Young filmmakers, listen up: FORBES is seeking the next generation of great moviemakers.

We want to help you get your short films seen by thousands of young doers and makers at this year’s Under 30 Summit. For the second year in a row, Forbes Media LLC (“Forbes”) is holding a short film festival open to filmmakers based in America, under the age of 30. We want to put a spotlight on those breaking the mold using a variety of skills and with a range of missions, from entertainment to social justice, and hope to help elevate their talents with our invaluable platform.
The winning shorts will be shown at a miniature film festival during the Under 30 Summit in Boston from October 1-4. The audience could not be better: It’s a gathering of thousands of young entrepreneurs and game-changers from the worlds of media, technology, entertainment, social good and more.

Industry judges and FORBES media and entertainment reporter Madeline Berg and associate editor Natalie Robehmed will select one winner from each of four categories—Animated, Live-Action/Theatrical, Documentary and Shot on Cellphone—and an overall winner from the category winners.

All four category winners will receive free attendance to the Under 30 Summit in Boston (approximate retail value: $1,195), which includes a music festival, food festival and opportunities to meet and network with pioneering millennials and mentors from the entertainment world and beyond.

Category winners will be awarded the title of “Best Short Film” in their category and the grand prize winner will receive an additional “Best in Show” accolade. Prizes do not include travel, lodging, or any other costs or expenses that may be incurred in connection with any submission or the Festival. Prizes are nontransferable, cannot be substituted or redeemed for cash, and are subject to availability and certain other restrictions. 

By submitting a film and/or any related materials (your “Film”) for Festival consideration, you hereby agree to Forbes’ official rules provided on this page, and to FilmFreeway’s Terms of Service (https://filmfreeway.com/page/terms-of-service#tos-filmmakers), with the Forbes official rules applying in the event of any inconsistency between the two.
No purchase necessary; limit of 1 entry per person. To enter, you must be under 30 years of age (but at least 18) at the time of submission and provide proof of age with submission. Entry is prohibited to individuals who are employees or agents of Forbes, its affiliates, or any Festival judge (or who are family members of, or are living in the same household as, any such individuals). All submissions must be original, under 10 minutes long and in a generally accepted audiovisual file format, completed in 2016 or 2017 and have English subtitles (if not in English). At time of submission, please specify the category that the film best falls into (i.e., Documentary Short; Live Action/Theatrical Short; Animated Short; Shot on Cellphone) and only submit the film to that category. Submissions will only be accepted beginning August 1, 2017 and ending at 11:59 PM EST on August 18, 2017. Films can be submitted through this FilmFreeway page or mailed to Madeline Berg and Natalie Robehmed at Forbes Media, 499 Washington Blvd., Jersey City, NJ 07310.

PLEASE NOTE: FILMS LONGER THAN 10 MINUTES WILL BE DISQUALIFIED. FILMS FROM FILMMAKERS NOT BASED IN THE USA WILL BE DISQUALIFIED.

All qualified initial submissions will be judged by Forbes and its team of judges (“Festival Judges”), in their sole and independent judgment, based on the criteria and methodology described herein (“Judging Criteria”). All qualified initial submissions will be judged across the following three equally-weighted criteria: (1) Fit to Category; (2) Quality; and (3) Originality. Each such submission will be judged in its entirety based on the Judging Criteria (i.e., all materials that you submit will be reviewed and considered as a whole).

Festival Judges will collectively select 3 finalists for each category (12 finalists total) based on their own independent, personal evaluations of the film, its merits, and its representation of the category for which it is being considered. Finalists will then be evaluated on the same grounds by media and entertainment reporter, Madeline Berg, and staff writer, Natalie Robehmed. The 4 category-winning films will be screened at the Festival in front of an audience of Summit attendees and awarded the title of “Best Short Film” in their category.

Category finalists will be alerted on or about September 15, 2017, and category winners will be announced on or about September 22, 2017. If a finalist or winner cannot be contacted for any reason within 48 hours of notification by Forbes or is believed to be ineligible or in violation of these official rules, such selection as finalist or winner may be forfeited and another finalist or winner may be selected in Forbes’ sole discretion.
By submitting your Film to this Festival, and in consideration of the possible selection of your Film for screening at the Festival and your possible appearance at the Festival in connection therewith, you hereby irrevocably grant to Forbes, for good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which is acknowledged, the absolute and royalty-free right and permission (but not obligation) to (a) publicly exhibit and otherwise utilize your Film (or any portion thereof) at the Festival and in any and all related editorial coverage or promotional or publicity materials, and (b) photograph, film, and otherwise record in any format your name, appearance, and/or participation at or in relation to the Festival (collectively, your “Likeness”), in any medium, without compensation, throughout the world in any medium in perpetuity, solely in connection with the Festival and Summit. You hereby release Forbes and its parents, subsidiaries and affiliates (and the directors, officers, agents, and employees of each) (“Forbes Parties”), and the officers, managers, employees, and agents of each, from any claims which you or any of your members or agents may have for invasion of privacy, copyright infringement, defamation, or any other claim relating to Forbes’ authorized use of your Film or Likeness.

In addition, you hereby: (a) represent and warrant that: (i) you are the sole creator and owner of any and all right, title, and interest in and to your Film; and (ii) no aspect of your Film will be defamatory, obscene, objectionable, lewd, or offensive; promote, depict, or endorse any activities that involve alcohol, tobacco, illegal drugs, or weapons of any kind, or which may be unsafe, dangerous, illegal, contain nudity, inconsistent with the positive goodwill associated with Forbes, or otherwise in poor taste in the eyes of Forbes; violate the rights of privacy, intellectual property or any other rights of any person or entity (including, without limitation, any actor, individual, or entity whose name, likeness, intellectual property [e.g., logos, brand names, products, musical compositions and/or recordings, artwork], or other materials which may appear or be otherwise used in your Film, the permission for which you will have obtained in writing signed by the proper party); disclose any confidential information of any third party; or otherwise violate any applicable laws, rules, or regulations; and (b) agree to indemnify and hold harmless the Forbes Parties from and against any claims arising from or relating to your breach of your representations or warranties herein or Forbes’ use of your Film in connection with the Festival. Forbes reserves the right in its sole discretion to declare non-qualified entries ineligible. This Festival is governed exclusively by the laws and courts of the State of New York and any disputes or causes of action relating hereto will be resolved individually without resort to any form of class action. Under no circumstances will an entrant be permitted to obtain awards for (and all entrants hereby waive all rights to claim) punitive, incidental, or consequential damages.

Any questions can be directed to mberg@forbes.com or nrobehmed@forbes.com.