A) TERMS OF PARTICIPATION
Short films that are completed after January 1, 2020 are eligible to submit.
Diaspora International Short Film Festival will accept submissions of short films that realistically and artistically reflect to the screen the life of diaspora communities in the countries they live in. In the submissions within this framework, productions emphasizing issues such as identity, multiculturalism, multilingualism, multi-belonging, harmony, coexistence, cultural interaction, social tolerance, migration and integration are expected to be received. In addition, submissions with films reflecting the contributions of diaspora communities to the countries they live in, their struggles to exist and efforts to hold on to life will also be taken into consideration. Furthermore, topics such as racism, discrimination and xenophobia that imperil these concept and continue as a fact of daily life are also other themes serving to draw attention and raise awareness that can be covered in submissions.
Evaluation of the submissions will be based upon the consideration of such themes and qualities.
Diaspora International Short Film Festival has two competition categories:
Submissions in Turkish and/or in Turkish dialects will be evaluated in the category “Films in Turkish” and submissions in other languages will be evaluated in the category “Films in Foreign Language”.
Films eligible for the competition include fictional, animated and experimental short films that do not exceed 20 minutes in duration (including credits).
Pre-selection committee may reconsider the duration limitation if deemed necessary.
There is no limit to the number of submitters per project owner, however the participation in the festival is limited solely to one entry.
Attendance in any other national or international competitions or winning any award do not constitute any impediment to participation in the festival.
All submissions must be properly made by filling the submission form at the festival’s website.
Festival committee reserves the right to use a 30-second extract of the film for promotion purposes.
After the announcement of the festival program, the project owners cannot withdraw their entries. Submitting a film indicates the acceptance of this article.
Films selected by the pre-selection committee will be announced via the festival’s official website and other media. The owners of unselected projects will not be informed.
Only two representatives from the creative team of the selected films will be invited to the festival. Dates of attendance will be informed in advance by the festival administration.
Films will be screened for the main jury and audiences at the halls with a screening program to be specified by the festival administration. No demands to the festival administration or to the attendants regarding change of the screening hall, schedule or program will be considered.
Submitter is solely responsible for the copyright infringement claims that can come from the third parties. Submitter acknowledges and warrants that s/he owns all the intellectual property rights regarding his/her work, that s/he owns all kinds of rights regarding the presenting the work and transfer of the intellectual property rights regarding the work and that s/he does not violate the intellectual property rights (copyrights, patent, trademark and the like) of any third parties, that s/he does not violate and/or dishonor the privacy and publicity rights of any living or deceased person and that the content in no way contains any elements that may point to any criminal act and that the work includes no violation of personal information.
Owners of the selected films must forward the requirements below within 7 days following the announcement through media specified by the festival administration:
• Screening copy with English subtitles (in DCP, H264 or Apple ProRes formats)
• In the case that the speaking language of the film is other than English, screening copies with English subtitles)
• 5 high-resolution stills in JPG format
• A high-resolution photography of the director
• A vertical film poster (in JPEG or TIFF format)
• Teaser and/or trailer of the film (in MP4 or MOV format)
• English synopsis of the film (max 50 words)
• Director’s short biography in English (max 50 words)
With a goal of contributing to the promotion and development of short films, Diaspora International Short Film Festival may exhibit and promote the films after obtaining the consent of the directors in various platforms.
Festival administration reserves the right to make any amendments in the regulations without any prior notice.
B) JURY AND EVALUATION
Assignment of the jury members is at the discretion of the festival administration, who will make the selection from among the film critics, academicians, industry professionals, professionals from the other art branches, film festival executives or journalists that are believed to be competent in the field of cinema.
• The Main Jury has a minimum of 5 (five), and a maximum of 7 (seven) members.
• Jury members will be announced at the press meeting and in other media belonging to the festival.
• The festival administration may assign an observer, who would not have any voting rights, at the jury meetings to provide assistance in the application of the festival regulations.
• Jury will give each award identified by the festival administration to one film only and may not divide any of the awards to more than one film.
• Jury cannot give any additional awards other than the one specified at the official award list.
• Members of the jury are obliged to watch all the films and to be present at the jury meetings. They will watch the films collectively on the dates and in the halls to be determined by the festival administration.
• Jury members shall not share their opinions regarding the films with anybody under any circumstances, except for the jury evaluation meeting.
• Decisions made by the jury are officialized as a written report bearing each and every member’s signature is handed over to the festival administration.
C) SPECIAL RULES
Cash prizes and the screening (copyright) fees will be paid to the right holders until December 31, 2021.
Turkish productions that lack an operating certificate will not be provided with a screening fee. Instead, costs for obtaining an operating certificate will be covered by the festival administration.
Winners of the cash prizes will not be given any further screening fee. In accordance with the Inheritance and Transfer Tax Law with the number 7338, an amount specified at the relevant article will be cut back from the award amounts to be paid to the tax office.
Directors of the winning films are obligated to be present at the award ceremony. Right holders who have not attended the award ceremony without giving any excuse will be not paid the cash prizes even if they win an award.
