Film Festival HandbookWords by Brenda Mills

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Making a movie is art. Getting it seen is marketing. This handbook is about marketing. More specifically, it’s about positioning your film (and yourself) in the brains of your target audience. As you work on your DVD art, synopses, bio, all of the elements in your festival package, keep in mind your target audience (which could be festival programmers, movie-goers, other filmmakers...) and think about how you want them to think about you and your film.

Why Go To Festivals?

There are three reasons to enter your film into festivals while you're in film

school:

1. To meet people and forge new relationships

This is the best reason to enter a festival - because you plan to attend the festival and meet people and extend your professional network past FSU. You canalso begin building relationships with festival directors and programmers, who will then champion your work later, when it really counts.

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2. To get practice and learn the ropes for later

There's an argument to be made for learning how to navigate the festival world now, while the stakes are still low, especially if you plan to be an independent filmmaker. Think of this as your batting cage.

3. To win awards and get attention

Your chances of winning awards that really catapult you into the limelight are very small. You'll be competing with seasoned filmmakers. You never know when you might make a film that captures the hearts of audiences and makes people

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remember your name, but at this stage in your career, your chances are similar to your chances with the lottery. Competition is fierce, there's a lot of noise competing for everyone's attention, and you're still learning how to tell a compelling story. Ease up on yourself. There's time for pressure later.

What You’ll Need

Here's what you'll need to have ready before you start entering any festivals:

1. A clear chain of title, signified by Tony’s initials on your production book

2. Festival materials:

a. DVD package (use key art templates)

i. DVD master (Ian can help) (fancy menu not needed - festival

programmers prefer autoplay)

ii. Wrap artwork (give to Brenda as psd file)

iii. Disc top artwork (give to Brenda as psd file)

b. Poster (use key art template)

c. Press kit (use template – can be simple)

i. Stills (not behind scenes)

1. At least 3

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2. Must be 300dpi, tiff or jpg

ii. Director’s bio and headshot

iii. Synopses – 25, 50, 75

d. A 30-second Quicktime trailer (I don't enforce this but I should)

3. A launch strategy

a. Set up Withoutabox account and project

i. Answer all questions, using WAB cheat sheet

ii. Create “film promotion kit,” and activate

b. Festival Plan (use Launch Strategy Planning Document form)

Festival Materials

In order to get attention for your film (and you) you’ll want to create

materials that communicate what your film is about, and create a desire to watch

that film in the minds of your audience. In this case, your audience tends to be

festival programmers, but it can also be festival-goers, who are looking at your

still and synopsis in a program, or seeing your poster. It can also be people looking

to be entertained online.

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There are two elements to your festival materials: Verbal and visual

You want all of your verbal and visual elements to work together to communicate

the same message.

Verbal Elements

The verbal elements in your festival materials are the synopses, your bio,

and maybe your director statement if you add one to your press kit. The verbal

elements have two jobs, and they must do both.

Housework

They have to give information. What kind of movie is this? Is this the kind of movie I’m looking for?

Magic

Good verbal elements will also conjure feelings. You want to make someone want to see your movie because you’ve made them feel something in the synopsis that they look to the film for more of.

Visual Elements – Key Art

Your poster, DVD wrap and DVD top (and stills) should all work together to deliver the same message about your film. Start with your poster and create an image that is:

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• Visually arresting

• True to the genre and tone of your film

• Organized around a single message

• Images, fonts and tagline all support each other

Poster

The standard dimensions for a Hollywood poster are 27” x

40”.

There should be a standard credit block at the bottom of your

poster. The template provided here includes that credit block,

which is usually in the SteelTongs font, and the little bugs and

widgets that are usually included on our posters.

In order to be printed at 27" x 40" and look good, the poster file has to be set up

at that size to begin with, and set at 300dpi.

DVD Wrap

There is no standard term for the piece of paper that is inserted between clear plastic and the DVD box. It may be called the insert, wrap, cover, case, box, or sleeve, among other terms.

Generally, the front of the box is the poster, but without the credit block, which goes on the back of the box. The back of the box has a synopsis, usually a 50-word synopsis for a short film. It may also have a small handful of stills, the credit block, and some information about the copyright date, running time and movie genre.

The template provides the standard components.

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DVD Label

The DVD, or label, or top must have certain information. Almost universally, programmers require that it convey:

Film title Running time Director’s name and contact info (phone or email) (we tend to put my

contact info, because it's more stable than yours)

We also add:

Film School logo Copyright info (the official copyright holder of our films is Florida State

University) Usually some bugs about format, sound

Press Kit

Some festivals require a press kit. A press kit is a sort of cheat sheet for the press, to help them keep everything straight when they're writing articles about or reviews of films. Festivals want press kits for that purpose, or for their own use in

creating programs or press releases.

A press kit can be as simple as a cover sheet, couple of synopses, a couple of stills, a list of credits and a headshot and bio or two. They can also be small works of art, like the Kirksdale press kit attached here.

Also attached is a simple template, showing you what goes where. Note, the cover sheet is important. It gives information about who owns the film, whom to

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contact, and technical specs.

The preferred elements in a press kit, and their general order are:

Cover sheet Synopses (25, 50 and 75 are good for a short film) Director statement (optional) Crew bios (short bio and headshot for each of the ATL crew) Cast bios (short bio and headshot for the lead actors) Credits (as a list is preferable to screenshots of the credits from your film) Production stills (not behind-the-scenes shots) Behind the scenes shots (optional, and really only called for if you've got

something interesting to show behind the scenes)

And finally a press kit template.

Now festivals!

Once you have your materials prepared, you're ready to create a Withoutabox project, do some research, and come up with a festival strategy for your film.

Here is a list of Film School pre-approved festivals, to give you some ideas of what’s out there and what you may want to enter...

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Dean’s List of Approved Film Festivals

National/International FestivalsAMC Theatres Kansas CityAmerican Pavilion at Cannes Atlanta Dances with FilmsIndie MemphisLake Arrowhead Nashville New OrleansNewport BeachPhoenixRhode Island Rochester (Movies on a Shoestring)SedonaSidewalkStony Brook Visionfest

Student FestivalsBrouhaha Starz Denver Munich Int’l Festival of Film SchoolsNational Film Festival for Talented Youth (NFFTY)Palm Beach Student ShowcaseTel Aviv International Student Film FestivalIvy Film FestivalHumboldt Film Festival

Florida Festivals

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Central Florida Florida/Brouhaha Fort Lauderdale GasparillaIndependents JacksonvilleSarasotaTreasure CoastFort Meyers Beach

Shorts FestivalsChicago Reel Shorts DC ShortsHollyShortsLove Your Shorts Atlanta Shorts15 Minutes of Fame NBC Short CutsNYC ShortsDam Short Film Festival Independent Film Quarterly

ContestsASCSprite DGA KodakPlus Camerimage (Poland)Student EmmysStudent Oscars

Redemptive/Feel Good FestivalsAngelus Student Film Festival Heartland Film Festival Feel Good Film FestivalMoondance

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Black Film FestivalsHollywood Black Film Festival San Diego Black Film Festival Texas Black Film Festival Bronze Lens Women of African Descent Film Festival

Asian American Film FestivalsSan Diego Asian Film Festival DC Asian Pacific American Film Festival Asian American International Film FestivalLos Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival

Hispanic American Film FestivalsChicago Latino Film FestivalSan Diego Latino Film FestivalMiami International Film Festival

Children’s Film FestivalsInternational Family Film FestivalLos Angeles Int’l Children’s Film FestivalChicago Int’l Children’s Film Festival San Diego Children’s Film FestivalSan Francisco Bay Area Int’l Children’s Film Fest

Underground FestivalsBoston Underground Film Festival Northside DIY Film FestivalAtlanta Underground Film FestivalSan Francisco Frozen Film FestivalArizona Underground Film Festival

Horror, Sci-Fi & Fantasy Film FestivalsAtlanta Horror Film FestivalNew Orleans Horror Film Festival

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Screamfest Eerie Film FestivalSacramento Horror Film FestivalThriller! Chiller! Film Festival Terror Film Festival Spooky MovieRhode Island Int’l Horror Film Festival Dead by DawnShockerfest

Cons/GeekFestivus Dragon*ConComicConPhoenix ComiconGeek Film Festival

Women’s Film FestivalsLa Femme Through Women’s EyesPalm Beach Women’s Int’l Film FestivalWomen’s Int’l Film & Arts Film FestivalLos Angeles Women’s Int’l Film FestivalBleedfestBroad Humor Film Festival

Comedy Film FestivalsChicago Comedy Film Festival Las Vegas Comedy FestMockfest

GLBT Film FestivalsAustin Gay & Lesbian Film FestivalSeattle Lesbian & Gay Film Festival Tampa Int’l Gay & Lesbian Film Festival Out in the Desert Desperado Gay & Lesbian film Festival

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Out on Film

Jewish Film FestivalsAtlanta Jewish Film FestivalMiami Jewish Film Festival San Diego Jewish Film FestivalBoston Jewish Film Festival Seattle Jewish Film FestivalJewish Student Film Festival

Sports/AdventureAdventure Film Festival All Sports Los Angeles Film FestivalArnold Sports Film Festival

DocumentaryDoc NYC DocMiami DocUtahHot Springs Documentary Film Festival American Documentary Film Festival