Film Festivals!

[Patrick Mallek]

I've seen a lot of career advice and such on FrederatorRAW, but very little about film festivals. Don't let the miracle of YouTube discourage you from participating in the communal experience of screening your film for a live audience... and twenty feet high!

So what festivals have you been in? Which ones have you personally attended?

Beyond the obvious value of screening you film with an impartial audience, film festivals can be a great way to get your work noticed by the right people, as well as provide you with endless networking opportunities. If nothing else, the festival parties are usually dynamo!

As a veteran festival animator, and the current Animation Director for the Boulder International Film Festival, I'd be happy to share my experiences from screening at festivals, insider tips on how to get your films in good festivals, how to market yourself while at the festival. And of course, hangover remedies for the morning after.

The most important thing you can do as an animator? Get out there and see some animation!

[Elliot Cowan]

My films have collectively played in 11 festivals over the last year and 2 more by mid November.
Here is the list:

Animanima
Cacak, Serbia
September 2008

Pictoplasma
New York , USA
September 2008

Edinburgh International Film Festival
Edinburgh , Scotland
June 2008

Mudfest
Mudgee , Australia
March 2008

Cortoons - The International Short Film Festival Of Rome
Rome, Italy
March 2008

ANIMA 2008, the 27th edition of the Brussels Animation Films Festival
Brussels , Belgium
February 2008

Future Film Festival
Bologna, Italy
January 2008

Instanbul Animation Festival 2007
Istanbul, Turkey
December 2007

Les Nuits Magiques
Begles, France
December 2007

Interfilm Berlin
Berlin, Germany
November 2007

Balkanima 2007
Belgrade, Serbia / Montenegro
October 2007

Milano Film Festival
Milan, Italy
September 2007

Annecy Animated Film Festival
Annecy, France
June 2007

Annecy is the only one I was able to attend, and like everyone else I was there with didn't see a single, solitary film beyond the handful that played either side of my own.
A helpful tip I can give to folks interested in festivals is that practically no European festival charges a fee, and almost all of them will play your film on DVD.
Very helpful considering the huge expense that entering can be, even before an entry fee is included.

[Brian Cruce]

Thanks for the list! You (accurately) posted on another thread that going to a Con will not likely payoff financially. How have festivals worked for you? Any dos and don'ts?

[Patrick Mallek]

The only don't I can think of is "don't submit". You wouldn't believe some of the garbage people enter into film festivals. I haven't seen it, but your's isn't the worst film out there. Trust me!

Going to festivals will never pay off in dollars at first. But the experience is well worth the expense.

[Emmett Goodman]

The only festival I've been is the Animation Block Party in Brooklyn. But as I write this, I am submitting my current film to at least two festivals a week. I've gotten a few rejection notices, and am learning not to take it too hard. Its only my second film, and I'm not quite the prodigy I feel some people tend to look for. But going to certain film/animation festivals is quite encouraging, even if you are not showing in it.

[Patrick Mallek]

Don't worry about rejection letters. Festivals reject great films every year for really, really stupid reasons such as; "The subject didn't go with any of the other films on the program" or "The color palette doesn't match our festival colors" and "We don't take films about pre pubescent erections."

On the flip side, never get too excited. Festivals take bad films for really, really stupid reasons as well...

[Brian Cruce]

Great topic. Would love to know your experiences at screenings, insider tips of any kind including getting in to good festivals, and marketing while in one.

(My hangover remedy is to take a multivitamin just before I'm horizontal the night/morning of.)

[Elliot Cowan]

I can provide no insider tips other than the following:

1) You need to have a professional looking film.

2) If you're film isn't professional looking, then it needs to be overflowing with charm, wit, humor, sadness or any other honest emotion.

3) European festivals certainly have more of an interest in artistic film making rather than the modern American animated short.
However, if you have a great film that's a goofy cartoon and beautifully animated that'll be welcomed most warmly.

4) Almost no European festival charges an entry fee and most will accept work on DVD.

5) There are literally hundreds of small European animation festivals - most of the relatively insignificant.
However - being able to say your film played in Serbia, or Montenegro sounds really exotic and sexy on your CV.
Further to this, other film festivals pay attention to what's playing at other festivals.
Many of my entries were via invitation because one saw my film was on the program of another fest.
If your film plays in a bigger festival in Croatia, it's possible the Italians may get wind of it (what with it being next door).

6) To some extent there are no bad festivals (kind of like no bad publicity). Annecy is one of the big animation festivals in the world but I think the big ones are starting to blend into one. Besides which, unless you're an animation person, the name of an animation festival is largely irrelevant.

I can't tell you much about attending festivals. The only one I've attended was Annecy when my Infernal Machine played there. We didn't do anything like marketing because like everyone else who wasn't a student, we were in the pub pretty much all day (students attend the screenings).
Animators are usually a very social bunch, so it's easy to imagine making mountains of contacts.

[Brian Cruce]

Thanks, Elliot. Good insight. Sincerely appreciate your comments here and throughout CF.

Professional looking film, you say? Would love your feedback: http://www.rankleandtaint.com

I have not put this pilot out there, or on here, because I'm still trying get the music together.

BTW, dearly love Boxhead & Roundhead. Especially On the Run. One of the very few cartoons lately that actually makes me laugh.

[Elliot Cowan]

Hey Brian.
I'm very pleased you like are enjoying BnR.
You'll be happy to hear that I'm about halfway through a brand new one.

There's plenty to like about your Rankle and Taint.
The concept itself is smart and your characters are nicely designed, but I think you need to hone your storytelling skills.
It's not always entirely clear what is going on.
At the moment you can trim it significantly (I edited television commercials for nearly 10 years and insist that almost EVERYTHING can be shorter).

If I were you, I'd concentrate on making more films at a shorter length - 30 second gags - 1 minute at the most.
This will give you the chance to not only be finishing stuff, but also develop your characters faster.

This is not to say that what you've got is crappy - far from it.
You're putting a great deal of energy into this and I think you need to point it in the right direction at the moment.

Also - if you start telling shorter stories, you're going to be more inclined to produce better animation, and learn smart shortcuts to make limited animation look like it's doing something much fancier than it is.

As far as festivals are concerned.
There are a number of animated film festivals devoted to tits and arse, which is useful to you.
If you're going to be doing tits and arse for a mainstream audience, you've got to make it fucking smart and fucking sharp.
And if you're making it to play online, you have to make it SHORT!

Whatever you do, don't stop!!!!!

[Brian Cruce]

Thanks again! Completely agree that shorter is better. If you click Little Love ( http://www.rankleandtaint.com ) you'll see a five second bit that loops. And forthcoming episodes will be faster and shorter.

Can't wait to see your next BnR! Be sure to let us all know when it's up.

[Patrick Mallek]

Great question on marketing. So you've been accepted and you show up with nothing only to realize that every other film has some sort of marketing going on, and you don't! At the very least, get you self some cheap color postcards to put out on the schwag tables. I always print out mailing label sized stickers for the backs with the show dates, times and venues for that festival. Also get posters, stickers and anything else you can think of! Bottom line, be creative! Find something unique that fits your film and hit it hard! When we did SXSW, we brought 1000 Magnetic Squirrel magnets to pass out. Also, always have a few DVD screeners on hand should you meet someone in the biz who might be able to help you out.

[Solomon Mars]

Cool. The school I go to is starting a new program fall quarter where you create a festival piece, then they help you package it properly, and the school sponsors it and enters it into as many festivals as possible. I won't get to take it 'til winter quarter because of schedule conflicts, but I think it's a very awesome thing for them to have. The only festival I have been in is a local fest through ASIFA-Atlanta called "Roll Yer Own". It was a blast!