Boone Docs celebrates life in Appalachia featuring short format documentaries focusing on stories about the Appalachian Region of the United States.

Only films under 20 minutes will be considered.

The event is held on Saturday, Feb 22, 2025

There are three awards announced at the end of the festival
-Jury Award ($300)
- Audience Award ($200)
-Student Award ($150)

Films will be screened in blocks and filmmakers are invited to attend and take part in a short Q&A following each block of films.

If you are a student filmmaker, please send message to the festival organizers to request a submission waiver.

From The Appalachian Region Commission - "Appalachia is made up of 423 counties across 13 states and spans 206,000 square miles, from southern New York to northern Mississippi. The Region’s 26 million residents live in parts of Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia, and all of West Virginia."

There are three awards announced at the end of the festival
(1) Audience Award ($200)
(2) Jury Award ($300)
(3) Student Award ($150)

RULES & TERMS
GENERAL RULES 
1. Due to limited programming time (3 hour main event) the ideal film length is under 20 minutes.  
The short documentary must be a story about the Appalachian Region (see definition of Appalachian Region below).

2. Screening fees will not be paid. 


3. An admission charge will be made to the public in order to defray the costs of the festival. 


4. A submission fee for each film entry is required to help with processing. The regular entry fee is $20 for all entries. (Early bird = $15, Late submission = $35). Student submissions are free with proof of student status.

5.The Boone Docs Festival and its organizers reserve the right to adjust or amend the requirements up to the 12/30/24. 


6. Format for submissions should be in the form of .MOV, or .MP4

7. The Entrant owns all right, title and interest, including the copyright and all intellectual property rights, in and to the film being submitted to the Festival and has the right to distribute, exhibit and promote the film in or through all media formats now known or hereafter devised, including, but not limited to, the Internet throughout the universe; 


8. All music licenses (including, without limitation, all synchronization, mechanical and master-use licenses, as applicable) have been obtained and all payments have been made that are required for the public performance of the music incorporated in the film

9. No material in the film being submitted by the Entrant to the Festival is libelous or is slanderous or defamatory or violates any right of privacy or publicity of any person, and the full use of the rights in such film will not violate any rights, including copyright or moral rights, of any person, firm or corporation. 
GENERAL TERMS and CONDITIONS 


10. By submitting you are acknowledging that you (the entrant) have read and agree to all Boone Docs rules and procedures; you will indemnify Appalachian Theater against any claims related to this submission; you will hold Boone Docs/Appalachian Theater harmless for any damages, costs, liabilities, and expenses related to the submission, screening, and use of this entry; you limit and liquidate all claims to no more than the cost of the entry fee; and you expressly grant Boone Docs permission to use, broadcast, or publicly

Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Yndiana Montes

    I premiered Everybody Loves Maako at the Boone Docs Festival. It couldn't be better. It seems that everybody in Boone saw it. I'm starting to get used to being stopped on the street to talk about my documentary, or just to let me know how much they liked it. I'm so grateful to the festival for this opportunity!

    April 2024
  • Sammy Osmond

    A great new festival! Great crowd and venue. It was a joy to show my film there.

    March 2024
    Logo
    Response from festival:

    Thanks for sharing your film with Boone Docs. We couldn't do it without our great filmmakers like yourself.

  • AMI Appalshop

    We at the Appalachian Media Institute greatly appreciated and enjoyed the inaugural Boone Docs Film Festival. We love to see talented artists in Appalachia be able to share their work, network, and be rewarded for their skill. We will for sure be submitting again next year!

    March 2022