To receive a 25% discount on submission fees, please use the Discount Code: 2021DCFSDSC
The 2021 Directors Circle Festival Of Shorts has officially opened its call for entries and will accept submissions internationally of short length films in any and all genres including Narrative, Documentary, Comedy, Horror, Experimental, Animation, Religious/Spiritual, Gay/Lesbian and all genres of Music Videos for our 2021 Festival.
We will accept all forms of religious, Christian, and spiritual films including African, African American, Gay/Lesbian, Black, Hispanic, Islamic, Latino, Jewish, Native/Aboriginal and student films from the United States and around the world.
Festival horror categories for films will include Horror, Thrillers, Science Fiction, Suspense, Grindhouse Horror, and Horror Documentary, Horror Animation, and student horror films.
Our Film Festival shall accept music videos from around the world of cross-continent and cross-genre productions of all ranges from Pop, Punk, Rock, Alt-Country, Country-Western, Folk, Reggae, Hip-Hop to Electronica, Jazz, Blues, Zydeco, Industrial, Gothic, Karaoke, Avant-Garde, World Music, and Experimental.
The Directors Circle Festival Of Shorts is internationally recognized as a premier showcase for creative, inspiring, and influential films of all types. Bold visions, adventurous ideas, skillfully crafted, and artistically inspired projects are the kinds of films we are looking for.
Since debuting our Fest in 2010, we have gained even more recognition among the film-viewing public and Filmmakers, not to mention production houses and distributors, because they no longer have to travel to find the next film that will make Hollywood sit up and take notice. Currently, convenience is the name of the game, especially for the independent film industry.
The 2021 DCSF will host a live Festival screening event in the great City of Erie Pennsylvania that will screen the best and most innovative films of the 2021 season. Housed in the historic Renaissance Centre located in beautiful downtown Erie, the 2021 DCSF will take place Friday, November 26 through Saturday, December 4, 2021, with our physical Festival running consecutively with our opening weekend.
One of the unique things about the Directors Circle Festival of Shorts is our home, Erie, Pennsylvania, perfect for a weekend getaway to our Film Festival with all of its historic and picturesque locations.
Our forty-mile slice of Lake Erie waterfront bears no resemblance to the major urban centers of Pittsburgh or Philadelphia, being entirely low-rise and extremely leafy. Indeed you hardly realize you are downtown until you find yourself in the shady park-like town square, on 6th Street between the main thoroughfares of Peach and State streets.
There are several places of cultural interest in the city, all within walking distance of our Festival are several museums devoted to history, art, and science that include the Erie Maritime Museum that has a fascinating display on the geological and ecological development of the Great Lakes and also focuses on warships of different periods including the elegant US Brig Niagara which is usually moored outside and is part of the museum.
Undoubtedly, Erie’s main attraction is the elongated comma-shaped peninsula of Presque Isle State Park, which bends east from its narrow neck three miles west of downtown until it almost touches the city’s northernmost tip.
The park is maintained as a nature preserve and has wide sandy beaches good for swimming, backed by thick woods offering a series of trails.
Our unique Film Festival reaches new heights internationally for independent film festivals presenting our films in a way unlike any other film festival in the world via our online screening platform and theater system. Viewing interactively online allows independent Filmmakers and fans to take pleasure in the films worldwide on the go, from work, and from the comfort of their own homes. In the technologically advanced world we live in, where communication and convenience MUST be at the tips of our fingers, we knew this was the next progressive step in film festivals.
Our online Festival is presented in a virtual theater setting that will allow users to watch the films while the films remain completely safe from download or reproduction.
Films in our Festival cannot be downloaded, the films HAVE NO EMBEDDING CODE and the HTML codes of the films, if copied and pasted, the films will not play, therefore they CANNOT be placed on other websites. The only time and place they can be viewed is in our festival. In short, we have gone to great lengths to set this system up to protect the safety and security of each Filmmaker’s film, always keeping the Filmmaker in mind. Consequently, it is just as secure as a brick and mortar theater screening, only much better.
We made the decision to screen films online because of two reasons, first we understand that Filmmakers around the world pour not only all of their time and heart into their work but also most of their money. Because of financial and time constraints, independent Filmmakers most times find it difficult to attend the screenings of their film. Now, not only can the Filmmaker attend, but all of their friends and family members can as well. In addition, the number of attendees to the Festival is literally limitless giving the Filmmaker much more exposure for their work.
In addition, you hear so much about the environment and global warming it got us thinking. When you realize how much power is used during the film fest, electricity for the building, natural gas for heat, and the gasoline the people use to get to the fest it left quite the carbon footprint. By doing the greatest part of the Festival virtually it actually helps cut down on greenhouse gasses, making DCSF not only the safest virtual Festival but one of the most environmentally friendly as well.
Forging the future of film festivals, while blending the best of yesterday, the Directors Circle Festival Of Shorts recognizes Filmmakers for outstanding achievements in their craft through creativity and imagination, while always paving the way and opening doors for the very talented Filmmakers world-wide.
Best of Genre Awards
Audience Choice Award