reel plan: strategies for success in the media arts

Festival entry fees are important for festival directors.  They often offset venue rentals, marketing and other major expenses. And in a time when sponsor money is drying up, entry fees are more important than ever.

First, you should have budgeted for entry fees.  They are a legitimate expense – along with tape stock and feeding your crew.  If you did not plan for the expense, then maybe you need to rethink your preproduction routine.

Most festivals have an early bird discount – take it!  You can always register now and send in your materials before the final deadline.  That gives you a few extra weeks to finish your post work – and provides for a deadline to finish your final edit.

If you cannot scrape together the money and must ask for a fee waiver, do not call.  It is tacky and shows that you are not prepared. Instead, craft a SHORT email explaining your circumstances. Be real – festival directors have heard every sad sack story.  If you have a online preview or private link to your film, include it.  Also, festivals you have played – and whether you paid the fee, or begged from them, also.

Then follow up.  Give the selection committee a few days – then send another short note asking for an acknowledgement of the email.  Be patient – some festivals wait until the end of their submission period to determine whether or not they even need additional films for consideration.

All festivals want you to attend. Visiting filmmakers give credibility to the event, and allows for audiences to connect with the creative minds behind the screenings.  But hotels are expensive – and can be boring after a lot of travel.

Ask the festival director or filmmaker liaison if it is possible to be housed at a volunteer’s home.  Many festivals are happy to connect filmmakers with people who wish to open their homes.  But please come prepared:  bring your own toiletries, phone chargers, and if you require specialty foods, groceries.  It is recommended that you also bring a small gift – a copy of your film on DVD wrapped with a few boxes of theater candy is always nice – and affordable.

Before you arrive, contact the housing host to go over house rules and transportation options.  If you think the match will not work, contact the festival office.  Just remember – the hosts have opened their home to you, so behave and act like you are at your new girlfriend’s parent’s place for the weekend.

Film festivals are a great place to screen your film and build audiences.  But do not rely on the festival staff to do the work for you.  Festival marketing people can only push a handful of films to the local media outlets.  Therefore, it is your responsibility to make it happen.  Show up a day early (if possible), pass out cards and fliers all over town, attend other screenings (especially of similar films), and build the buzz.  Even better than postcards is a gimmick gift:  trinkets and tchotchkes with your film’s title, and if possible, screening times and location. Years ago, I remember a small film about sex, and the producer handed out hundreds of condoms with the film’s info on the wrapper.  Needless to say, they were snatched up quickly – and the theater was filled to capacity – even for it’s midnight time slot!

End credits are the bugaboo of many film festivals. Excessive credits cause audiences to sit in the dark, where they often lose patience and begin to stir. Stirring patrons are disruptive to other theatergoers, and the cycle of inconvenience begins.

I know there are many people to thank: from the (usually unpaid) director and writer through to the uncle who gave you $10 so he wouldn’t have to hear you beg for more cash. But 2:00 of credits is to long for a short film that will probably be programmed with at least 6 others in a screening.

Hence the “Rule of Brevity:” If your film is under 10:00, then credits should be no longer than :40.  From 10:00 to 20:00, you can get away with 1:10 tops. Over 20:00, thank people up to 1:30. That’s it.

As one filmmaker told me, when I suggested he cut his 4:00 of credits in order to be programmed into a festival, “Sure, the people who I needed to thank have already seen their name on screen.”  Alternatively, I know of many films which have been rejected from festivals for lengthy credits — when the director refused to speed them up or cut them down.

Just remember, credits are necessary, but not what the audience paid to see.

…with a broken DVD.  Too many discs arrive at festivals in tatters because they were not packaged well to begin with.  Place your DVD in a standard Amaray-style case (regular thickness or the slimmer models are fine). No fancy artwork? No worries — the film is the thing.  Place the DVD along with your application confirmation (the page from WithoutABox.com with the WAB number ann mailing address — or similar documentation) in a bubble-padded envelope (size #0 is a good fit and is available at all major office supply stores.)  Clearly label the DVD with your WAB number or confirmation number in case the paperwork and disc become separated.  Also, make sure the confirmation number is on the padded envelope.  Write the mailing address clearly and stick on the correct amount of postage (there is no worse first impression than a package arriving that requires me to pay another 40 cents because you didn’t.

Standard CD cases, paper envelopes, cardboard wraps and other packaging will not make it through the mail reliably. Period. A disc that arrives well protected and in the proper envelope means you are serious and professional about your film.

Read the rules.

Every festival has a complete set of rules of competition and a participation agreement on their web site or their online submission engine. 99% of what you need to know is all there — from how to prepare your DVD to how and where to mail your film, to judging criteria and limite distribution (online or physical.)  If you do not understand what you are agreeing to, then call or email and find out — the agreement is a legal contract, and you are bound to it.  If there are no rules posted, be wary of the professionalism of the festival, and follow up with a request for the agreement. This is for your protection.