THE HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL®™
Hollywood's most star-studded film festival for new & independent filmmakers.

CELEBRITY GUESTS
The longest-running film festival at L.A. LIVE / Staples Center, is host to the largest annual program of film screenings and Hollywood premieres featuring celebrity guests, including: Pierce Brosnan (James Bond), Jamie Foxx (Django), Sharon Stone (Casino), Hilary Duff (Lizzie McGuire), Doug Stanhope, Josh Brener (Silicon Valley), Joe Mantegna (Criminal Minds), Donna Mills, Laura Prepon (That 70s Show), Timothy Busfield (West Wing), Frances Fisher (Titanic), Melissa Gilbert, Neil Breen (Twisted Pair), Uwe Boll (Postal), Alan Howarth (Halloween), John Ennis (Mr. Show), casting director Bonnie Timmerman (Black Hawk Down), Lin Shaye (Insidious), Sally Kirkland, Dominique Swain (Lolita), Clark Duke (The Office, Kick Ass, Hot Tub Time Machine), and many more notable movie stars and legends, appearing at the annual Hollywood Reel Independent Film Festival.

HISTORICALLY INDEPENDENT FESTIVAL HISTORY
Growing to prominence from early years at Quentin Tarantino's New Beverly Cinema, the Hollywood Reel Independent Film Festival now partners with the largest, most glamorous venue in Los Angeles: L.A. LIVE / Staples Center / Microsoft Theater, hosting weeks of film premieres annually.

Dedicated in our mission to recognize the best new filmmakers, and discover important cinema around-the-globe; HRIFF combines film premieres, parties, and celebrity events, all held in the most iconic cinema venues of Hollywood, and Los Angeles, California USA.

HONORING CINEMA LEGENDS
HRIFF Award of Excellence recipients include some of the greatest cinema luminaries of all time, including Peter O'Toole, Alejandro Jodorowsky, Warren Beatty, Kirk Douglas, Martin Landau, Vanessa Redgrave, Gerard Depardieu, Frances Fisher, Tinto Brass, Don Hertzfeldt, Robert Drew, Bill Plympton, Helmut Berger, John Heard, Ruben Ostlund, Jon Polito, Robin Williams, Elaine May, and Harry Dean Stanton.

LEGENDARY HOLLYWOOD ALUMNI
Werner Herzog, Ron Howard, Michael Apted, Errol Morris, D.A. Pennebaker, Emily Mortimer, James Franco, James Caan, Fred Roos, Paul Rudd, Guy Pierce, Joe Lo Truglio, Blake Anderson, Mercedes Ruehl, Ian McShane, Edward James Olmos, Sandra Oh, Lisa Kudrow, Jason Alexander, Bryce Dallas Howard, Elliott Gould, Terri Polo, Janeane Garofalo, Zack Braff, Winnie Holzman, Martin Starr, Fred Willard, Tony Hale, Richard Lewis, Doug Jones, David Arquette, Carla Gallo, Bai Ling, C. Thomas Howell, Harry Lennix, Dean Cameron, Takuji Suzuki, Daryl Hannah, Tom Noonan, Jeremy Sisto, and Jonathan Pryce are just a few notable HRIFF alumni to have participated in past Hollywood Reel Independent Film Fests.

HRIFF is also proud to have recently premiered the newest feature from legendary Japanese filmmaker Sion Sono (Suicide Club, Why Don't You Play In Hell?, The Forest of Love, and Prisoners Of The Ghostland starring Nicolas Cage).

ACADEMY AWARD© WINNING DISCOVERIES
Oscar© and Golden Globe© winning & nominated HRIFF premiere screenings include "The Lighthouse", "Once Upon A Time in Hollywood", "Manchester By The Sea", "The Act of Killing", "Anomalisa", "Force Majeure", "The Look of Silence", "Rules Don't Apply", "Trumbo", and "At Eternity's Gate".

HRIFF premieres to win other major awards include "Lucky", "Blade of the Immortal", "The Sisters Brothers", and "Killing of a Sacred Deer".

Academy Award© Winning Shorts that premiered at HRIFF include "The Lady In Number 6" short documentary winner, the animated works of Bill Plympton, and the Oscar© Winning animated short film "Mr. Hublot".

A few HRIFF discoveries to receive wide distribution and acclaim include "The Act of Killing", "Force Majeure", "Bridegroom", "The Look of Silence", "Assault on Wall Street: Bailout", "Day At The Pool", "Henri", "Sex, Violence and Family Values", "Forget Me Not", "Bible Storyland", "The Silent Thief", "The Lady In Number 6", "Drive",
...and many more.

NEW TALENT DISCOVERY
HRIFF may be the biggest festival for new talent discoveries, with recent success stories that include Keir Gilchrist (who became the star of Netflix's Atypical), Alanna Masterson (from winning HRIFF Award for Best Actress, to starring in a lead role with AMC's The Walking Dead for six seasons), Alex Meraz (cast in Twilight & DC's Suicide Squad), Toby Hemingway (Black Swan), Tyler Blackburn (Pretty Little Liars), and HRIFF Award Winner Savannah Kennick (who was then featured in episodes of Netflix's Arrested Development).

CINEMA RETROSPECTIVES & RESTORATIONS
Festival retrospectives have included tributes to: Kenneth Lonergan, Haskell Wexler, Michael Mann, John Cassavetes, David Bowie, Alan Rickman, Warren Oates, Burt I Gordon and Dusan Makavejev, as well as festival-funded restorations of rare films from Tinto Brass, Hugo Niebeling, ...and more.

LARGEST L.A. FILM FEST WITH BROADEST CATEGORY SELECTION
The Hollywood Reel Independent Film Festival's size allows multiple weeks of film programming, and as a result can offer the largest, most inclusive selection of submission categories for festival screenings and showcases. Featuring the broadest range of genres, styles and categories: Feature Films, Short Films, Dramatic Films, Drama Shorts, Comedic Films, Comedy Shorts, Narrative Films, Non Narrative Films, Documentary Features, Doc Shorts, Animation, Horror, Action, Thriller, Mystery, Noir, Musicals, Westerns, L.G.B.T.Q. Films, Student Films, Music Videos, Screenplays, Teleplays, Live Table Readings, V.R. Virtual Reality, Web Content, Episodic Television and Streaming Content, International, American, and Global World Cinema ...are all welcome in our festival's screening programming, with screening categories specifically devoted to premiering a significant number of films from all the above categories (and more), in front of our large festival audiences!

These impressive offerings combine to create the only Hollywood Film Festival not-to-be-missed for both audiences and independent filmmakers.

HRIFF is the only Hollywood Film Festival known world-wide for screening the largest selection of up-and-coming filmmakers, while hosting the biggest selection of celebrity guests and attendees!

Our festival invites you to Join the historic family of HRIFF filmmakers, by submitting your project today!

Awards & Prizes

HRIFF Selected Films are eligible for HRIFF Awards of Merit. 30 Awards of Merit are given annually at the historic HRIFF Award Ceremony & Gala, held at L.A. LIVE / Staples Center.

Cinema Award Winners of Merit may also be eligible for potential sponsored prizes - as announced each season during the festival.

Screenplay Contest 1st Place is awarded $1,000.00
All Unproduced Screenplay Contest entries are eligible for our HRIFF Screenplay Awards.

Award of Excellence Honors for Lifetime Achievements in Cinema are given each year at the Hollywood Reel Independent Film Festival Award Ceremony & Gala.

Rules & Terms

FESTIVAL RULES, REGULATIONS, TERMS & CONDITIONS

1) PRINT REQUIREMENTS
a) SUBMISSION SCREENER PRINT REQUIREMENTS
Film Submission Preview Screener Guide:
- Submission Screeners must adhere to guidelines below.
- Submission must be sent by via Online Screener to FilmFreeway.
- All Accepted Submissions will be notified via personal e-mail.
- All Non-Accepted Submissions will be notified via e-mail.
- Check submission platform account at festival notification deadline for updates.
- Vimeo Downloadable submissions preferred.
- Include any up-to-date passwords/encryption for password locked submissions.
- Deadline Dates on FilmFreeway are postmark deadlines for mailed prints.
- All mail should be in standard small flat rate envelope or smaller, to reduce waste.
- HRIFF is not responsible for postal damages or delays.
- Do Not Send Registered Mail, or that requires any signature for (except 35mm prints).
- Do not send cash or any payments or requests via mail.
- Discs, postcards, thumb drives, & posters may not be returned.
- Any work revised or modified after submission, must be re-submitted with new fees.

b) SELECTED FOR EXHIBITION - VENUE PRINT REQUIREMENTS
Selected Film Print Exhibition Guide:
- Exhibition Print RUN TIME must never run longer than Submitted Version.
- Venue Print Requirements will be released after acceptance.
- DCP (CRU) is preferred exhibition format for all professional cinemas.
- Other DCP may be allowed (depending on venue discretion).
- DVD / BluRay Back-Up is highly recommended (even if using other print format).
- Blu-Ray (Region 0 or 1) is accepted for Exhibition.
- DVD+/DVD- (NTSC, Region 0 or 1) is accepted as back-up.
- Films must be non-watermarked.
- Multiple prints must have matching chapters and aspect ratios.
- No menus, no test footage, no pre-film footage, on any Exhibition Print.
- Once accepted for presentation, a physical Exhibition Copy of submitted film is required.
- Venue Print Requirements may change without notice, at sole discretion of venue.

II.) GENERAL FESTIVAL RULES AND REGULATIONS
- Submitter must be 18 years of age or older to enter competition.
- Adult Guardian or Parent may submit on your behalf of minors.
- By submitting to HRIFF, submitter is:
a) admitting copyright of film and images, and
b) granting permission to use the images and content from the submission in advertisements and promotions both for any screening of the submitted film, but also in any promotions for HRIFF in general for the 36 months following first receipt of the submission.
- Festival times may be subject to delay or change.
- All fees are non-refundable.
- HRIFF is not responsible for broken or non-functioning prints.
- In submitting, HRIFF is given the right to screen submission at no charge to the fest.
- HRIFF reserves the right to refuse service to anyone.
- All films submitted for review are consenting permission to have HRIFF publicly screen the film submitted (at least) one time in 24 months after your selection notification.
- Not all submissions received will be selected for live exhibition, nor award honors.
- By submitting via FilmFreeway, you are agreeing to these Rules as well as all HRIFF Terms and Conditions below.

III.) GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS for HRIFF FESTIVAL, TICKETING, & WEBSITE.
If any provision of this Agreement is held to be invalid or unenforceable, such provision shall be struck and the remaining provisions shall be enforced. You agree that this Agreement may be automatically assigned by the HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL (HRIFF), in its sole discretion, to a third party.

Section headings are for reference purposes only and in no way define, limit, construe or describe the scope or extent of such section. Our failure to act with respect to a breach by you or others does not waive our right to act with respect to subsequent or similar breaches.

This Agreement, along with any other terms and conditions listed by HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL, sets forth the entire understanding and agreement between us with respect to the subject matter hereof. The provisions of this Agreement and any ancillary terms and conditions will survive termination or expiration to the extent necessary to carry out the intentions of the parties.

Governing Law.
You acknowledge and agree that this Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the internal laws of the State of California, excluding conflict of laws provisions thereof that would indicate the application of the laws of any other jurisdiction and you hereby submit to exclusive jurisdiction in the federal and state courts of California. You agree to receive service of process through certified mail or by other means sanctioned by law, and you expressly waive any claim of improper venue and any claim that such courts are an inconvenient forum.

Indemnification.
You agree to indemnify, defend and hold The HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL harmless from any claim, expense or demand, including without limitation reasonable attorney fees, made by any third party due to or arising out of your breach of this Agreement, or your violation of any law or the rights of a third party.

By agreeing Submitter agrees to abide by all the Terms laid forth in the General Festival Rules listed for HRIFF, including FESTIVAL RULES AND REGULATIONS noted below.

FESTIVAL RULES AND REGULATIONS:
- Film must not currently have major distribution in U. S.A. that conflict with exhibition dates at the festival.
- HRIFF only accepts international films not in English that have been subtitled.
- Festival screening times are subject to delay, change, or cancellation.
- All fees (Submission, Ticketing, Etc.) are non-refundable.
- HRIFF reserves the right to refuse service.
- HRIFF reserves the right to remove screenings from program at any time.
- Films submitted for review are consenting permission to publicly screen the film submitted (at least) one time in the next 48 months as to be determined by HRIFF.
- By submitting your film for review submitter is a) admitting copyright of film and images and b) granting permission to use the images and content from the submission in advertisements and promotions both for any screening of the submitted film, but also in any promotions for HRIFF in general for the 36 months following first receipt of the submission.
- By submitting you agree HRIFF has the right to screen your film with no additional exhibition fees or charges to the festival from filmmakers or film copyright owners.
- Festival is not responsible for broken or non-functioning films.
- Submitter must be 18 years of age or older (or have your parent/guardian to submit on your behalf) to enter the competition.
- In case of non-functioning Exhibition Print, festival may use any submitted prints.
- By submitting with payment, you are agreeing to abide by all the above terms, rules, and guidelines, as well as the following Terms and Conditions:

COPYRIGHT.
All content contained on HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL (HRIFF) website, including but not limited to photographs, text, graphics, logos, icons, images and software (collectively, "Content"), is the property of HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL and is protected by U.S. and/or international copyright laws.

RISK OF LOSS.
You acknowledge and agree that your only remedy for failures, delays or interruptions with respect to the ordering of and delivery of passes ordered by you is limited to a refund for such passes, with such refunds issued at the sole discretion and judgement of the HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL.

RIGHT TO ENTER.
Entrants warrant that they have the legal right to enter film work to the HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL. As Director/Producer/Submitter of the Film, entrants have submitted and represent and warrant to the HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL that the Film and all parts thereof are original; that the Film does not contravene the rights of any person or entity and that entrants own or control the Film and all parts thereof and have the sole authority to submit the Film to the HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL; the Film entrants submitted to the HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL is not subject to nor threatened by any litigation. Entrants acknowledge that no fiduciary or confidential relationship now exists between the Festival and entrants, and entrants further acknowledge that no such relationship is established by these guidelines, the submission of the Film, or by the HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL acceptance, review or retention of your submission (film, screenplay, etc.).

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY.
IN NO EVENT SHALL THE HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL BE LIABLE FOR INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, HEALTH, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, THAT ARISE OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH ATTENDANCE AT ANY EVENT / ENTERING ANY COMPETITION / SUBMITTING ANY WORK FOR REVIEW OR SCREENING, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION FOR LOST PROFITS OR BUSINESS, OR ANTICIPATED LOST PROFITS OR BUSINESS, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL AND ITS AFFILIATES AGGREGATE LIABILITY TO YOU OR ANY THIRD PARTY IN ANY CIRCUMSTANCE ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO THE WEBSITE OR THIS AGREEMENT IS LIMITED TO $200.

THE HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL MAKES NO REPRESENTATION OR WARRANTY OF ANY KIND TO YOU, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED. SPECIFICALLY, THE HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL DISCLAIMS ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF TITLE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, MERCHANTABILITY, AND FITNESS. YOU ACKNOWLEDGE AND AGREE THAT UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES WILL THE HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGE CAUSED BY YOUR RELIANCE ON CONTENT OBTAINED THROUGH THE WEBSITE OR CAUSED BY YOUR CONDUCT. THE HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL DOES NOT GUARANTEE CONTINUOUS, UNINTERRUPTED OR SECURE ACCESS TO THE WEBSITE OR FESTIVAL VENUES, AND THE OPERATION OF THE WEBSITE OR FESTIVAL VENUES MAY BE INTERFERED WITH BY NUMEROUS FACTORS OUTSIDE OF OUR CONTROL.

DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES.
SUBMITTER ACKNOWLEDGES AND AGREES THAT THEIR ATTENDANCE AND PARTICIPATION AT HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL EVENTS, OR ENTERING INTO ANY HOLLYWOOD REEL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL EVENT, CONTEST, FESTIVAL OR COMPETITION IS AT THEIR OWN SOLE RISK.