Part of the Des Moines Arts Festival, the Interrobang Film Festival is a three-day celebration that invites families, film fans, and curious newcomers to enjoy a variety of films from around the world. With screenings that offer something for every age and interest, this festival creates a welcoming space for everyone to explore stories, cultures, and creativity through film. Interrobang offers a relaxed, community-focused atmosphere, with scheduled filmmaker talkbacks and panels that give audiences and creators a unique opportunity to connect, discuss, and celebrate the art of filmmaking.

Unsolicited waiver fees will not be given.
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Winner of the Grand Pinnacle Award from the International Festivals & Events Association
Winner of the Encore Award from Bravo Greater Des Moines
Named Best Cultural Attraction by Des Moines Business Record

As of 2019, we are officially IMDB eligible. Our awards are verified and populated on the IMDB website.

Awards:
Best of Show
Best Feature Documentary
Best Short Documentary
Best Feature Narrative
Best Short Narrative
Best of Iowa
Best Student Film
IFF Producer's Choice

Interrobang Film Festival is hereby granted the right to utilize an excerpt from any film submitted and accepted for exhibition at the Festival for promotional purposes.

The individual or corporation submitting the film hereby warrants that it is authorized to commit the film for screening for both a live audience as well as streamed for an online audience and understands and accepts these requirements and regulations.

The undersigned shall indemnify and hold harmless Interrobang Film Festival from and against any and all claims, liabilities, losses, damages, and expenses (including but not limited to attorney's fees, and costs of the court) which may be incurred by reason of any claim involving copyright, trademark, credits, publicity, screening, and loss of or damage to the screening videos entered.

By being accepted into our festival, you are also eligible to be considered for the Executive Directors’ Curated Picks program which is being administered through the State of Iowa. If you are accepted into this program, your film will be included in a highlights reel celebrating some of the best films from Iowa's current film festival season. This curated programming will then be shown in various locations around the state in order to promote our film festivals as a whole and to celebrate the level of programming shown in communities from filmmakers around the world. It's important to note that your film will not be broadcast or shown on-line. If for any reason you would like to opt out of being eligible for this program, please contact the director of this festival. Otherwise, the state's film office will be in contact with you should your work be chosen. If you have any further questions or concerns about this program, please contact EJ Philby Burton at EJ.PhilbyBurton@IowaEDA.com

Interrobang does not pay screening fees of any type.

Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • ShiJie Ye

    It's a great festival. Thank you so much for choosing my short film, Painting.

    September 2024
  • Brian Nguyen

    I had a small crowd watch my little movie in a little screening room, and while the crowd liked the movie, the handling of screening at the venue seemed almost disparate to the whole of the festival itself. Notifications to accepted films to film-makers came nearly last-minute and there was little in way of advertising that there was a film festival playing at the festival, beyond small flyers stuck in the actual screening venue.

    My movie was to play first of the second festival day and was blocked for four hours for my screening and a Q&A session following it. The festival started at 11am and it seemed the organizers wanted the movie to play on the dot; the festival was just starting, and an audience had yet to come in. I understand there's a schedule to keep but it seemed to be hasting to a comical and nonsensical degree. The gates literally just opened and I'm setting up my poster outside the screening room to draw interest and I'm being pressured by the staff to play the movie for an empty room. Of the four hours sectioned to me, we couldn't wait for a crowd to find it first? My movie is an hour and forty-five minutes long, so that meant, by their scheduling, had it played at exactly 11am, to nobody, I had over two and a half hours blocked off for an after screening discussion until the next block played. Eventually, there did come a crowd of 20 (a crowd that trickled in after I convinced the people running the place to let people actually find the movie first). When the movie ended, the moderator was quick to just rush through it and the talk-back wound up only 20 minutes. There was still two hours left before the next block. They blocked off such a huge amount of time just to shoe me out of it, that I found little opportunity for any networking. Screenings overlapped and people were herded in and out almost like cattle despite silly chunks of time be allotted each showing.

    The people there were sweet but the whole thing I found slightly disorganized and mildly apathetic. The best thing about the showing was that the small crowd who did manage to catch it, loved the movie. That's all the really matters.

    June 2024
  • MAR VIVO FILMS

    Amazing festival of the arts, really nice communication, we were glad to have our film screened in your cinema, many thanks from Hong Kong!

    July 2023
  • Hernán Ballard

    Unlike the Wisconsin Film Festival or SXSW, which in my experience welcome filmmakers with a red carpet, special parties, accommodations and genuine interest, filmmakers at Interrobang are an afterthought. Unlike other festivals where you can show up and give a Q&A, Interrobang requires you to sign up for your Q&A, which doesn't even take place after your film is screened. How is anybody going to remember anything about a 6-minute short film in a stacked program the next day? This format baffles me. When I missed the deadline to sign up for my Q&A slot, I asked if there was any reason I should attend the festival, having to drive 2,000 miles to get to it. Daphne Dickens, the program manager, simply said "there are"... then proceeded to send me the schedule for filmmakers who had signed up for the Q&A. Wow! What great hospitality! If I ever submit to Interrobang again, it's only because it's incredibly cheap, but it's not worth the disappointment.

    July 2023
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    Response from festival:

    Hi Hernan - interesting feedback....all the talkbacks were scheduled following their films scheduled times. We'd agree - having a talkback the next day of a film scheduled the day before doesn't make sense so we're not sure where the disconnect was. We like to be accessible for all filmmakers - whether a student short submission like yourself or a seasoned documentarian. Best of luck!

  • Thank you for the opportunity to be a part of your festival! It is very important to me!

    July 2023