Film entry: submission materials

Submissions for IFFR 2024 are open from mid-May 2023. The deadline depends on the type of project you intend to submit. Find more information here.

You can find the terms and conditions for participating in the upcoming edition of IFFR here. Please read the terms and conditions thoroughly to make sure that the film meets the eligibility criteria that we require for submission.

Due to the high volume of entries and the limited time available, it is not possible to submit entries after the deadline. Please keep in mind that in order for your submission to be considered, you must complete the payment process. Any submission that lacks a completed payment will be considered incomplete and will not be reviewed.

Yes, it is possible to submit unfinished films. As stated in the terms and conditions, all selected films must provide IFFR with a finished screening copy four weeks prior to the start of the festival. You can submit the preview copy to a streaming platform (i.e. Vimeo) and make sure to mark that it is a work-in-progress version. Once the updated screening copy is ready to be shared, please notify the Programme Operations team via email in a timely manner. Due to the high volume of work, we cannot guarantee that the updated/ final version will be reviewed by our programmers if they have already watched the unfinished version.

Yes, there are two different forms: one for short films (up to 63 minutes) and another for feature films (from 64 minutes). As soon as the submissions are opened, you will see the different entry forms in your personal account under Submissions. 

As part of our commitment to fairness and impartiality in the selection process, we are obliged to watch all submissions that meet our eligibility criteria. As stated in Vimeo’s Analytics FAQ, Vimeo's statistics are not always accurate, and it has come to our attention that they may not record views if films are not watched through their direct link in a web browser. IFFR watches the vast majority of submitted screeners through a secured database, not through the direct link in a web browser.

If your film is selected for our upcoming edition, you will receive an official invitation from the Programme Operations team. If our programmers decide not to select your film, we will update you as soon as possible, by the end of December at the very latest.

Yes, you can upload your preview copy to a streaming platform, for example Vimeo. You can add the link and password to the online entry form. The password should be valid until January.

Although exceptions can be made, the festival does not accept any DCPs for preview purposes. Should the festival accept the request for a DCP screening, the costs for previewing will be borne by the submitter. Please contact our programme department for further details. 

The deadline for all screening copies of selected films is 10 January 2024. For testing purposes and proper preparation for a successful screening of the film, all copies should be delivered in time. 

For more information, please refer to our Terms and Conditions.

A director’s statement is normally a brief statement by the director about the intention of the film and the inspiration/motivation to make it. This document is usually half a page long. 

We online process entries submitted via our online entry form. Kindly submit your film via this form before the submission deadline and you will receive a confirmation email once your submission has been processed.

You will receive a confirmation of your submission once we have processed it. We receive a much higher volume of submissions than we can process on a daily basis. This is why it may take up to 4 weeks for you to receive a confirmation. Thank you for your understanding.