Heartland International Film Festival

SELECTION PROCESS
Each submitted film goes through an involved judging process, and is screened by at least one member of the selection committee. Selected films could eventually be seen more than six times by members of the screening committees, programming staff, and juries. Heartland Film reserves the right to stop watching your film after 15 minutes if the reviewer determines that the film’s technical quality is not at a baseline level for festival inclusion.

Films submitted to Heartland International Film Festival are judged on their overall artistic and technical quality. Additionally, each film must be engaging and entertaining, but do more than simply entertain. Selected films have a transformative power that impacts audiences by educating, inspiring, challenging or shifting perspectives - ultimately Heartland International Film Festival programs story-driven films that do much more than entertain.

ELIGIBILITY
To be eligible for Heartland International Film Festival, films must comply with the following:
- The film must have been completed on or after January 1, 2019 and be longer than 40:00:00 minutes in length.
- The film must be available for up to four screenings during the Festival, October 7-17, 2020 and/or secure virtual screenings with an attendance cap if in-person screenings are limited by COVID-19.
- There must not be a screening fee attached to the film.
- Heartland requires a Digital Cinema Package (DCP) for every film in addition to a high-quality digital backup file. No Blu-rays, DVDs or 35mm prints will be screened at the Festival.
- The film cannot require dual projection (interlock) or separate soundtracks.
- Non-English language films must be subtitled. Please do not send us an un-subtitled version with the intention of providing a subtitled version later. Please ensure that all subtitles are hardcoded to your video file as opposed to using hidden subtitles that need to be turned on in order to display on the screen.

PREMIERE STATUS
Premiere status has no bearing on whether a film is selected. Heartland Film does not encourage your film being available on YouTube, Vimeo, streaming platforms, theatrical release, etc. prior to the event, but that does not have any bearing on eligibility. Any film invited to play at the Festival MUST communicate to the Artistic Director if release plans change once the film is programmed. Failure to communicate may result in the film being pulled from the lineup.

RULES FOR SUBMISSION
In addition to the eligibility requirements listed above, filmmakers must comply with the following submission rules to be considered as a Finalist in their respective category:
The submitting filmmaker must be either the producer or director of the film.
- A completed/paid official entry via this site.
- Multiple submissions must be provided as individual submissions.
- If submitting a film that is not yet complete, place "WORK IN PROGRESS" on a title card at the beginning of your film - but please wait and submit the most complete version of your film as possible. We cannot guarantee that updated files will be screened.
- Films submitted in the wrong categories to save on submission costs will be disqualified and fees will be kept by Heartland Film, Inc.

NOTIFICATION
Filmmakers (producer or director) for films selected to be Finalists will be notified by no later than August 15, 2021. All other filmmakers will be notified by email shortly thereafter. Official Selections and Finalists will be publicly announced in September, 2021, and Heartland International Film Festival reserves the right to release basic information about selected films as early as May.

FINALISTS/OFFICIAL SELECTIONS
Films are ultimately chosen as either Finalists, which remain in competition for the Grand Prizes, or Official Selections, which screen out of competition for the Grand Prizes (though they may remain eligible for other prizes).
10 filmmakers will be selected as Finalists in the following categories:
- 5 Narrative Features
- 5 Documentary Features

Films are ultimately chosen as either Finalists, which remain in competition for the Grand Prizes, or Official Selections, which screen out of competition for the Grand Prizes. Finalists are still eligible for other prizes, such as the Jimmy Stewart Legacy Award, Best Premieres, Social Impact Awards, Humor & Humanity Award, and Audience Choice.

All submitted films that meet the below eligibility requirements are considered “in competition” for Heartland International Film Festival Finalists at the time of submission. In September 2021, Finalists are publicly announced. Only Finalists are ultimately eligible for the Grand Prize in each category. Grand Prize winners are announced at the Heartland International Film Festival Awards Presentation on Saturday, October 16, 2021.

Films that are not selected by our juries as Finalists may be invited to screen as “Official Selections” and are eligible for the Audience Choice Awards, the Jimmy Stewart Legacy Award, Social Impact Awards, and Humor and Humanity Award. Official Selections are not in competition for Grand Prizes.

Other films may be invited to screen at the Festival as a “Special Presentation” or in a “To Be Announced” time slot; these may be eligible for the Audience Choice Award depending on when the films are scheduled. “Special Presentation” films are generally titles that already have major distribution or have had their broadcast premiere prior to the Heartland International Film Festival.

In 2020, 77 films were selected from more than 1,000 feature submissions.