An IMDb qualifying festival
We've put a lot of effort into ensuring that our film festivals give you a way to keep doing well.
All our festivals have helped hundreds of filmmakers worldwide get the recognition they deserve by giving them exposure, a truly deserved award, and a chance for distribution with long-established worldwide distributors.
We created our festivals by implementing a rule that all others have yet to adopt. If your film gets rejected, we will let you know why and give you a chance to fix it, then resubmit it for free before we close submissions or the following season.

Welcome to the Nature Without Borders International Film Festival, where distribution and exposure opportunities abound.

NWBIFF is a sister festival to the Docs Without Borders International Film Festival and the Depth of Field International Film Festival, a FilmFreeway "Top 100 Reviewed" festival.

NWBIFF accepts worldwide films/documentaries in many major categories and sub-categories.

Distribution:

Over the years, our sister festivals have sent hundreds of winning films to long-established distribution companies, many signing for distribution. NWBIFF operates with that same vantage! Your top award with NWBIFF gets you into our distributor review group.

We don't have any control or influence over Polaris Pictures or any of our associate distributors who decide to offer you a production deal or even answer your email. We merely open the door for the top winners.

Winning an award in a subcategory does NOT qualify for screening and sending to our distributors.

Screenplay Rhodium award winners get to submit to Polaris Pictures, a film finance company.

Remember Feedback: The one aspect that most festivals overlook.

Everyone who submits to the Nature Without Borders International Film Festival will receive either of the two benefits:

1): your film is already competition caliber and receives Official Selection status OR
2): If your film is not selected, you will receive a letter outlining what needs corrections. Make the suggested changes and resubmit for free, even if it's for the following season. If we tell you to change your film, it helps you improve it and make it more marketable. It also makes you more likely to be accepted at other festivals.

We only live-screen the Best of Festival winners.
Our screening event is to collect audience reactions to be used by our distributors. We don't conduct after-screening networking parties or seminars.
Video interviews of the viewing audience may be conducted and shown on WRPN.tv


The "Best of Festival" winners will be reviewed by Worldwide Motion Pictures Corporation, Adler & Associates, Cardinal XD, and CSS Releasing Distribution for possible worldwide distribution.

Opportunities for Sub-Category Awards include cinematography, score, original concept, direction, SFX, acting, writing, editing, and many more! Winning an award in a subcategory does NOT qualify for screening and sending to our distributors.

Best of Festival Award: This award is given to outstanding entries chosen from among the Best of Show Winners based on genre and national or international origin.

"Best Of Show" is selected by genre and domestic/foreign, so there will be over one BOS, i.e., BOS Documentary (Domestic), BOS Documentary (Foreign), and so on.

"Award of Outstanding Excellence,"

* (Please note: If there is insufficient competition within any category, we reserve the right to withdraw a "Best Of" presentation.)

Other award levels include:
"Award of Excellence,"
"Award Of Exceptional Merit,"
"Jury's Choice Award,"
"Award Of Merit,"
"Kudos Endeavor Award,"

Screenplay Rhodium award winners get to submit to Polaris Pictures, a film finance company.

NWBIFF is a live screening festival and virtual competition. We invest in getting distributor recognition for quality films to give them a life beyond a one-time festival showing.
We live-screen only the Best of Festival winners.
Our screening event is to collect audience reactions to be used by our distributors. We don't conduct after-screening networking parties or seminars.
Video interviews of the viewing audience may be conducted and shown on WRPN.tv
Long-term screening opportunities are available on WRPN.TV Entertainment Network (optional)

Our founders are active Committee Members of the Universal Film and Festival Organization (UFFO.ORG), a U.K.-based non-profit founded to implement the best festival business practices.

If your film is not selected, you will receive a letter outlining what needs corrections. Make suggested corrections and resubmit for FREE, even next Season.

NWBIFF is granted the right to use an excerpt from any film submitted and accepted for competition at the festival promotional purposes.
A clip of winning entries may also be streamed on the NWBIFF.COM website and WRPN.TV.

The number of awards granted at any level will fluctuate based on the total number of entries received for each competition deadline. Just as entering major categories doesn't guarantee you'll be chosen or win an award, entering sub-categories doesn't. Suppose a filmmaker only enters a sub-category and not a major category. In that case, the film may only be accepted if the judges think the sub-category is suitable, even if the film itself is good and could have won an award. Conversely, films may also receive awards for sub-categories written by the judges, even if the filmmaker did not submit them.

Also, your film name will appear in the Official Selection list only if you have submitted the entire film into one of the main (full-price) categories (films submitted for judging in the reduced-rate, production value sub-categories will not be listed).

Subscribing to our WRPN.tv mail list is highly recommended to ensure you receive award notifications and additional discounts.
We are not responsible for winners missing opportunities because of failure to receive or read emails.

The individual or corporation submitting the film warrants that it may commit the film for screening, and understand and accept these requirements and regulations.

The competition reserves the right to refuse entries, and there are no waivers.
DVDs WILL NOT BE RETURNED!

Refund Policy: If you withdraw your submission before it is officially selected, you will receive a refund.
If you withdraw AFTER being Officially Selected, there will be NO refunds.
All our judges (selection and awarding) are paid. We don't use unpaid volunteers.

We live-screen only the Best of Festival winners.
Our screening event is to collect audience reactions to be used by our distributors. We don't conduct after-screening networking parties or seminars.
Video interviews of the viewing audience may be conducted and shown on WRPN.tv

Submissions other than the English language must be subtitled or dubbed.
If there is insufficient competition within any category, NWBIFF reserves the right to withdraw a "Best Of" presentation.

NWBIFF has set up a system where entries don't compete against each other, but are instead judged on their own merits, ensuring that each film is studied and rated on its own.
They compete against themselves; each entry is scored according to an inherent value system.

When it is your turn to be evaluated, the judge's focus is on your film rather than on all the other films on cue, which ensures that they are not thinking about comparisons when they should think about you.

Judges score on a performance scale, and winning entries are recognized and awarded Best of Festival and Best of Show, as well as two Awards of Excellence levels, two Awards of Merit levels, a Kudos Endeavor Award, or no award.

The top-scoring entry or entries for each season are given the Best of Festival and Best of Show awards.
Awards of Excellence are granted to entries with exceptional artistic and technical achievements.
Notable achievements are recognized at the Award of Merit and Kudos award levels.

Submitters must protect Nature Without Borders International Film Festival, WRPN.TV, and ROMAN PICTURES from and against all claims, liabilities, losses, damages, and expenses (including, but not limited to, attorney's fees and court costs) that may be caused by any claim involving copyright, trademark, credits, publicity, screening, and loss or damage to the screening videos entered.

Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Vanya Marinkovic

    The film festival staff are amazing and courteous as ever. We are so excited to have had our film selected and an award won for "Nuclear Mist Chaos"!!!! Thank you!

    August 2023
  • Natasha Phillips

    We loved this festival, really proud to be featured! Thank you so much

    May 2023
  • Brendan Guerin

    Many thanks for selecting our eco doc web series Loving Grasslands, great title for an enviro friendly film festival!

    May 2023
  • Lynn Santer

    I have been involved with many festivals over the years but have never before come across one so super kind, generous, helpful, supportive, visionary and generally wonderfully. Please don't get me wrong, I have been involved with many festivals that were super professionally run and where the teams were supportive and helpful, but Carlos and his team at NWB go above and beyond. I feel I have made new friends for life and am immensely honored that my truth bomb documentary won Best of Festival at this critically important time for the topic of exposing the lies and subversion behind the trophy hunting industry. Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU x**

    May 2023
  • Susan Perz

    I am thrilled that my film, "The Sacred Loves of Birds" received a Merit Award from Nature Without Borders International Film Festival in 2023! Communication was very prompt. Being selected and winning an award gave my film immediate respect, which was very exciting as my first film festival acceptance! The award also gave me a chance to see where my film was located in the milieu of so many other truly excellent films, which was very valuable.

    May 2023