Thinking of Entering a Film Festival? Read This First
By Peter Wright
There are now more film festivals inviting your submissions than ever before. They give filmmakers the prospect of reaching new audiences, awards and recognition, access to the industry and cash prizes. But there are also costs, not only financial but also in terms of time and sometimes exclusivity rights.
To help you evaluate the festival option we interviewed the founder of Festival Formula, Katie McCullough. Festival Formula create bespoke strategies for filmmakers to take their film through the circuit in the most effective way.
Tell us a bit about your background and why you started Festival Formula.
I actually started out in writing and went to Bournemouth University to obtain a useless degree in Scriptwriting for Film & TV (which at that point was the only designated pure scriptwriting degree in the UK). But the upshot was I made loads of close friends but also it started me on the path of what is now Festival Formula. We had to do work experience and because I don’t live in London I didn’t want to pay through the nose to do a free job, so I found somewhere close that I could drive to which was the home of the Blaine Brothers – Ben and Chris. The first thing they did was sit me down and explain that I would never be asked to make the tea, and that I was to be given the company credit card and their back catalogue of short films and my task was to find film festivals to submit them to. What then happened is I poured over rules and regulations because I was spending someone else’s monies so I wanted to know that it was worth it and the film suited. Since then I’ve acquired an encyclopaedic memory of festivals all over the landscape, a large slate of films that we look after, and that was coming up to 16 years ago. One of the main reasons I started the company? Because it was evident that filmmakers needed help and they didn’t have the patience to do it themselves (or the know how).
What do people get out of entering festivals? What is the benefit of doing it?
It’s down to what you expect, managing that expectation, and utilising what does happen. We always tell filmmakers that just because you’ve gotten accepted to a festival it doesn’t mean all doors will suddenly fly open… But if you’ve made your festival choices wisely and they are strong and legit festivals, you can then knock on some doors to show that off and it can help. It’s the same way of looking at an agent, just because you now have one it doesn’t automatically guarantee work – you still have to work at it. The main benefit is showing that you’re creating work, that you’re reaching a wider audience and you’ve proved your idea works. And if you have the time and budget then you can also travel with the film too and that’s an experience.
Should you enter festivals with a submission fee?
Absolutely. No one runs a film festival to make money, that’s the first thing to learn. And if they are making money from a film festival then the chances are that they’re not a legitimate one or they’re scrimping on much needed areas. Festivals have costs that would make filmmakers weep – venue hire, projector hire, location insurance, alcohol permits, transcoding costs, staffing costs, data storage facilities, fuel costs for shuttle buses, advertising, programmes…. And so on. What I would say is be cautious of *how* much you are spending. There are some great festivals out there that are FREE, a few Euros or dollars, then there are some brilliant festivals out there that carry a higher cost. It’s more to do with how much budget you have to begin with as that will dictate how you spend it – if a singular submission fee is going to rinse your budget then think twice.
What are the best festivals for new comedy filmmakers?
Whilst there are some comedy specific festivals out there on the circuit, there aren’t a whole load of them. But what we’re seeing is the appearance of comedy specific categories within a traditional festival, but also those that pick the theme of comedy for their upcoming edition. For comedy specific festivals I would recommend LOCO London Comedy Film Festival (UK) and Just For Laughs Eat My Shorts (Canada) for sure.
Are there timeframes to be aware of and exclusivity / premiere requirements to think about?
After doing this for 15 years there have been so many changes, and one of the major ones is the idea of online versus offline exclusivity. Going back even just 5-7 years there were not a lot of festivals who would consider films eligible for submission if the film was online. Whereas now a lot of festivals don’t mind if it’s online (and some even have separate categories to accommodate for them) but it still isn’t a blanket shrug from festivals. There are still those that do mind (and they mind a lot!) which means that some filmmakers don’t consider that when it comes to launching online as well as heading on to the competitive circuit – they often find out they can’t submit to a festival they really want to till after they’ve launched online and have been ruled out.
Unless you are aiming towards the higher-tiered section of the circuit (like Locarno, Berlinale, Venice, Cannes) then premiere status is less of an issue. If festivals outside of those more industry prolific festivals mention a premiere it’s generally on a smaller scale – Tribeca needs a New York premiere, Edinburgh International needs a Scottish premiere (for a UK production), St. Louis International needs a St. Louis premiere, Indie Memphis needs a Memphis premiere and so on. I would always recommend a filmmaker understand if a festival has a premiere requirement before they submit as sometimes you can waste money by submitting to somewhere that you don’t realise you’re not eligible until you’ve parted with cash. And you’re not going to be able to get that back due to reckless stupidity.
What mistakes do people typically make when entering festivals?
They don’t understand *why* they’re submitting there. And they often aim too high. We are forever telling comedy filmmakers that Berlinale are really not a comedy focused festival… So getting filmmakers to look at the festival in question’s previous line-up goes far. Sometimes filmmakers are doing it out of other filmmakers’ habits. Like Sundance. Everyone, and I mean everyone, wants to submit there, but no one can tell me what screened there last year and why they think their film fits. It’s a weird rites of passage; know why you’re submitting because you are spending your money there. That and not reading rules and regulations; if they don’t accept mockumentaries then they don’t accept mockumentaries, if you submit to a different category because it’s cheaper it doesn’t bode well for you, if you don’t get accepted by the festival DO NOT email them and tell them they are wrong. People in the film festival world talk, and reputation can precede you – whether that’s good or bad is up to you.
Tell us about a great example of a comedy film that has done well on the Festival circuit – what did the creators do well?
We have several clients that have done well, but one that I do always like to reference due to many different factors is HANGOVER FOOD by Ross McGowan from Deadline Films. The film was made for £400 in a flat with a small team and when I watched it, I just found everything about it brilliant from a festival circuit perspective. It was well written, funny, extremely well performed, and just over 10mins. Everything that just sings well on a festival circuit. The way that we look at it is like this – festival programmers are wanting comedy shorts to break up a more serious programme, or just cheer up an audience. So when we have something fall into our lap that fits that bill it’s so much fun to see it travel. And this film did brilliantly. It shows that you don’t need a massive production budget, or fancy equipment or big names – you just need a tight script, strong performances and confidence in the execution. This screened at 14 film festivals including Another Hole In The Head (USA), Hamilton Film Festival (Canada), MONSTERFEST (Australia) and more. It kept picking up awards left, right and centre including Best Foreign Short, Best Dark Comedy and Audience Choice Awards. And those kind of awards mean the most as it’s come from the audience so it’s recognition from pure punters which is what everyone should strive for.
To learn more about Festival Formula visit www.festivalformula.com and for a list of festivals accepting comedy submissions check out our Opportunities Hub.