Sidewalk Film Festival

Birmingham, Alabama, United States, North America

24 - 30 Aug, 2020

Sidewalk Film Festival logo
Sidewalk Film Festival

Birmingham, Alabama, United States, North America

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About the festival

Established in 1999 as the flagship program of the Sidewalk Film Center + Cinema, Sidewalk Film Festival has perfected its own personal trifecta of quality film programming, filmmaker networking, and pure fun. Repeatedly recognized by MovieMaker Magazine as one of the Top 25 Festivals in the World and by TIME Magazine as one of the Top 10 Festivals for the Rest of Us, Sidewalk annually brings over 350 films to The Magic City. Low-priced passes, a concentrated footprint, and Southern Hospitality encourage filmmakers and attendees alike to connect during the festival week.

Sidewalk actively strives to bring a variety of film to its audience. To that end, we are pleased to highlight civil and social issues in our Life & Liberty track, diversity-related topics and black filmmakers in our Black Lens track, LGBTQ filmmakers and content with our SHOUT track, and family-friendly programming with our Family Festival track. As an Alabama festival in a city with multiple universities, we also spotlight our Alabama filmmakers and our student filmmakers.

Sidewalk is also pleased to announce the return of our Sidewrite Competition for 2020. With categories for feature length screenplays, short screenplays, and Alabama screenplays, Sidewalk is looking for innovative and exciting scripts to recognize. In addition to cash prizes, winners are offered table read opportunities during the festival weekend and are able to apply for travel assistance to attend. Winning scripts are announced approximately one month prior to the festival event date. Sidewalk also offers a screenplay category that provides feedback on any submitted screenplay. Please use the Screenplay + Feedback category for this option.

Praise for Sidewalk:

MovieMaker Magazine: "Top 50 Festivals Worth the Entry Fee" (2017, 2016)
The Washington Post: "Summer Preview" film festival (2015)
MovieMaker magazine: “The 25 Coolest Film Festivals in the World” (2015, 2014)
USA TODAY: "One of the Top 10 Places for a Fabulous Film Festival” (2013)
TIME Magazine: "Top 10 Festivals for the Rest of Us" (2006)

JURY AND PROGRAMMER'S AWARDS
Jambor-Franklin Founders Award for Best Narrative Feature $1,000
Best Documentary Feature $1,000
Best Narrative Short $500
Best Documentary Short $500
Best Animated Short $250
Kathryn Tucker Windham Storytelling Award (Shorts) $250
Best Student Film $250
Best Family Film $250
Alan Hunter Best Alabama Film $500
Best SHOUT Feature $500
Best SHOUT Short $250
Feature Programmers' Award $500
Short Programmers' Award $250
Best Life & Liberty Film $250
Best Black Lens Film $250

AUDIENCE AWARDS
Best Narrative Feature $250
Best Documentary Feature $250
Best Narrative Short $150
Best Documentary Short $150
Best Shout Film (Feature or Short) $250
Best Alabama Film (Feature or Short) $250
Best Black Lens Film $250

SCREENPLAY AWARDS
Best Feature Screenplay $500
Best Short Screenplay $250
Best Alabama Screenplay $250

*The jury, at their discretion, may choose to award a special jury prize, honorable mention, etc. These prizes/mentions DO NOT include either a cash award, a physical award (trophy, plaque, etc), or prizewinner's laurels.

About

Established in 1999 as the flagship program of the Sidewalk Film Center + Cinema, Sidewalk Film Festival has perfected its own personal trifecta of quality film programming, filmmaker networking, and pure fun. Repeatedly recognized by MovieMaker Magazine as one of the Top 25 Festivals in the World and by TIME Magazine as one of the Top 10 Festivals for the Rest of Us, Sidewalk annually brings over 350 films to The Magic City. Low-priced passes, a concentrated footprint, and Southern Hospitality encourage filmmakers and attendees alike to connect during the festival week.

Sidewalk actively strives to bring a variety of film to its audience. To that end, we are pleased to highlight civil and social issues in our Life & Liberty track, diversity-related topics and black filmmakers in our Black Lens track, LGBTQ filmmakers and content with our SHOUT track, and family-friendly programming with our Family Festival track. As an Alabama festival in a city with multiple universities, we also spotlight our Alabama filmmakers and our student filmmakers.

Sidewalk is also pleased to announce the return of our Sidewrite Competition for 2020. With categories for feature length screenplays, short screenplays, and Alabama screenplays, Sidewalk is looking for innovative and exciting scripts to recognize. In addition to cash prizes, winners are offered table read opportunities during the festival weekend and are able to apply for travel assistance to attend. Winning scripts are announced approximately one month prior to the festival event date. Sidewalk also offers a screenplay category that provides feedback on any submitted screenplay. Please use the Screenplay + Feedback category for this option.

Praise for Sidewalk:

MovieMaker Magazine: "Top 50 Festivals Worth the Entry Fee" (2017, 2016)
The Washington Post: "Summer Preview" film festival (2015)
MovieMaker magazine: “The 25 Coolest Film Festivals in the World” (2015, 2014)
USA TODAY: "One of the Top 10 Places for a Fabulous Film Festival” (2013)
TIME Magazine: "Top 10 Festivals for the Rest of Us" (2006)

JURY AND PROGRAMMER'S AWARDS
Jambor-Franklin Founders Award for Best Narrative Feature $1,000
Best Documentary Feature $1,000
Best Narrative Short $500
Best Documentary Short $500
Best Animated Short $250
Kathryn Tucker Windham Storytelling Award (Shorts) $250
Best Student Film $250
Best Family Film $250
Alan Hunter Best Alabama Film $500
Best SHOUT Feature $500
Best SHOUT Short $250
Feature Programmers' Award $500
Short Programmers' Award $250
Best Life & Liberty Film $250
Best Black Lens Film $250

AUDIENCE AWARDS
Best Narrative Feature $250
Best Documentary Feature $250
Best Narrative Short $150
Best Documentary Short $150
Best Shout Film (Feature or Short) $250
Best Alabama Film (Feature or Short) $250
Best Black Lens Film $250

SCREENPLAY AWARDS
Best Feature Screenplay $500
Best Short Screenplay $250
Best Alabama Screenplay $250

*The jury, at their discretion, may choose to award a special jury prize, honorable mention, etc. These prizes/mentions DO NOT include either a cash award, a physical award (trophy, plaque, etc), or prizewinner's laurels.

Awards & Winners

There are no winners yet for this festival

Terms and rules

ELIGIBILITY
Entrants warrant that they have the legal right to submit the work to Sidewalk, that all statements made in this application are true and accurate, and that all necessary rights and clearances have been secured to screen the work at the festival. Due to potential copyright issues, Sidewalk will be unable to consider fan fiction/fan films without express written permission from the primary copyright holder. Sidewalk reserves the right to determine the final eligibility of any work submitted. Eligible works must have been completed after January 1, 2019.

Exhibiting films publicly in the Greater Birmingham Metropolitan Area prior to or within one week after the 2020 festival dates will prevent your film from competing in the 2020 Sidewalk Film Festival and may prevent the film from being accepted to the Festival. This includes projects available on the web. Work accepted to screen at the Festival will be categorized in competitive and non-competitive categories at the sole discretion of Sidewalk. If your submission will be available through a video on demand (VOD) or pay-per-view (PPV) service of any kind, on or before August 24, 2020, please indicate such when entering. The availability of your film prior to August 24, 2020, through such a service will make the film ineligible for competition and may or may not, prevent the film from being programmed. Availability through such a service will be considered during the programming process and may impact programming decisions. However, decisions regarding programming films that have been screened elsewhere and/or are available through a video on demand service, pay-per-view service and/or any other service, venue, channel, theater or otherwise are solely up to the Sidewalk Film Festival staff.

EXHIBITION AGREEMENT & PRINT TRAFFIC
Submission to the Sidewalk Film Festival ("Sidewalk") constitutes an agreement with all festival terms and conditions, and permission to exhibit the work during the festival if selected. Sidewalk DOES NOT provide screening fees to submitted films.

If a film is accepted, entrant agrees to ship exhibition materials to the festival at their own expense, to arrive at the Sidewalk office by August 6, 2020. Sidewalk can only provide return shipping via ground delivery within the continental United States. Although every possible care will be taken with exhibition material in our possession, neither Sidewalk nor the Sidewalk Film Center and Cinema, Inc. accepts responsibility for loss or damage. Entry fees are non-refundable.

DEFINITIONS & DISCOUNTS
Below are available discount codes. Only one discount may be used. Use only an applicable discount. If you misuse these codes, you will be automatically disqualified without refund.

Questions regarding discount codes and other waiver requests should be directed to Rachel Morgan at rachel@sidewalkfest.com.

SWALUMNI20: 50% off submission fee for returning Sidewalk Alumni. A Sidewalk Alumni includes an Above The Line filmmaker (Director, Writer, Producer, Editor, Actor in a starring role) who has screened their film at the Sidewalk Film Festival in a previous year (1999-2018).

ALABAMA20: $5 discount for Alabama-produced films or screenplays. Alabama Productions include films that have been fully or partially filmed in Alabama and/or fully or partially produced in the state of Alabama. Partial Alabama productions must include at least 1 scene filmed in Alabama and/or at least 20% of the total budget spent in the state of Alabama. Alternatively a film that has the participation of at least 1 above the line filmmaker (Director, Writer, Producer, Editor, Actor in a starring role) that currently lives in the State of Alabama and/or is an Alabama native can be considered an Alabama film. Alabama scripts include screenplays where a credited screenwriter that currently lives in the State of Alabama and/or is an Alabama native.

Ratings & Reviews

Categories and fees

Narrative Feature
Early Bird (1st December, 2019) $40
Regular (2nd February, 2020) $45
Late (16th March, 2020) $55

A feature length (45 minutes or longer) narrative (fiction) film. Please see Rules & Terms for available discounts.

Narrative Short
Early Bird (1st December, 2019) $30
Regular (2nd February, 2020) $35
Late (16th March, 2020) $40

A narrative film that has a run time of less than 45 min. Please see Rules & Terms for available discounts.

Documentary Feature
Early Bird (1st December, 2019) $40
Regular (2nd February, 2020) $45
Late (16th March, 2020) $55

Feature length (45 minutes or longer) non-fiction film. Please see Rules & Terms for available discounts.

Documentary Short
Early Bird (1st December, 2019) $30
Regular (2nd February, 2020) $35
Late (16th March, 2020) $40

Short (less than 45 min) non-fiction film. Please see Rules & Terms for available discounts.

Animated Short
Early Bird (1st December, 2019) $30
Regular (2nd February, 2020) $35
Late (16th March, 2020) $40

A short film (less than 45 min) that, by majority, features animation. Please see Rules & Terms for available discounts.

Shout LGBTQ Feature
Early Bird (1st December, 2019) $40
Regular (2nd February, 2020) $45
Late (16th March, 2020) $55

A feature length project (45 minutes or longer) that has subject matter that is specifically of interest to the LGBTQ community and/or includes above the line filmmakers that are members of the LGBTQ community. Documentary, narrative and animated projects are accepted, as are all cinematic genres. Please see Rules & Terms for available discounts.

Shout LGBTQ Short
Early Bird (1st December, 2019) $30
Regular (2nd February, 2020) $35
Late (16th March, 2020) $40

A short length (less than 45 min) that has subject matter that is specifically of interest to the LGBTQ community and/or includes above the line filmmakers that are members of the LGBTQ community. Documentary, narrative and animated projects are accepted, as are all cinematic genres. Please see Rules & Terms for available discounts.

Music Video
Early Bird (1st December, 2019) $20
Regular (2nd February, 2020) $20
Late (16th March, 2020) $20

Traditional and experimental music videos will be considered. Total run time must be 10 minutes or less. Please see Rules & Terms for available discounts.

Episodic Content
Early Bird (1st December, 2019) $30
Regular (2nd February, 2020) $35
Late (16th March, 2020) $40

Content created in episodic form, including television programming, digital series, webisodes/web series, Internet programming, transmedia projects and beyond. If your project is meant to be viewed in episodes and/or transcends the traditional structure of the feature, short film or music video form, this category is for you. Content equaling less than 45 min is accepted for consideration in the Episodic category. Submit premiere episode of a season ONLY. Programmers may request additional episodes at their discretion. Please see Rules & Terms for available discounts.

Teen Filmmaker
Early Bird (1st December, 2019) $20
Regular (2nd February, 2020) $20
Late (16th March, 2020) $20

The Teen Filmmaker Category is open to all teenage filmmakers (ages 13-19). Films submitted in this category must be 45 minutes or less in length and will only be judged against the other teen submissions. The Sidewalk Youth Board plays a major role in the screening process for this category.

Family Film Festival
Early Bird (1st December, 2019) $30
Regular (2nd February, 2020) $35
Late (16th March, 2020) $40

This category is for content created or appropriate for children of all ages. Features and shorts will both be considered. Please see Rules & Terms for available discounts.

Feature Screenplay
Early Bird (1st December, 2019) $30
Regular (2nd February, 2020) $30
Late (16th March, 2020) $40

Feature film screenplays of 21-120 pages. English language only. No pilots or episodic content, please. Do not include any identifying information (such as name, address, email, etc.) on your cover page. Identifying information will be removed from submissions before transferring scripts to our reviewers. WGA registration numbers and copyrights on cover pages are acceptable. If your name is included in the copyright, a duplicate of the script will be created and your name will be removed from the copyright before transferring it to our reviewers. Please include the script title in the file name of your uploaded script and on the cover page.

Feature Screenplay + Feedback
Early Bird (1st December, 2019) $40
Regular (2nd February, 2020) $40
Late (16th March, 2020) $50

This category both submits your screenplay for consideration and allows for feedback to be provided to you. Writers who apply for feedback will be allowed to resubmit their screenplay by the final deadline or submit next year for free. We cannot guarantee that writers will receive their feedback before the submission process ends. Feature film screenplays of 21-120 pages. English language only. No pilots or episodic content, please. Do not include any identifying information (such as name, address, email, etc.) on your cover page. Identifying information will be removed from submissions before transferring scripts to our reviewers. WGA registration numbers and copyrights on cover pages are acceptable. If your name is included in the copyright, a duplicate of the script will be created and your name will be removed from the copyright before transferring it to our reviewers. Please include the script title in the file name of your uploaded script and on the cover page.

Short Screenplay
Early Bird (1st December, 2019) $20
Regular (2nd February, 2020) $20
Late (16th March, 2020) $30

Short film screenplays of 20 pages or fewer. English language only. No pilots or episodic content, please. Do not include any identifying information (such as name, address, email, etc.) on your cover page. Identifying information will be removed from submissions before transferring scripts to our reviewers. WGA registration numbers and copyrights on cover pages are acceptable. If your name is included in the copyright, a duplicate of the script will be created and your name will be removed from the copyright before transferring it to our reviewers. Please include the script title in the file name of your uploaded script and on the cover page.

Short Screenplay + Feedback
Early Bird (1st December, 2019) $30
Regular (2nd February, 2020) $30
Late (16th March, 2020) $40

This category both submits your screenplay for consideration and allows for feedback to be provided to you. Writers who apply for feedback will be allowed to resubmit their screenplay by the final deadline or submit next year for free. We cannot guarantee that writers will receive their feedback before the submission process ends. Short film screenplays of 20 pages or less. English language only. No pilots or episodic content, please. Do not include any identifying information (such as name, address, email, etc.) on your cover page. Identifying information will be removed from submissions before transferring scripts to our reviewers. WGA registration numbers and copyrights on cover pages are acceptable. If your name is included in the copyright, a duplicate of the script will be created and your name will be removed from the copyright before transferring it to our reviewers. Please include the script title in the file name of your uploaded script and on the cover page.

VR/360 Video Content
Early Bird (1st December, 2019) $15
Regular (2nd February, 2020) $20
Late (16th March, 2020) $20

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