The Matera Film Festival International competition 2023 announces three categories of competitions, one of which reserved for feature films, one for short films, and a third for documentaries.
The Festival is organized in Matera (IT) from 30th September to 7 October 2023 by 'Making-Of', later called as association.

The prizes will consist of:
- Camera Service Factory Award for Best Feature Film € 5,000.00
- Camera Service Factory Award for Best Documentary € 3,000.00
- Camera Service Factory Award for Best Short Film € 2,000.00
The prizes “Camera Service Factory” for Best Feature Film Best Documentary and Best short Film are intended as vouchers for the rental of cinematographic equipment at Camera Service Factory srl ( Via delle Orchidee, nr. 2 - 70026 - MODUGNO (BA) - via Ranuccio Bianchi Bandinelli nr 130 - 00178 ROMA P.iva/C.F. 08049690723). The vouchers can be spent within a year of the award ceremony, the organization is exempt from any liability regarding the use of the vouchers.

The association reserve the right to increase the prize pool in the future and / or to establish other prizes.

1 Type of works admitted
The call is open to works produced and shot in any video format and of any genre or nationality, completed after January 1st 2022.
Previews will be privileged.

2 The competition categories
The Festival is divided into three competition sections:
1. MFF LONG: International competition open to fiction feature films with a duration of not less than 52 minutes, including the credits.
2. MFF DOC: International competition open to documentaries regardless of the length.
3. MFF SHORT: International competition open to short films lasting no more than 20 minutes, including closing credits.

3 Registration
Films must be registered by 12 July 2023 through the international FilmFreeway platform (https://filmfreeway.com/MateraFilmFestival) uploading your own film and paying the registration fee directly on the platform.
The non-refundable registration fee is:
€ 15.00 ($ 17.00) for each feature film
€ 10.00 ($ 11.00) for each short film and documentary
to be paid through the online platform used to register the film.
Anyone, author, producer or distributor, submits more than one film, again through the FilmFreeway platform, can register for € 15.00 (for feature films) or € 10.00 (for short films and / or documentaries) for the first film and 1.00 euro for each subsequent registration.
For the purposes of the deadline for the call, 12 July 2023, the registration date on the FilmFreeway platform is valid.

Authors and / or Producers are responsible for the content of their works and declare, by registering for the Festival, that they have fulfilled any obligation towards third parties deriving from copyright. If you have questions regarding the registration procedure, you can contact the Festival secretariat at info@materafilmfestival.it.
All films must be submitted in the original language with English subtitles.

4 Selection
Among the works received within the deadlines and in the manner provided for in this announcement, a maximum of 7 feature films, 15 short films and 5 documentaries will be selected, at the discretion of the commission composed of members appointed by the association. In the case of authors participating in the selection with multiple films, only one work may be selected.

5 Selected films – Shipping
By August 20, only the authors of the selected works will be contacted. The lack of communication is to be understood as communication of "not selected".
For all films admitted to participate in the competitions:
- there is no provision for the payment of rental costs by the Festival;
- the expected projection format is preferably the DCP, but other formats can be agreed with the organization of the Festival.
- the projection copy, together with a spare Blu-ray, must be received by courier at the festival site no later than 12 September 2023 following the instructions that will be provided by the organization of the Festival. The copy will be sent to the address:

Via del Capricorno, 6
75100 - Matera - ITALY
With the following wording: MATERA FILM FESTIVAL

In the case you choose a file as a projection copy, it must have a minimum resolution of 1920x1080 in AVI, MOV, MP3, MPG formats. The organization of the Festival may reserve the right to request a PAL format DVD.
Brief information will also be requested regarding the film, the authors, the production, synopsis and photographs, for the purpose of drawing up the catalog.
The shipping and customs clearance costs of the projection copy of the selected films are the responsibility of the sender. For the return, the Matera Film Festival will cover the costs of transport and customs clearance from Matera to the place of destination. If, after the screening at the MFF, it is requested to send the copy of the film to another festival, the shipping and customs clearance costs will be borne by the applicant. For each film invited, it will be mandatory to send the requested documentation to the Festival. The costs of transport and customs clearance of any material relating to the selected films are borne by the participants.

6 Competition

The selected films will be presented to the public during the Matera Film Festival 2023, which will take place from 30th September to 7th October 2023. The screenings will take place according to the calendar established by the organizers of the Festival and will be communicated in advance to the authors.
The associations will appoint a jury, composed of artists and experts in the sector, with a recognized artistic and professional curriculum in the cinematographic field, in charge of evaluating the documentaries and feature films selected, according to their cinematographic and aesthetic value, the originality of the style and interpretation of the proposed theme.
The prizes will consist of:
- Camera Service Factory Award for Best Feature Film € 5,000.00
- Camera Service Factory Award for Best Documentary € 3,000.00
- Camera Service Factory Award for Best Short Film € 2,000.00
The prizes “Camera Service Factory” for Best Feature Film, Best Documentary and Best short film are intended as vouchers for the rental of cinematographic equipment at Camera Service Factory srl ( Via delle Orchidee, nr. 2 - 70026 - MODUGNO (BA) - via Ranuccio Bianchi Bandinelli nr 130 - 00178 ROMA P.iva/C.F. 08049690723). The vouchers can be spent within a year of the award ceremony and used only in Italy the organization is exempt from any liability regarding the use of the vouchers.

The associations reserve the right to increase the prize pool in the future and / or to establish other prizes.

7 General rules
All the shipping costs of the films are borne by the proponents (round trip), unless specifically indicated otherwise agreed with the Programming Office.
1. These regulations are drafted in Italian and English. In case of interpretation problems, the Italian version is valid.
2. The request for admission to the Festival implies unconditional acceptance of these regulations.
3. The Authors and Producers, while remaining fully owners of their rights on the works, freely grant
associations the right to screen their works, as part of the Matera Film Festival 2023, as well as in other cultural events through which the Association intends to promote its business. The authors also grant free of charge to associations the right to use one or more images taken from their works in order to promote the event and for other forms of communication and activities related to the Association, with the sole obligation of mentioning the artist. In participating in this competition, the Authors and Producers declare that they have the rights of use for any type of music that may be present in the film and for non-original video sequences. The associations decline any responsibility concerning possible infringements of rights or disclaimers by the works presented and by their respective authors. They also authorize associations to process their personal data pursuant to GDPR 2016/679, also for the purpose of inclusion in databases managed by the aforementioned people.
4. The Direction of the Festival can take decisions related to matters not foreseen by these regulations. The Court of Potenza is competent for any controversy.

Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Marina-Evelina Cracana

    A good experience overall; a festival with a special atmosphere in a special location, and a prestigious jury in every competition category!

    September 2022
  • Nino Tropiano

    EXCELLENT EXPERIENCE: great festival: fantastic hospitality, really down-to-heart attitude by the organizers and all the people involved; The Festival itself is easy going with a touch of unpretentious glamour. Excellent food and an awesome place to visit. What more did I need? Oh Yes, I won a prize, indeed! But all of the above was priceless ...!

    October 2020