Awarded MovieMaker Magazine's "20 Coolest Film Festivals In the World"
MovieMaker Magazine's "Top 25 Film Festivals Worth the Fee"

The San Francisco Frozen Film Festival (SFFFF) is a Nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization founded in 2006 that is dedicated to creating avenues for independent filmmakers, youth, filmmakers of conscience, and artists from underserved communities to come together and exhibit their work to the widest possible audience.

The San Francisco Frozen Film Festival is held every summer in the heart of the Mission district in San Francisco at the Roxie Theatre. Filmmakers whose work is accepted into the festival are invited to come to the city by the bay in the dead of summer to take part in the festival and discuss their work.

In addition to our annual international film festival, the SFFFF Youth Program is specifically focused on demonstrating to underserved youth that existing pathways do exist to help them find a career in the film arts. SFFFF holds annual music and art performances, as well as youth programming and awards presentations.

Awards & Prizes

Festival Awards winners in the following categories:

Skate/Surf Film
Feature Film
Filmstock Film
Dramatic Short Film
Comedic Short Film
LGBTQ+ Film
Feature Documentary
Short Documentary
Feature Animation
Short Animation
Sci-fi/Horror
Music Videos
Music Documentary
Environmental Film
International Film
Student Director
First Time Director
Virtual Reality
Video Game (Footage & Themed)
Experimental Film

Rules & Terms

Applicants agree that 'Frozen Film Festival' reserves the right to choose all films to be shown and awarded prizes. By Submitting to Frozen Film Festival, you agree to have your film shown during the festival dates, and to have your film promoted in accordance with the rules. You agree that you are in possession of all rights to images, likenesses, and music in your film. Your fee paid to Frozen Film Festival is in consideration of acceptance to the festival, and you are not selling any rights to your film, and Frozen Film Festival does not own any permanent rights to your film. Frozen Film Festival has the right to use images from your film on its website and in promotional materials for the festival.
68 Reviews
Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Pamela Ty

    Intimate and enjoyable first festival for our film. Gabriel, Isaac, and Dinah were so hospitable and the outdoor event was quintessential SF. It was definitely quite cold/frozen during the evening, but our group of 12 had a great time! Honored to have our film Sole Proprietors kick off the Best Comedic Shorts category! :)

    July 2026
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  • Giacinto Cerviere

    Ottimo festival, ogni anno sempre più autorevole.

    July 2026
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  • Ryan Wicks

    Small festival with passionate people

    July 2026
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  • Kamyar Mohsenin

    The outdoor screen was rigged between two shipping containers, partially malfunctioning, and a daytime screening plus poor visibility made it hard to actually watch the films. Maybe 6 people showed up to my block, no surprise given the zero social media presence this festival has.

    This festival may have had a stronger history, but the 20th anniversary edition did not seem like a honest celebration of the films or the people who made them.

    July 2026
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    Response from festival:

    Hi Kamyar! Oh no! We’re so sorry that you didn’t have a positive experience. Our team of volunteers worked tirelessly to make sure that your film was able to show on the big screen. We are so honored that you were able to join the nearly 50 directors that attended and are shocked that you had a negative experience. We are proud of our experimental film program but we are happy to offer you a refund on your submission fee if you are unhappy with your social media marketing. We wish you would have brought this up with us in person when we were talking with you. Let us know how we can help and keep making movies!

  • Carmela Marie Murphy

    We are so thankful to San Francisco Frozen Film Festival for screening our stop motion film, "A Bird Hit My Window and Now I'm a Lesbian." We were honored to be a part of the "LGBTQ+ Short Films Collection" program. Katie Rose, Sophie, and the team were super communicative, supportive, and kind!

    xoxo,
    Carmela and AJ

    November 2025
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