MISSION & OBJECTIVE
The mission of the non-profit New Hampshire Film Festival is to inspire audiences with thought-provoking cinematic stories from visionary talents in independent filmmaking, and to provide a platform for emerging artists to advance their craft, engage with the community and promote to industry leaders.

ABOUT THE FESTIVAL
The New Hampshire Film Festival (NHFF) made its debut in 2001 in Derry, New Hampshire, but moved to its permanent home of Portsmouth, New Hampshire in 2004. Portsmouth was settled in 1623 and the layout of the downtown district could not be better suited for a film festival with everything: screening venues, party venues, headquarters, galleries, conference centers, shops, waterfront dining, hotels, and inns, all within walking distance. The event takes place in the autumn when the foliage is at its peak.

Through 2011, the screening venues and headquarters locations have moved around the city, exploring different partnerships and accommodating the growth of the festival. In 2012, NHFF proudly began announcing multi-year, long-term partnerships with its venues. The Festival’s main stage theater, The Music Hall, is the region’s premiere performing arts center. This historic theater is beautifully restored, features the most up-to-date technology, and a seating capacity of 900. All NHFF venues are proximal and conveniently accessed, no one traveling further than a five-minute walk along the winding brick sidewalks even amidst the farthest points.

ACADEMY AWARD® QUALIFYING FESTIVAL FOR THE SHORT FILM AWARDS
The New Hampshire Film Festival was named an Academy Award® qualifying festival for the Short Film Awards by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences beginning with our 20th annual edition. Short films that receive the festival’s Live Action Shorts Jury Award and Animation Shorts Jury Award may now qualify to enter the Short Films competition for the concurrent Oscar® season. Recipients of these qualifying festival awards will be eligible for consideration in the Live Action Short Film and Animation Short Film categories of the Academy Awards® without the standard theatrical run, provided the films otherwise comply with the Academy rules.

AN INSPIRING CELEBRATION OF FILM
Since the creation of the NH Day & Night Program in 2006, NHFF has begun on the Thursday after Columbus Day each year. New Hampshire has a vibrant filmmaking community, and the NH Day & Night program is dedicated to presenting films that are filmed on location in NH, or which have filmmakers, producers, or actors from the Granite State. This one-day mini-festival has historically taken place only at The Music Hall main stage, but in 2012, the program grew to need additional venues. The program culminates with an awards ceremony on that Thursday evening presenting distinctive ten-pound granite awards, “Grannys,” for: Best NH Feature Narrative, Best NH Feature Documentary, Best NH Short Narrative, Best NH Short Documentary, NH Performance of the Year and NH Filmmaker of the Year. The most prestigious NH award, NH Short Film of the Year, is voted on by the NH Jury, made up of 5-6 NH industry professionals. The Van McLeod award is also given during the ceremony. This award is named after the current commissioner of the NH Department of Cultural Resources whose successful effort to save and grow the NH Film Bureau has made an enormous impact on the film industry in the state. The Van McLeod award honors an NH native who has made a significant career contribution to the film industry, or someone who has advanced the film industry in NH.

The international portion of the film festival opens on Friday morning with screenings at multiple venues and continuing until Opening Night Ceremonies that evening. Opening Night ceremonies take place at The Music Hall main stage and is an event featuring anything from comedy routines, to musical acts, to video productions, to live action acrobatics, to special awards presentations. Notable opening night ceremonies presentations have included stand-up acts from acclaimed comedians Juston McKinney and Tommy Chong, a video presentation from Adam Sandler, and a live performance of “Granite State of Mind”. The executive director makes a statement, along with messages from headlining sponsors. The ceremonies conclude with the introduction of the opening night film.

The Friday of the festival also kicks off the NHFF industry panels program. Panels occur in the mornings and afternoons Friday through Sunday. They are held in two hour blocks throughout the weekend, each panel presents five to seven industry professionals and is mediated by a local relevant experience representative. Panels are free to any person that can produce a pass or a ticket from the festival from that year. The panels offer insight, knowledge, and inside information into the fundamentals and advanced aspects of filmmaking. Some topics covered in previous years include: creating a compelling story, funding sources, transitioning into production, equipment essentials, editing programs, novel to screenplay adaptations, and both traditional and non-traditional distribution avenues. Since the development of the panel program in 2008, the festival has brought panelists from A24, IFC, Tribeca, Starz/Anchor Bay Entertainment, Film Threat, Emerging Pictures, Magnolia Pictures, Oscilloscope Laboratories, and Shorts International to name a few.

Launching on the Friday evening of the festival is the Young Filmmakers Workshop (YFW), a comprehensive, multi-day journey through filmmaking for 14-18 year olds. The workshop begins Friday evening at the opening night ceremony (until 8:30pm), Saturday (9am to 8:30pm), Sunday (9am to 6pm). The workshop is part film school, part film race. Participants are put in teams to write, produce, act in, direct and edit an original short film that is completed and screened at The Music Hall mainstage during closing night ceremonies. The students learn as they go, utilizing state of the art equipment, and sitting in intimate educational sessions with local filmmakers, and attending industry professionals. YFW alumni have gone on to become writers, directors, and producers of successful independent films, and major motion pictures. The workshop is directed by communications media specialist and local filmmaker John Herman. The cost for participation in this workshop is $150.

The Screenplay Competition begins its special events at the festival on Friday as well. Leading up to the festival, submitted screenplays are narrowed down to three finalists and the grand prize industry judge selects the winner. The grand prize industry judge portion of the festival was added in 2007. The winning scribe of the competition receives two VIP level passes to the festival and provided accommodations, as well as a prize package of a one-week writer's residency on Star Island off New Hampshire's Atlantic coast. On Friday early evening a catered reception takes place for screenplay competition staff and participants, festival attendees, and writing enthusiasts depending on attendance. The reception has included a reading or special presentation of recent work from the grand prize industry judge. Notable grand prize industry judges have included Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, David Dastmalchian, Joyce Maynard, Nathan Silver and Ernest Thompson.

On the Saturday of the festival, additional screening venues open and films and panels continue morning until night through Sunday. Throughout the weekend film representatives, and well-known independent film enthusiasts and supporters connect with audiences during Q&A sessions and at celebrations and networking events. Notable film representatives and attendees have been David Spade, Flea (Red Hot Chilli Peppers), Michelle, McLaren, Steven Bognar, Julia Reichert, Anne Cusack, Jordan Vogt-Roberts, Adrien Grenier, Patrick Creadon, TJ Miller, Austin Chick, Morena Baccarin, Tommy Chong, Dale Launer, Caitlin Fitzgerald, Mike O’Malley, Christopher Abbott and Tom Bergeron.

Sunday evening concludes the festival with Closing Night Ceremonies. The ceremony entails a screening of the YFW films, and “Granny” presentations including Best Screenplay Award, Best Narrative Feature Award, Best Documentary Feature Award, Best Short Drama Award, Best Short Comedy Award, Best Live Action Short Jury Award, Best Documentary Short Jury Award, and Best Animated Short Jury Award. The festival’s most prestigious awards, the Grand Jury Awards for Narrative and Documentary Features, are voted on by the Grand Jury comprised of regional and national industry professionals.

There are seven NHFF parties held throughout the weekend: NH Day & Night Party (Thursday night), Filmmaker & Sponsor Reception (Friday Afternoon), Opening Night Celebration (Friday Night), Hospitality Party (Saturday afternoon), VIP Comedy Reception (Saturday Evening), Saturday Gala (Saturday Night), VIP Brunch (Sunday Morning). These events take place at Portsmouth’s finest clubs, bars, and restaurants highlighting the beauty of the city, and promoting filmmaker to audience connections in a relaxed yet lively environment.

The New Hampshire Film Festival is often recognized as one of the "Top 50 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee" by MovieMaker Magazine. NHFF has featured Grand Jury awards from Oscilloscope and Factory 25, and brought about national press with mentions from outlets such as Indiewire, the Huffington Post and The Boston Globe. The festival has grown exponentially since its inception and this growth has neither leveled nor slowed down which allows festival staff, sponsors, and attendees to expect great things in the years to come.

The New Hampshire Day & Night Program (the first day of the festival) culminates with an awards ceremony on that Thursday evening presenting distinctive 20-pound granite awards, “Grannys,” for: Best NH Feature Narrative, Best NH Feature Documentary, Best NH Short Narrative, Best NH Short Documentary, NH Performance of the Year and NH Filmmaker of the Year. The most prestigious NH award, NH Short Film of the Year, is voted on by the NH Jury, made up of NH industry professionals. The Van McLeod Award is also given during the ceremony. This award is named after the current commissioner of the NH Department of Cultural Resources whose successful effort to save and grow the NH Film and Television Office has made an enormous impact on the film industry in the state. The Van McLeod award honors an NH native who has made a significant career contribution to the film industry, or someone who has advanced the film industry in NH.

The Official Closing Night Ceremony (the last night of the festival) includes “Granny” award presentations including: Best Screenplay Award, Best Narrative Feature Award, Best Documentary Feature Award, Best Short Drama Award, Best Short Comedy Award, Best Live Action Short Jury Award, Best Documentary Short Jury Award, and Best Animated Short Jury Award. The festival’s most prestigious awards, the Grand Jury Awards for Narrative and Documentary Features, are voted on by the Grand Jury comprised of regional and national industry professionals.

The prize package for the Best Screenplay Winner includes two VIP level passes to the festival and provided accommodations, as well as a prize package of a one-week writer's residency on Star Island off New Hampshire's Atlantic coast.

The prize package for the Grand Jury Award Winners include a private industry meeting with Oscilloscope Laboratories (Narrative winner) and Factory 25 Films (Documentary winner).

Film Submission Guidelines (scroll down for Screenplay Submission Guidelines):
1. Projects completed on or after October 1, 2023.
2. Projects may originate from anywhere in the world.
3. No premiere requirement.
4. Projects may have distribution.
5. Please submit to only one category. If your film has a NH affiliation, please submit accordingly to identify the project for additional programming and awards consideration. This does not disqualify the film from other categories or awards.
6. New Hampshire 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.
7. The individual or corporation submitting the film hereby warrants that it is authorized to commit the film for screening, and understands and accepts these requirements and regulations.
8. The submitter shall indemnify and hold harmless New Hampshire 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.

Screenplay Submission Guidelines:
1. No material deemed pornographic by the judges will be considered.
2. Entries must be in English.
3. No substitutions of pages or scripts will be accepted.
4. Script is expected to be written in Industry-Standard Format, and of feature-length proportions, 80-120 pages.
5. This contest is open to any writer, 18 years of age or older.
6. You must not have received more than $5,000 in compensation from the sale or optioning of any screenplay.
7. An entered screenplay may not have been previously optioned, sold or produced.
8. Entering the competition constitutes permission to use the names and likenesses of the Finalists and the Grand Prize Winner for publicity and promotions with no additional compensation.
9. You are the sole author, or author with permission from all other authors of the work, and have exclusive rights and authority to submit the work.
10. You indemnify the New Hampshire Film Festival, their affiliates, sponsors, employees and judges of and from any and all claims, loss or liability that may be asserted against you or incurred by you or any associates, at any time in connection with the submitted work.
11. You understand that New Hampshire Film Festival will not use the material or any part of, except in connection with the Awards, unless you a) enter into an agreement granting rights to the material or b) determine in good faith that you do not own or control the material because features or elements were independently developed by someone other than you, are in the public domain or are not novel or new.
12. You request that the New Hampshire Film Festival read, evaluate and judge the submitted material.

Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Munir Atalla

    We had a wonderful time at NH and immediately felt cared for and prioritized by the incredible team there. The program was brilliantly curated, and we saw so many great films. The festival prioritizes artists in a way unlike any other festival I've experienced! Highly recommend submitting and attending!

    November 2023
  • Brantley Palmer

    This was my first time being accepted to and attending the New Hampshire Film Festival but it was an unbelievable experience and a festival I can't wait to go to again. Besides being in beautiful downtown Portsmouth, NH, the festival is incredibly well organized and showcases the films in gorgeous venues. It was an amazing festival and I can't recommend it highly enough.

    October 2023
  • Joan Cassin

    This was my favorite festival to date! What a great location with gorgeous venues. Portsmouth in the fall was the perfect backdrop. The programming in our shorts blocks was fantastic and I was so glad to meet all of the filmmakers there. Loved every bit of it and will absolutely be attending again!

    October 2023
  • This is one of the best festivals I have been a part of. We are on the festival circuit this year with our short film and I have to say this is the best organized and executed festival. The town of Portsmouth is a dream and so charming. Every venue is within walking distance. The filmmaker events were wonderfully hosted with great food and drinks. I made several new friends. I will continue to attend this festival yearly whether I have a film in it or not.

    I really think this is the best festival out there!

    October 2023
  • This was an amazing festival. The downtown area in Portsmouth NH, where it is located is fantastic, they had parties every night and filmmaker networking events everyday, the film selections for the whole festival were top notch. Met some amazing filmmakers and our screening was fantastic. You will not be disappointed at this fest, can't wait to get to screen work here again!

    April 2023