, dig around for info about that film, now compare that to yours, if you at least equal that quality, you can probably say entering that contest is a safe bet. Not a sure bet, but odds would be in your favor.
Some of the toughest horror film festivals to enter are the New York City Horror Film Festival, Chicago, and Eerie Film Festival. Their standards are very high, your film better meet a lot of checks and balances before you considering submitting to them.
For those just starting out, I suggest sticking to smaller fests like Fright Night, Madison, Zombie Con, etc. These festivals still get a lot of attention, cool guests, and are great for exposure. Even if a fest is small, the fact you were accepted is good. The more "Laurels" you can add to the video artwork, or website, the better. Even if you don't win an award, you still screened. Hell sometimes being nominated is just as good, it means in the judges eyes your film was good enough to be considered one of the best of the fest.
One rule to remember, don't try to over reach your goals in regards to film fests. Remember these fests charge entry fees, and if you enter 10-20 festivals that could easily cost you between $500-$1000 dollars just in entry fees, not to mention postage, screener and promotional materials. Plus, you want to try and make it to the some of the fest that accept you. So figure money in for that as well.
However, big picture, don't try to enter into a festival you most likely have no shot of ever getting in. You are just wasting your time and money. Hence why I always say, investigate the fests you are thinking of entering, and check out past winners, and films screened the previous years. It will save you tons of headache in the end.
Also be aware that some festivals may also require a programming format different from your screening format. You may send in a DVD screener for consideration, but the screening print may require DigiBeta, DVCAM, Mini DV, 16mm or even 35MM. Make sure you read your fine print. A lot of festivals will not accept screening prints as DVD-R, this is because they sometimes rent out theater auditoriums, and those theaters maynot be equipped with a digital projection system.
FAQ: (Promotional Materials)
Do I need a press kit? It doesn't hurt to have one. Tidbits about production, casting, locations all help sell your film package a lot more. Some festivals don't require them, but many do, so putting one together is very simple. You can even use mine as an example: http://www.playingwithdeadthings.com...S2PRESSKIT.zip I have gotten a lot of positive feedback with this presskit.
Do I need on set pictures? Again, it doesn't hurt. Festivals ask for Lobby cards everyonce and a while so they can lay out promotional material.
Do I need posters? YES, this is something you should spend some money on. You can usually get about 500 11x17 posters made for about $200-$300 dollars, it is worth it and is one of the best marketing tools you could every have. If you have access to a copier that handles 11x17, print them out on simple 11x17 paper, it works and is less costly, plus you can change your artwork or text so posters are festival specific.
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