Welcome to the 9th Annual Jerome Indie Film & Music Festival. Our fest takes place in America's largest ghost town which was once coined as one of the Wickedest Towns in the West. We were chosen by Moviemaker Magazine in 2017 as one of the 25 coolest film festivals in the world. https://www.moviemaker.com/archives/festivals/the-coolest-film-festivals-in-the-world-2017/

We are known for the unique cinematic adventure that we offer but more importantly than that, we are a festival that wholeheartedly supports freedom of speech and storytelling. We do not shy away from controversial topics.

We are edgy, unexpected and are always looking for ways to surprise our guests! Each year we seek high and low throughout Jerome to screen independent films in the most unexpected places. We have screened films on a train, at a haunted gold mine, inside wineries, at surprise hilltop residences, in the basement hallway of a spooky hundred year-old high school, and inside rustic buildings throughout Jerome. With the exception of screening films in the historic Liberty Theatre, we magically create each and every theater from the ground up.

We are Arizona’s most ambitious and impassioned festival and have many new thrills up our sleeve for our 9th installment this year, which include the Wicked Wild Cinema Train where we screen independent films on an inside car and a band on the outside car during a 4 hour trek through the Verde canyons, over rivers and through mountains. We will be holding several special events this year which includes A Great Gatsby Wine Soiree with screening of 1922 silent film, Nosferatu, a Craft Beer Experience, a Willy Wonka Chef Brunch with Pairings as well as other unique elements. The founders are filmmakers and this festival is known as a filmmaker festival.

We can’t wait to meet you all on the hill. Guests who arrive immediately become family members and return each year.

Join us for year 9 -May 18-21, 2023

We pride ourselves on presenting the winning filmmakers with one of a kind designer trophies created by local artisans that will be forever treasured for their beauty and uniqueness.

Screening submissions must be on DVD, region 1 or 0 in NTSC format.

Please do not send any promotional materials with your submission. We’ll let you know what we need when your film is accepted.

Please be sure to enter under the correct category. Less than 50 minutes will be considered a short, more than 50 minutes will be considered a feature. If you are not sure which category to submit to, please contact us.

Films may have distribution. There are no restrictions on premiere status.
The festival does not accept works in progress.
The exhibition formats for the festival are DVD, HDCam, and Blu Ray.

All entered films grant the Festival a non exclusive limited use agreement to use film promotional materials to promote the festival and selected films to the industry and general public. Filmmakers fully retain all rights, title and interest in their films and all intellectual Property.

Please complete a release form that can be found on the website and send it to:

Jerome 89A Indie Film Festival
2652 East Oakleaf Drive
Tempe, Arizona 85281

We wholeheartedly thank you for your interest in the Jerome 89A Indie Film Festival.

Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Valkyrie Phoenix

    This was my first festival experience and it was wonderful! The care, creativity and connectedness of all those involved made it a truly special event. I look forward to submitting again. Highly recommend!

    June 2022
  • gareth brierley

    Great film fest, recommend! Thanks for our official selection for 138: LAST DAY

    October 2021
  • I wanted to get a film into this festival so badly and was ecstatic to be selected! It’s easy to see why Movie Maker Mag listed them as one of the 25 coolest festivals in the world! I’ll be going back year after year whether I have a film in the festival or not! What an amazing time with a tremendous staff! This is what all festivals should be!

    October 2021
  • Michael Kadolph

    This was my first festival so everything I thought I was going to expect was a little different because the place strives to be different. So their were built in screens in the ruins of a hotel and at what used to be the JC Penny building.

    October 2021
  • Our film "Death Offers Life - last moments of Vincent Van Gogh" got official selection which is a great encouragement for us.

    October 2021