OVERVIEW
The Emeryville International LGBTQ+ Film Festival is a large-scale, in-person event that celebrates QUEER CINEMA and QUEER PERFORMANCE ART. This festival entertains our guests with individual, themed programs that celebrate our LGBTQ+ members at large by sharing queer art and cinema.

Our festival is a Hollywood-themed event, complete with a Red Carpet Entryway and Step-and-Repeat backdrop for a fancy schmancy 'photo opp'. We book local performers and photographers to provide a queerly joyful and engaging experience for all guests.

Our festival includes formal and informal networking opportunities for participating and visiting filmmakers to connect, find like-minded professionals, and share experiences. We also invite our local and neighboring community partners to table at our events as we provide a well-rounded celebration inside AND outside the theater.

Our festival is produced by a non-profit 501(c)3 organization, Fishnets & Film, Inc.

HISTORY
In 2024, this festival was called "Drag Me to the Cinema", a historical, day-long queer film festival held at AMC Bay Street. It was a huge success as a community came together to celebrate our Queer Performing Artists and Cinema inside AND outside the theater. Over three dozen sponsors & supporters, local press coverage, and hundreds of guests helped make it a success while our main sponsor, Bay Street, greenlit for it to become a yearly festival. In a festival debriefing, our team decided to rename the festival with intent to reach a 'prestigious' status and have "Drag Me to the Cinema" be the title [and theme] of ONE block.

PROGRAMMING
We seek projects that represent all genres and cover a wide range of content, as well as international stories that represent our LGBTQ+ community at large. We seek independent and union projects. We are also looking for non-specific Films with main characters and/or supporting characters who identify as LGBTQ+.

We create themed programs based on our pool of Official Selections. Past themes have included: We Are Family (family-friendly films), Pure.Queer.Jory (uplifting films to make you smile), Life's a Drag (films with Drag characters), Fantasy Island (films that represent different realities), and Adults Only (films with adult content).

For our 2026 program, we anticipate having (1) a family-friendly block, (2) "Drag Me to the Cinema" (drag performances and films with Drag characters), (3) a block co-programmed with Frameline, and (4) an adult-themed block. Other themes will be created based on our Official Selections.

SUBMISSION FEES*/SELECTION DETAILS:

We seek and accept high-quality Short Films AND Feature Films, fit for our program. We make room in our programs to book & include Queer Performing Artists to entertain our guests with engaging routines or host a panel Q&A.

All Submissions will be judged by credited filmmakers and film lovers. We will Officially Select up to 50 Total films for our festival. All Official Selections will be announced on/before the Notification date.

Many Official Selections will be announced and posted on our main website and our other social media platforms (IG, FB) in advance of the festival.

* Submission fees help cover talent fees for our Queer Performing Artists, fees for seminars and networking events, and website maintenance.

Awards & Prizes

All Official Selections will be judged and considered for an award in one of the following categories:

SHORTS PROGRAMS:
Best Film
Best Writer
Best Director
Best Cinematography
Best Original Story
Best Performance
Best First-Time Filmmaker
Best International Film
Best Student Film
Audience Favorite (awarded at the end of the festival once audience votes are tallied)

FEATURE PROGRAMS*:
Best Feature Film*
Best Writer*
Best Director*
Best Cinematography*
Best Original Story*
Best Performance*
Best International Film*
Best First-Time Filmmaker*
Best Student Film*
Audience Favorite* (awarded at the end of the festival once audience votes are tallied)

*Award will be given, pending there are THREE official selections of Feature Films.

Rules & Terms

All films are eligible, regardless if they have distribution or not.
All films are eligible even if they have been accepted to other film festivals.
All films must have been completed on/after January 1, 2021.

All films must include English subtitles (unless the spoken language is English).

Short Films are defined as films under 50 minutes. Our Feature films are defined as films with 50+ minutes in length.

REQUIREMENTS & PREMIERE STATUS
There is no premiere requirement for short films or feature films.

ELIGIBLE EXHIBITION FORMATS
For theatrical screenings, we will exhibit all films via DCP. All non-English language entries must have English subtitles.

WORKS IN-PROGRESS
Works-in-progress are eligible for submission but MUST be completed by August 31, 2025.

By submitting your film, you agree that:
1. The Emeryville International LGBTQ+ Film Festival can use parts of your film (including trailer/teaser/film poster) for promotional purpose.
2. Entry fees are non-refundable.
3. You own all the rights to the film.
4. You cannot withdraw your submission after the official selection announcement of each round.

We accept pro-res movie files in .mp4 or .mov file format. We do not accept DCP format.

Producer Fishnets & Film, Inc. is hereby granted the right to utilize an excerpt from any film submitted for 'The Emeryville International LGBTQ+ Film Festival ' and accepted for exhibition during our in-person event for promotional purposes.

The individual or corporation submitting the film hereby warrants that it is authorized to commit the film for screening, and understands and accepts these requirements and regulations.

The undersigned shall indemnify and hold harmless Fishnets & Film, Inc. from and against any and all claims, liabilities, losses, damages, and expenses (including but not limited to attorney's fees, and costs of the court) which may be incurred by reason of any claim involving copyright, trademark, credits, publicity, screening, and loss of or damage to the screening films entered.

Each submission is not guaranteed a Selection. Submission fees are non-refundable.

1 Review
Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Ross Berkeley Simpson

    It meant such a lot to us to be selected for this festival, let alone win Best Foreign Film. The whole process has been a joy. Thanks to Robby for unending support from the first contact. We're truly blessed to have been involved.

    March 2026
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