IMPORTANT DATES (2020)
April 26: Early bird deadline - *** FREE ENTRY ***
May 31: Regular deadline - $15 entry fee
June 22: Late deadline - $20 entry fee
July 27: Filmmaker notification of acceptance
August 22: Exhibition copies must be in the office
September 16-20: Festival Dates
ELIGIBILITY REGULATIONS
Completion Date: No restriction.
Prior Screenings: No restriction.
Exhibition Formats: If your film is accepted, your final exhibition copy must be digital; MP4 or ProRes format ONLY. Delivery via FilmFreeway or cloud service (for example: Vimeo, Dropbox, etc.) is preferred. If we have not received your exhibition copy by the August 22 deadline, a screening copy will be used.
Language: Foreign language films MUST include burned-in English subtitles.
Copyrighted Material: It is the responsibility of the filmmaker to secure prior authorization for any copyrighted material that may be used in the film.
Screenings: All accepted films may be screened more than once, and are scheduled at the discretion of the Soo Film Festival staff.
ENTRY REGULATIONS
Deadline: You must submit your film online through FilmFreeway.com.
Notification: Films selected for screening will be notified by email around July 27, 2020.
CATEGORIES
You may enter your film in one category only.
If the Festival determines that work has been entered in the wrong category, it will be reassigned and the entrant notified.
In all categories, preference will be given to films that are connected to the Great Lakes in some way. Examples: film personnel (director, actors, writers, musicians, etc.) are from the Great Lakes area, or the film is shot on location in the Great Lakes area, or the film is about the Great Lakes area. The Great Lakes area includes the states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin; and the province of Ontario.
The categories are:
-- Narrative Feature - Narrative works of fiction that are 40 minutes or longer.
-- Narrative Short - Fiction films that are shorter than 40 minutes.
-- Documentary Feature - Non-fiction films that are between 40 and 90 minutes long. If your documentary is longer than 90 minutes, please consider submitting a shortened version in the appropriate category.
-- Documentary Short - Non-fiction films that are shorter than 40 minutes.
-- Animation - Films shorter than 40 minutes, animated by any means
-- Music video – Music videos shorter than 15 minutes.
REQUIRED ENTRY MATERIALS
1. Completed submission through FilmFreeway.
2. A short summary of your film (25-35 words). Additional press and publicity materials are appreciated but not required.
3. A description of the connection for your film to the Great Lakes, if any.
Please note: Because we give preference to films that are connected to the Great Lakes in some way, it is very important that your entry describe the connection. In FilmFreeway this is accomplished by your entry in a custom field.
AWARDS
Audience Awards: Best in Category (depending on submissions).
AGREEMENT
By signing and submitting this form or by submitting your film through FilmFreeway.com, you are stating that you have read, understood, and agree to the following:
1) Soo Film Festival, Inc. (SFF) reserves the right to include selected films in any category deemed appropriate. Not all films will be selected for screenings during the 2020 Soo Film Festival (the Festival), but all submitted films will be considered. All Submitters will be notified on or about July 27, 2020 of the status of their submission/s. SFF reserves the right to program selected films as many times during the Festival as it sees fit, at whatever venue it sees fit.
2) If a film is selected for screening, the Submitter guarantees that he/she/they are the sole and rightful owner/s of the submission and that it does not violate or infringe on any trademark, trade name, copyright, literary, dramatic, musical, artistic or other intellectual property or personal right. If a film is selected, the submitter agrees that they will be solely responsible for the delivery of their film to the SFF Festival Office no later than August 22, 2020. All physical media must be marked with the name of the film and filmmaker.
3) All participants acknowledge that the Festival is a public event that is open to the media. As such, all participants are subject to media coverage and scrutiny and may have their likenesses published in print, electronically, or via broadcast of any kind. SFF is not now, nor will it be in the future, responsible or liable for such media coverage or actions of the press or other publicity agents during any events or functions associated with the Festival.
4) Once a submission has been made, and the entry fee, if applicable, has been paid, there are no refunds. ALL submission materials become the property of SFF and will not be returned.