Rules & Terms
SUBMISSION CRITERIA
Submissions must be sent via the FilmFreeway Site.
Entrants must be up to the age of 25 in the following categories:
Animation
Documentary
Experimental
Fiction
Local Filmmaker
Poetry & Spoken Word
The Disability and Impairment category is open to filmmakers up to the age of 35.
The Young Filmmaker category is exclusively for filmmakers up to the age of 16, submissions who do not meet this criteria will be excluded from the competition.
The Local Filmmaker category is only open to filmmakers who live in Staffordshire, Cheshire, Shropshire, and Derbyshire (in the UK).
Any genre is accepted. However, any film containing a strong adult element (profanity, sex, gore, drugs & violence) will be rejected.
Submissions are NOT required to pay an entry fee.
Submission deadline: 22nd January 2027.
Films must be between 1 minute and 10 minutes.
All films must be in English or with accurate English subtitles. We encourage the use of British Sign Language interpretation.
Submitters to the Local Filmmaker category comply with the rule that their address, whether main residence or term time, must be within the counties of Staffordshire, Cheshire, Shropshire and Derbyshire. This applies to University students who are studying within these four counties.
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
Our terms and conditions apply to all competitions unless otherwise stated.
By entering Earth Stories Film Festival, you agree to the following conditions:
Entrants up to 25 years old in all categories, except the Disability & Impairment category, where entrants must be up to 35 years old.
Entrants in the Young Filmmaker category must be aged 16 and under.
The organisers reserve the right to amend all/any key dates at any time.
Competition finalists/winners will be notified after the closing date.
Unclaimed prizes after two months will be forfeited.
By entering the competition, the filmmakers agree to participate in the promotional activity where required.
Prizes are non-transferable to another person.
If the advertised prize becomes unavailable the organisers reserve the right to offer an alternative prize.
By entering this competition, you agree to be contacted for promotional purposes.
No personal data will be shared with third parties unless stated otherwise.
The organisers reserve the right to amend or withdraw competitions at any time.
Competitions hosted on social media are in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by Meta, Google, TikTok or X (Twitter).
You agree to submit contributions which are your own original work. You must be the copyright holder. You must not violate, plagiarise, or infringe any copyright, trademark, trade secrets, privacy, publicity, or personal or proprietary rights.
If you submit a contribution, you agree to allow the organisers to use the material in your contribution in any way it may reasonably choose on a free-of-charge basis in any media throughout the world.
If you submit a contribution you grant the organisers the right to host your work on the film festival's YouTube channel, and social media.
Any copyright in your contribution will remain with you and this permission is not exclusive, so you can continue to use the material you contribute in any way, including allowing others to use it.
If you are from Staffordshire, Cheshire, Shropshire, or Derbyshire please submit your film to the Local Filmmaker category only.
SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS:
Online submission only (DVD, Blu Ray and flash drive submissions are not accepted).
Video format must be Apple ProRes 422, ProRes 4444 or H.264. Video file size cannot exceed 10GB. VR/360 videos are not accepted.
Submitter must provide a still image from the film and a portrait poster image (minimum image specifications: 300dpi, PNGs, JPGs or JPEGs only).
