Terms and Conditions
1. The Festival
1.1. The 2nd Niigata International Animation Film Festival 2024
(NIAFF 2024, hereafter) is hosted by Niigata International
Animation Film Festival Executive Committee (the
Committee, hereafter) and operated by the Niigata
International Film Festival Office (the Office, hereafter).
1.2. Schedule of NIAFF 2024
15th to 20th of March 2024 (JST)
1.3. Submission Schedule
00:00 a.m on 11th June- (JST)
2. Eligibility
2.1. The festival accepts only feature animation films for 40 minutes or longer,
including end credit. No limit to the methods of animation.
2.2. The film has to be completed in or after the year 2022.
2.3. The film has to come with English subtitles unless the work is in Japanese at
the time of the entry. For the Japanese-only video, English subtitles will be
required after shortlisting.
2.4. Either the director, producer, or the applicant must be entitled and
responsible for distributing the film. There should be no issues with screening
at NIAFF 2024.
2.5. All of the copyrights of music, characters, and other entities in the film with
copyrights shall be approved by the copyright holder(s) before submitting the
film. The festival has no responsibility for legal matters with the third party
to the submitted work, including infringement of rights and damages.
The submitted film might be distributed online in case of an epidemic or other
serious issues. However, the application of a film which restricts online
distribution shall be accepted. The refusal of online distribution will not bias the
judgment. The film will not be distributed online without permission.
3. Entry Fee
There is no fee to submit and apply to this competition.
4. How to submit your film
4.1. Online Application
4.1.1. Apply by submitting the application form on the NIAFF
official website or Filmfreeway with the information
about the film and director.
4.1.2. Upload the profile image of the director (800h x 600w
pixels and three still images of the film (720h x 1280w).
These images will be posted on the NIAFF official
website, flyers, pamphlets, or third-party media for
promotional purposes. Please note that images might be
trimmed to fit the media.
4.1.3. The film should be in a format that can be streamed and
viewed online.
4.2. Subtitles and translation
4.2.1. The primary shortlisting will be done with English
subtitles or Japanese.
4.2.2. The shortlisted films can be subtitled in Japanese
translation by the Office only from English to Japanese.
Please provide an English dialogue list* in order to
produce Japanese subtitles. The dialogue list with time
codes shall be uploaded from the online application
form.
＊Format requirement for Japanese subtitling by the Office
◯ Format: MOV (recommended) or MP4
◯ Framerate: 24fps (recommended) or 23.98fps
◯Codec ／ ProRes 422 HQ (recommended), ProRes 422 or H.246
◯Resolution ／ 1920pixel or more
◯ Aspect ratio／ 1:1.33(4:3)、1:1.66、1:1.77(16:9)、1:1.85、1:2.35
◯Audio specs ／ 5.1ch stereo
※ Contact us for any other formatting. Please note that you are responsible for subtitling if you submit it
in DCP. No fee shall be paid by NIAFF 2024.
5. Shortlisting (Preliminary judgment)
5.1. The selection committee will select films to be screened
during the NIAFF 2024 among all the submitted films.
5.2. The Committee will notify the results by email by the 30th of
November, 2023. The result will be posted on the NIAFF
official website.
5.3. The information about the selection committee will be posted
on the NIAFF official website after the closing of NIAFF
2024.
6. Screening of the Shortlisted Films
6.1. Live Screening
6.1.1. The shortlisted films will be screened (for a fee payable
by the audience) as a competition programme at NIAFF
2024.
6.1.2. The Office will decide the composition of the
competition program and screening schedule.
6.2. Online delivery
6.2.1. The shortlisted films might be delivered online as
payable content in case of an epidemic or other serious
issues. We will not distribute without the permission of
the applicant. The refusal of the online distribution does
not bias the juries.
6.3. The Sales from screening: No profit or sales by screening at
NIAFF 2024 will be paid to the applicant.
6.4. Materials for Screening
6.4.1. The shortlisted applicants must use the storage service
and send the video material within two weeks of
receiving the notification;* In the case of mailing, all
expenses associated with the application, such as
shipping fees, will be borne by the applicant.
6.4.2. Please send the file in one of the following formats.
6.4.2.1. MOV (recommended), MP4 or DCP
6.4.2.1.1. MOV or MP4: please follow the
specifications as in 4.2.2
6.4.2.1.2. DCP: the applicant is responsible for
subtitling English or Japanese. Japanese
with English subtitles, Non-English with
English or Japanese subtitles in keyless.
7. Final Judging
The shortlisted films will be subjected to the final judging.
7.1. The Committee will appoint international juries for the feature
film competition. The juries will choose which films will
receive awards during NIAFF 2024 after the examination.
Grand Prix JPY500,000.-
Kabuki Award JPY200,000.-
Edge Award JPY200,000.-
7.2. Prizes are subject to withholding tax for Japanese
residents/taxpayers.
8. Invitation
The Committee will bear the following invitation costs if the
following eligibility is met. Details will be notified directly to the
shortlisted applicants by the Office.
NIAFF 2024 might cancel the invitation in case of an epidemic or
any other severe issues.
Invitation Eligibility
One of the directors whose work has been nominated in the Feature
Film competition and who is able to attend the awarding ceremony
scheduled for March 20, 2024. In addition, he/she is obliged to
provide or attend the talks and speeches held during NIAFF 2024 if
requested.
Invitation Details
1) Paid only to a director
a) The total or partial amount of the round-trip flight ticket fee to
Japan (there is an upper limit by the Office) and
accommodation during NIAFF 2024 as specified in the 1-2
“Schedule of NIAFF 2024) is limited to the hotel booked by
the Office.
b) Part of meal expenses during NIAFF 2024 as specified in the
1-2 “Schedule of NIAFF 2024” specified by the Office.
9. Others
9.1. Approval of use for promotion purposes
The applicants agree that NIAFF 2024 may use a portion of his/her
submitted film, less than 10% of the total length of the work, and
submitted materials such as images of the work and the director for
the purpose of publicity of NIAFF 2024.
9.2. Maximum number of seats per work: 1,500 seats
The shortlisted films will be screened once at the main venue and
once at the sub-venue. Please note that additional screenings may be held at
the main venue due to the award, and if there is a strong request by the
press or buyers, they may be held in the screening room (120 seats).
9.3. Understandings
(1) We will not accept any questions or objections regarding the selection,
judgement, or reasons for rejection.
(2) Please be aware that once you have passed the preliminary judging for
shortlisting, you will not be able to withdraw your application.
(3) By submitting an online entry form either via the NIAFF official
website or the FilmFreeway, the applicant accepts these Terms and
Conditions b. Applicants should carefully check the Terms and Conditions
before applying.
(4) NIAFF 2024, the Committee, or the Office will not be responsible for
any accidents, such as loss or damage of the submitted films, until the
Office receives them.
(5) The submitted film materials will be kept from being destroyed or
returned but stored in the Niigata International Animation Film Festival
Library for the archive project studies for the future animation education.
(6) The Committee will decide all matters outside these Terms and
Conditions.
10. Contacts
Niigata International Animation Film Festival Office
c/o Sunny Rain Co., Ltd. 3060 Shirone, Minami-ku, Niigata City, Niigata
Tel:+81-25-385-6538
email entry@niaff.net
URL https://niigata-iaff.net
Please contact us via the above email address for correction of the
submitted information or troubles of entry.
