UPDATE: We're on track for NOV 7th opening!
Our Market is already online, our festival is now able to provide an online component that opens up viewership while maintaining the excitement of a Hamilton-premiere complete with a release date and time to build excitement! You don't get to 15 years without hard work and innovation so we're not only up to the challenge, we're excited about it! Even if restrictions are lifted and we can gather in one of our historic venues, we'll still bring a portion of our festival to audiences around the world!
We want to maintain the integrity of your film, and our event, by respecting the fact that this is not a "release" and we will treat it as a screening, so not to ruin any chance of a distribution or broadcast deal you may have in the future.
"Amazing festival! It is Canada’s TriBeCa!" - Filmmaker James Stewart
The 15th Annual Hamilton Film Festival continues to be one of Canada’s most important film festivals for Canadian and International films. Hosted in a city with a booming art scene, it has become a go-to destination to live and work for several people in the film and television industry with year-round opportunities to network, engage, pitch and participate. Distributors, festivals and industry professionals actively look to the Hamilton Film Festival for content, connections and top-notch engagement.
HFF Guests have included Academy Award® winner Colin Chilvers, Daniel Baldwin, DB Sweeney (Fire In The Sky) Michael Pare (Eddie and the Cruisers), Tony Rosato (SCTV), Marc Blucas (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Catherine Dyer (Stranger Things) Robert Miano (Donny Brasco), Alex Elena (Drummer for Bruce Dickinson) Jason MacDonald (Vampire Diaries) Frank D’Angelo (Red Maple Leaf), Fred Fuchs (Godfather III Executive Producer, Milton's Secret) Art Hindle (Black Christmas), Doug McGrath (Goin’ Down the Road), Lynne Griffin (Curtains), Julian Richings (Superman: Man of Steel), TJ McGibbon (The Umbrella Academy), Craig Davidson (Author / Rust and Bone) Kirsten Bodenstedt (COO and Co-Owner of Peregrine Labs) Academy Award® winner Colin Doncaster, Bob Munro (The Expanse), Sean Sullivan (Wayne’s World, Back to the Future III) Lisa Langlois (Class of 1984) Dan Lyon (Telefilm), Matthew Willson (Exec. Producer) and many, many more! Filmmakers and producers have attended from England, Italy, Germany, Austria, France, Cyprus, Australia, the USA, and all across Canada.
The theme this year is VARIETY! We'll program a bit of everything in our "crystal" year! As we grow, and with more eyes than ever looking at our screens, we really want your best Drama, Comedy, Genre, Documentary, Experimental, Web / Series, Animated and Student films! We are also proud to say that we have reached 50 countries so there is always a place for international films as well!
Think about a variety show, it's a mix of everything! Show us the best of what you've been working on! Reaching 15 years gives us a chance to celebrate all the things we've done, and look forward to what we will become.
We have 15 prize categories, including Jury, Feature, Short, Doc, Actor, Actress, Editing, Cinematography, Screenplay (x2), Music, Student, Truly Independent local award and the legendary Sparquie the Squirrel award! This year we are adding a Best Sound category.
More prizes will be announced!
INCLUSION
The festival is as diverse as our alumni, who come from over 50 countries around the world. Filmmakers globally are looking to the Hamilton Film Festival as an accessible event with multiple chances to screen, network, win awards and gain post-festival promotion as our Alumni is our family and your movie never has a shelf life with us! You’d be surprised how much we remember about you and your film even from our earliest screenings!
DISABILITIES
We want you to think about disability and film. Specifically we want you to consider the people who are hard of hearing or Deaf. These people want to watch your films! We have a night dedicated to this and have ASL interpreters on sight, something we have been doing for the past 2 years!
The Hamilton Film Festival is again offering a submission discount to films that have English subtitles. Yes, even for English-language films. If your film has (or will have) subtitles please reach out to us prior to submitting and we will offer you a discount code which will apply to both the Hamilton Film Festival screenings and the Canadian Film Market. Contact us directly for the code.
YOUR CHANCE
We receive between 400 - 700 films, typically screening around 150 of them, so if your film is good…so are the odds!
We are a festival that is very proud of screening films made by all filmmakers, regardless of gender or race. Everyone has a chance and our programming jury actively looks for LGBTQ, Female filmmakers, Aboriginal filmmakers, and films with disability subjects.
We aim to earn the "Hamilton" in our title so we do our best to make sure there is dedicated screen-time for locally made films! For this reason, films MUST be Hamilton premieres as they will also benefit from free-passes to the entire festival so they can take advantage of all the films, networking and industry development we bring in each year.
To date we have screened 798 Canadian Films!
THE MARKET
We are proud to offer, for the fifth year, the Canadian Film Market which runs the final weekend of the festival and will include Industry Development events, quality networking, pitches and more! 50 countries have participated. You should too!
OUR CITY
Guillermo Del Toro love’s our city and say’s he’s been watching it since the 90’s and would like to set up his own studio here. Hamilton, Ontario, Canada is a major destination for film and television productions. Shows like The Umbrella Academy, The Handmaid’s Tale, The Shape of Water, Spotlight, Crimson Peak, Suicide Squad, The Hulk and Robocop are just a few films that have taken advantage of Hamilton’s many incredible locations. Producers love the additional tax credits, Directors love the “anywhere is here” look of the city, and people love seeing it on screen! You will also have the opportunity to meet with the people who run the film office, should you wish to film in our great city!.
Filmmakers around the world are choosing the Hamilton Film Festival as a required stop, and we want YOU to be a part of this growing scene that is on the verge of expanding into a not-so-hidden gem! See you, and your film, in Hamilton this November!
FILM SUBMISSIONS - TROPHIES ($500 value)
Jury Choice
Truly Independent
Best Film (Feature)
Best Short
Best Documentary
Best Screenplay (for a submitted film)
Best Screenplay (script submission)
Best Actor
Best Actress
Best Cinematography
Best Editing
Best Music
Best Sound
Best Special FX
Best Student
Sparquie the Squirrel
(the most electrifying film in honour of a squirrel who knocked out the power during our gala in 2012. Sparquie did not make it but his legacy lives on)
Film Challenge
($6000 value) Gear Rental certificates prize value
Each film accepted receives a pass to attend all films, panels, and events!
($15000 total value from approx. 150 passes at $99each)
SCRIPT
The top three (3) screenwriting contest winners get a prize package that includes one (1) InkTip script listing and one (1) InkTip magazine listing to promote yourself and your script to InkTip's large network of producers and reps.
Listings also for Best Feature, Best Short and Best Screenplay
Every InkTip producer has been vetted via resume and references and demonstrated the ability to get movies made. Companies who are InkTip members include ABC, Anonymous Content, APA, CBS Films, HBO Films, ICM, Paradigm, Paramount Pictures, Hallmark Channel, FX, Universal, WME, Echo Lake, Zero Gravity, Bad Robot, and 20th Century Fox.
