Whether you have a short film, documentary, or narrative feature, to successfully debut onto the festival circuit, you must have a strategy. First, this involves selecting festivals that are the best fit for your type of movie. Consider festivals that may be more friendly to a particular genre—whether it be animation, comedy, family, gay and lesbian, documentary, experimental, ethnocentric, music, political or social-issue based, or short film. Or you might consider the type of festival that continues to see tremendous growth in popularity: those championing sci-fi, fantasy, and horror. Sometimes it’s better to be the toast of a smaller festival than be overlooked at a larger festival.
WHEN IN CANNES …
Bring formal wear. An evening gown or tuxedo is actually required to attend the premieres. In fact, not only does everyone walking on the red carpet go through a security check, but there is a fashion check as well. If you’re wearing something a little off, you can be sure that your wild bow tie will be replaced with a more formal one. For men, the dress is formal and conservative, so don’t forget to pack a tux or you won’t get in even if you have a ticket.
When it comes to choosing where to submit your film, I recommend you begin by targeting the top-tier festivals, starting with Sundance. (Detailed listings can be found on the online database at www.UltimateFilmFest.com). “A-list” festivals like Sundance, Toronto, Cannes, and SXSW are also backdoor markets for indie films, regularly attended by acquisitions executives. Next, you must strategize a fallback plan in case you do not get into an A-list festival. There are just not enough screenings slots at Sundance, as they only program about 200 films in total. Research and narrow down a list of festivals for your Plan B—these are the ones you will submit to simultaneously should your Plan A fall through. These might include strong regional festivals like AFI Fest (both L.A. and Dallas), Atlanta, Austin, Chicago, CineVegas, Denver, Florida, LAFF, Phoenix, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Sidewalk, Wisconsin, Woodstock, or those genre-based festivals more suited to your particular film. These are all festivals that will result in amazing experiences and opportunities for awards, networking, and fun, but when it comes to getting a distribution deal, statistically speaking, the top tier have had more filmmakers walk away with distribution than all the other festivals combined. These second-tier fests are also perfect for building buzz and an audience. And, if the right person happens to be there, this can even lead to a deal.
Formal wear is required at premieres at Cannes.
Apply to at least twenty of these festivals, and plan your submission schedule around an annual calendar, mapping out the festivals you will play over the course of a year or so. If you are waiting to learn if you’ve been accepted into that top-tier festival before accepting an offer to premiere at a festival from your Plan B, don’t stress it. As long as you communicate honestly about your dilemma, that smaller festival will keep the film in mind next year once you’ve made the rounds.
Then—and this is optional—take some chances. Apply to a few out-of-the-way festivals for what might turn out to be a much-deserved vacation. In particular, foreign festivals can be a blast. You may end up with a free trip to Spain for your film’s European debut, all because you took a chance and submitted.
HOW TO ATTEND ANY FESTIVAL FOR FREE
One of the best ways to get into a festival for free is to volunteer. All the major festivals have volunteer programs, and while there’s no pay, there’s a ton of free swag to be had. Not to mention getting to see free movies (on your off time, of course), and most festivals even set up special volunteer-only screenings for their showcase films. So if you are thinking of entering a festival down the road, consider volunteering first to establish that personal relationship.
All told, your plan should include applying to about forty festivals. It’s better to focus on lobbying this focused group that you researched and selected first than to apply aimlessly. Sure, you could apply to hundreds, but you would be wasting a lot of money and valuable time. And remember, lobbying the festival staff (politely, correctly, in a way that gets their attention and does not annoy) is also time better spent than applying randomly. Work smarter, not harder. Once your film is playing the circuit, and receiving accolades, you will be invited to festivals you’ve never heard of and never submitted to. Festival programmers often talk and share information about what films played well to audiences or what filmmakers were appreciative and easygoing. Once the festival program guide is available online for all to see, that will help to spread awareness of your film. In addition, awards and positive reviews will also help gain attention for further festival invites. Some invitations will be very direct, and others will simply imply that if you send in your DVD, it will most likely be accepted, and in this case, the application fee is often waived.