The Magic of Horror

PLEASE READ ALL OF OUR RULES & POLICIES BEFORE SUBMITTING!!!

All qualifying submissions will receive the initial scorecards and any corresponding notes from the jury once the judging period has concluded. These are sent electronically, so please make sure that your email address on FilmFreeway is correct.

NOTE: Any submission that is withdrawn or disqualified will not be eligible for scorecards and judge’s notes. A submission will be disqualified if it violates any of our submission restrictions or rules.

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SUBMISSION RESTRICTIONS:

1. No works-in-progress will be accepted. All entries must be complete and the final cut/copy submitted.

2. Submissions may not include real violence and/or death toward humans or animals.

3. Absolutely no pornography. (Nudity is okay.)

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SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS:

1. All entries must be in English or have English subtitles.

2. All entries must be original works, unless the source material is in public domain (examples: Edgar Allen Poe or H.P. Lovecraft), or they have gained legal permission to use the source material from the owner. Questionable entries may be asked to provide this documentation.

3. Filmmakers submitting films that have been released to the public and are under a distribution or similar contract with a third party must have retained all the rights to screen and promote the film. The Magic of Horror does use trailers, still images, and brief film clips for promotional purposes.

4. All screenplays must be un-produced and not under option at the time of the festival, unless the writer is planning to self-produce the film.

5. The person submitting a project to this festival affirms that he/she has all the copyrights and/or other legal rights pertaining to the story, audio, video, images and music of the film/script/photographed work and he/she remains responsible before the law.

6. Please make sure that you have entered your submission in the appropriate category. Projects are judged in accordance to the category they have been submitted to. For example, a movie trailer submitted as a short film will be judged as a short film and is not likely to do well.

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SUBMISSION RULES AND FESTIVAL POLICIES:

1. In the spirit of fairness to all, we DO NOT offer student discounts or hardship waivers for the submission fees. We have a compensated jury to ensure that every submission is looked at carefully and provided feedback.

2. Submission fees must be in U.S. dollars. These fees are non-refundable, even in the case of disqualification or withdrawal of an entry. There are no exceptions to this policy.
Submissions that do not follow the rules will be disqualified, so please ask any questions before submitting.

3. Multiple submissions are accepted, but each must be submitted with a separate fee. There are no discounts for multiple submissions. If you send multiple projects on one submission, only the first of the series will be considered.

4. Understand that the submission fee does not guarantee your project a place in the festival. Entries are judged by a panel who make the decisions of Official Selections, Finalists, and Jury Prize winners. The judges decisions are final and may not be disputed.

5. All entries must be sent via FilmFreeway. Please do not send DVDs, BluRays, images, photographs, or any downloadable files to us directly. We will not look at them.

6. You agree to indemnify and hold us harmless from any claim made by you or any third party due to or arising out of project(s) you submit to this contest. You understand that there are thousands of film-makers, writers and other artists and the similarities in story, characters, design, etc... of two or more submissions are certainly a possibility.

9. In the event that there are less than five submissions into any one category, a submission may be moved into another category at the discretion of the festival directors.

10. By submitting your work to the Magic of Horror, you consent to receiving notices, newsletters, announcements, and advertisements from the Magic of Horror festival and its parent company (Rogue Chimera Films, LLC).

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IF SELECTED FOR THE FESTIVAL:

1. All Official Selections understand and accept that if their submission is accepted for presentation and/or screening in the festival, they grant full and unrestricted permission for Rogue Chimera Films LLC / Magic of Horror (MOH). to screen or show their entry project at times of the festival’s choice and understand that the festival will charge an admission fee for the general public at any live events.

2. The Submitter understands and accepts that they do not participate in receiving any funds from the ticket sales to the festival or any other revenue, which are fully retained by the event organizers to help cover the overall cost of the festival presentation.

3. Official Selection Films and Trailers will be required to send a screening copy of their submission, along with any other promotional materials, to the festival by October 1, 2025. Any film or trailer that is not received by this deadline will be dropped from the program. (We have to be firm about this since we not only have to test screen at the theatre but also put together the Awards Video where we promote all of the selections.)

4. Official Selections will be offered two free passes to the festival. Discounts will be available for any additional tickets needed.

5. If attending the live event, all attendees agree to follow any house rules set down by the venue that a MOH event is being held.

6. Winners will be announced both at the awards ceremony at the end of the festival and on the Awards Video online. (And on our website and social media a day or so later.) Award-winners who are unable to attend the live festival will have their trophies mailed to them free of charge.

7. All Official Selections will be asked to submit promotional materials they have available such as film poster, trailer, still photos, website or social media links, etc... Film and trailer entries also consent to allowing MOH to use short teaser clips from their project for both promotional purposes and for the Awards Video that will be shown online to the general public. The Official Selection grants MOH the right to use any and all promotional materials in any manner they see fit for publicity purposes related to the festival. MOH may revisit selected projects from time to time on social media to continue promoting them.

8. Submissions for the Trailer and Poster categories understand that their work will be shown in its entirety online for both the Awards Show and general publicity on the MOH website and social media.

9. We keep all film and screenplay entries as secure as possible prior to and during the festival. However, with the popularity of camera devices and advanced cyber threats, we cannot promise the security of content submitted to the festival. The Submitter releases MOH and its organizers from any and all liability whatsoever for theft, copyright violations, or piracy of the entry.

10. The Submitter accepts and understands that the festival, in conjunction with the hosting venue, will do everything it can to present the films and still images in the best possible manner but the festival is not responsible for any and all malfunctions or technical difficulties during the presentation of any film or photograph at its festival screening.

11. The Magic of Horror festival reserves the right to make changes in the screening date and times and to possibly not screen a film regardless of its Official Selection status.