Video, Film and Animation Festivals - where to get your videos seen and distributed; some are online, some are not. Some offer prizes and money; some are free but most aren't. 

see Film Festival resources at end...

Legal Aspects of Submitting Your Work Online

MARCO ISLAND FILM FESTIVAL, Southwest Florida's premier film event, is seeking film entries for November 3-8 festival - domestic and international feature-length and shorts in drama, comedy, documentaries, and animation. Deadline: August 15. Awards honoring filmmakers presented during closing ceremony. more

The Accolade competition is a contest that recognizes film, video, television and documentary professionals who demonstrate exceptional achievement. Artistry in film, video and commercials tickles the senses and delivers meaningful content. Clients and the public see and hear only the final film, video, television program or commercial, not the scripting, directing, lighting, shooting and editing. It takes intense skill and dedication to produce high quality film, video, television and commercials. Check out the Winners Showcase and watch some of the cool and wonderful productions that have been honored so far.

AmazeFilms is looking for your films to promote and distribute.  The AmazeFilms programming catalogue boasts a selection of award-winning feature films and short films including winners and selections from Sundance Film Festival, Cannes Film Festival, Director's Guild of America and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Their resource page is very thorough and quite helpful if you are trying to make a living by producing and/or distributing short films.

Have you ever heard of FilmFights.com? Every ten days or so they sponsor a FilmFight where film makers create short films based on a single concept or theme. They submit the film and the fight is on! Some of these films are great. You got to check out this site. Take off your gloves, strap on your camera and put up your footage.

A new site just popped up on our radar - 3BTV. This UK based streaming video channel features on going series of webcasts. Their current line-up of programming includes a mix of short films and animations - ranging  from goofy to series. In addition, they are earnestly looking for new work to spotlight. Their focus  is to provide Worldwide entertainment while principally promoting new works by producers, writers, directors, animators and musicians etc. who want to broadcast their work to the widest possible audience. The channel is broadcasting streaming footage 24 hours a day, with daily programming changes. They are looking for Short films, Feature films, Comedies, Music, Documentaries, Animation, "you've been framed" type video clips, Amateur TV, University/ college media projects, Sport - skateboarders, snow boarders, biking, etc. and even exciting, fun or amusing home video clips.

AtomFilms – This is one of the original Internet video and animation sites and still serves as a great place to see and watch both videos created for the Internet as well as ShockWave, stop motion and Flash animations.  It really is two sites AtomFilm.com and Shockwave.com. Atom Film features a collection of short animated and video productions.  The Shockwave site is a bit different and functions as a central clearing house for Shockwave created content, tools and products. The Atom Films and Shockwave sites are seeking quality films and animations for worldwide commercial distribution to their network of television, airline, home entertainment, and new media outlets. They accept live-action and animation submissions with running times under 30 minutes.

  The Bit Screen. http://www.thebitscreen.com/

  The Bit Screen delivers first-run Internet films and web series directly to your desktop. Every week, they add new programs every week to this site as well as on The Best of The Bit Screen on Broadcast.com (www.broadcast.com/video). They are actively seeking new films and videos to promote. They are looking for Internet-based films, animations and episodics, 1 to 10 minutes long. The Bit Screen is a lab for exploring how an interactive Internet medium impacts storytelling and are searching for shorts that are created to work in and with the Internet environment - programs that define and expand the concept of film for the next hundred years. They also sponsor the Streaming Cinema contest and festival that puts on shows on various locations throughout the world.

IFILM (www.IFILM.com) is the one of the most comprehensive guides to find and watch online features and short films. According to IFILM, their network provides the largest online video on demand library in the world, programmed in genre specific movie channels by film and editorial experts. IFILM offers news, reviews, trailers and movie showcases, as well as robust user communities and comparison shopping guides. IFILM has also partnered with The Independent Film Channel to produce IFILM@IFC, a weekly television series dedicated to covering the world of independent film.

They are looking for new films and videos. In addition to getting your film featured on their sites, they have a number of online and offline distribution agreements that provide film and video makers with options for getting your films onto other Websites, as well as onto DVD's and television and into movie theaters. When you register with IFILM, they will provide you with your own video web site that in addition to spotlighting your production, will also provide you with the opportunity to include a brief autobiography, list your filmography and more. This information will be displayed on your filmmaker page when your first film goes live on IFILM. If you have multiple films with IFILM, each of your films will be connected to this filmmaker page. IFILM provides a cool “premiere” feature.  On the day your work premieres on IFILM, invitations will be emailed to everyone on your invitation list. 

Do you like scary films? Do you love being frightened by spooky monsters and bizarre murders? Are you a Jason or Freddy fan? Have you ever wanted to create and share your own thriller films? Check out the Australian based UrbanChillers.com. Not only do they have a nice assortment of fan thriller films to watch, they are looking for YOUR film so they can post it as well. You can choose among 60 second thrillers, 2 and 3 minute chillers, as well as movie trailers, Urban Myth chillers, CCTV files and Dark Tales. Oooh spooky. Some of these flicks are amateurish - some are pretty darn good. Definitely worth checking out.

MovieFlix

MovieFlix - in addition to featuring a wide range of films for free and pay download, MovieFlix also provides a FilmFestival site  that you can use to promote your films and videos to millions of potential video/film viewers. MovieFlix does not pay you for your production but does make the process really easy and smooth.

Just fill out their form and send them your creation on VHS tape. They will encode, host and stream your movie or trailer for FREE! They provide space to post information about your movie - including synopsis, genre, cast credit, stills, articles, awards, reviews and much more. You can also  post information about yourself, including your bio and contact information.

You can uses the MovieFlix promotion to help launch your career by directing inquiries about your productions back to the MovieFlix site. For info about submitting your film, click here.

Spongi is another cool video web site that features a nice collection of short videos - with subject ranging from political, to sports, to performances and video snapshots, this site covers the gamut. Plus they are looking to feature more films. Check them out.

StudentFilms.Com

Studentfilms.com was created to provide an almost infinite audience for budding film-makers and their films.  Studentfilms.com gives everyone the means to have their storytelling voice heard around the world. More importantly, the site is starting to become a place where filmmakers can go to get advice on making their film - a kind of meeting place for film students, either those who are veterans or those who are new to the medium. It also includes a great list of links to help you create and promote your videos and films. http://www.studentfilms.com/links.htm

Studentfilms.com accepts fictional and non-fictional student films.  In order to pay for the high costs of providing this service to student filmmakers, there is an annual fee of $20 for all films submitted to Studentfilms.com. This comes out to about only 5 cents a day or $1.66/month to have your film seen by hundreds per week and have it reviewed and seen by your peers. This is not a submission fee. If for any reason your film is not accepted, your money will be refunded. Studentfilms.com is a small organization that is dedicated to student filmmakers and we want the best on-line experience for you and your film.

TriggerStreet is consistently one of the top web sites for seeing the best in short movie making. In addition, they provide a very powerful community for reviewing and distribution of films and videos, as well as for screenplays. If you have never checked out TriggerStreet, go and register right now. In addition, check out their Festival section. There are some WONDERFUL productions named as finalists in their Third Festival. In addition, they are always looking for new short videos and films to spotlight. Check their upload page for more info and guidelines.

Urban Entertainment -  Urban Entertainment (UE) is looking for existing Flash animations and short films that would make for great feature film or television projects.  Please submit URLs or otherwise contact Casey Cuddy to discuss existing Flash animations and short films that can be viewed online.  UE also accepts treatment and  script submissions. Casey Cuddy, Vice President,  Urban Entertainment  (310) 724-5630 Casey@UrbanEnt.com

World's Smallest Film Festival - 'The World's Smallest Film Festival' showcases the technologies that deliver live action video and animation to mobile devices. In September 'The World's Smallest Film Festival' comes to London with Mobile Commerce World"The World's Smallest Film Festival' - London, is an opportunity for handset makers, technology providers, toolset providers, production companies, and filmmakers/animators to show their stuff.  Take a look at the archive from their last event at Wireless 2003 here: Screening Room recent winners and nominees. You can be involved in their festivals, at no entry fee, so that the short films and animations you make can get exposure to some of the estimated 900 million mobile handset users in the world today. The mobile video phenomenon is just catching on - you may have either seen it or have seen advertisements for it - and they are the primary aggregator of independent content for this market.

More Film Festival Resources -

The 20th Annual San Diego International Film Festival begins on April 16th and continues through April 30th, 2004. We will be accepting entries from now until January 31st, 2003. We accept all genres and lengths: feature length fiction and documentary plus short live action and animation that are made with a passion for the genre and subject, are well-crafted, and embody a palpable personal vision. The Festival is competitive. Entries are accepted on VHS cassettes and DVDs. When a film is accepted we prefer presenting 35mm prints, but also project video and DVD if necessary. Please visit our web-site at  for SDIFF entry forms & submission guidelines.

If you are a film maker you got to check out this site - FilmFestivals.com - everything you could want to know about film festivals worldwide - all kinds of how to information, news, current events and opinion pieces. If you just want to watch some great films, FilmFestivals.com offers links to films on their site, as well as winning films from several other film festivals and contests.

European Film Festival Guide

FilmThreat.com

Reelmind.com

Yahoo Guide to Film Festivals

Microcinema International is looking for your short films and videos  –  Microcinema's mission is to curate, exhibit, distribute and promote innovative international moving image artists whose deeply personal and culturally relevant works are typically marginalized by the mainstream entertainment industry. Microcinema's Independent Exposure is a touring screening program of independent films, videos, and digital art that has been in existence since 1996. Independent Exposure is screened worldwide at various microcinemas and alternative venues and festivals around the world. Microcinema has presented the short film, video and digital works of over 1000 artists in 42 countries plus Palestine and Antarctica

The AmazeFilms  resource page is very thorough and quite helpful if you are trying to make a living by producing and/or distributing short films