The North East International Film Festival is the youngest BIFA qualifying (for shorts only) and IMDB qualifying festival, one of only 80 festivals worldwide to adopt the F-Rating, representing females in film, the first EVER festival to sign up to the BBC 50/50 Equality Project, making that organisational commitment to diversity and the first EVER festival to receive the Raising Films Ribbon for creating an inclusive space for Filmmaker, Audience and our Team!
The NEIFF is a carbon negative festival.

The NEIFF has been shortlisted for the prestigious BAFTA For The Love Of Film Awards Competition 2022, for the Makers & Shakers Awards for Initiative To Grow Local Industry, The Small Awards under the category New Kid On The Block, The British Business Awards in various categories and the Inclusive Companies Awards. Our Festival Director is a Full BAFTA Member, a BIFA Voter, a Fellow Of The Royal Society Of Arts, a Royal Television Society Member, has also recently been added to the Northern Power Women 2022 Future List for her efforts in supporting and accelerating gender equality through the NEIFF, won a Champion Of Women Award 2022, She has also been awarded the Prime Minister's Points Of Light Award at 10 Downing Street for her work with the NEIFF.

We are in partnership with BBC Radio and Regalier Magazine which is the worlds first online global, luxury magazine. One of our official distribution partners is Opprime TV. All of our festival award winners will automatically be offered the option of screening their films on the Opprime TV platform. The Filmmaker will receive a percentage of all subscriptions and winners of the Audience Awards and Best Of The Fest Awards will receive cash prizes, sponsored by Northumbria University. Our partners include Star & Shadow Cinema, Canford, Focus Canning, Northumbria University, Newcastle University, Anarchy Brew Co, Titan Media & Close Protection, No Worries Marketing and more. The NEIFF is also in partnership with iPitch.tv. All of our festival Winners will be awarded a complimentary 12 month code for iPitch.tv and every Official Selection will be awarded a complimentary 3 month code. even more reason to submit!
About iPitch: Industry members in their marketplace are scouting for Feature Film and Television projects for all the major networks, studios and platforms. These Executive Members include:
Discovery Studios, Sony Pictures Entertainment Television, New Line Cinema, Warner Brothers, Echo Lake Entertainment, Relativity Television, CBS, WEtv, Authentic Entertainment, Forman Productions, Infinity Media Inc., Little Studio Films, Leftfield Pictures, Brian Graden Media... to name a few.

Their site also features educational content and interviews with industry notables such as: Mike Medavoy, Doug Mankoff, and Douglas Ross who share their experience and personal insights for our up and coming filmmakers and creatives.

The NEIFF is proud to be partnered with the European Independent Film Festival which is in it's 17th edition, takes place in Paris annually.

The North East International Film Festival is the World's most inclusive, collaborative and diverse female-founded film festival, connecting Filmmakers and Film-goers through an array of exciting film related activities and events. This is a festival in every sense of the word.

The NEIFF is humbled to have the support of our regions Universities and is proud to confirm the participation of over 100 student volunteers and placements so far.

Our categories include the standard submission categories as well as Best LGBTQ+, Best Low/No Budget, Best Student Film and our VisABLE category which is to represent disability in all it's forms.

Our event is a 3 day theme park of award winning films to take place in various locations throughout Newcastle from 27th September - 30th September 2024. Our Cinema partners range from independent, volunteer-led cinemas to 13 screen chain cinemas.

The festival is to include one off special screenings of award-winning films with cast and crew Q&A’s, VIP networking events, free, educational, film related workshops delivered by industry professionals and three full day screenings of finalist films. The festival will culminate in a Closing Awards Gala, with welcome drinks, networking/mingling and media opportunities, a 3 course gourmet Artisan meal, live music, entertainment and special guests.

Award trophies will be custom made and will be presented for each of the submission categories as well as for Audience Choice Award, Best of the Fest, Best Director, Best Performance and Best Location Sound.

Our Grand Jury Members are chosen specifically for their expertise in the industry and their links to theatrical distribution.

Come and join us to appreciate stunning locations, regional specialities and the world famous Geordie hospitality.

Awards & Prizes

NEIFF is a BIFA qualifying festival (for shorts only) and an IMDB qualifying Festival.

Prizes include custom-made award trophies, product prizes and cash prizes.

One of our official distribution partners is Opprime TV. All of our festival award winners will automatically be offered the option of screening their films on the Opprime TV platform (which is a direct competitor of Netflix and Hulu). The Filmmaker will receive a percentage of all subscriptions.

All of our festival Winners will be awarded a complimentary 12 month code for iPitch.tv and every Official Selection will be awarded a complimentary 3 month code. even more reason to submit!
About iPitch: Industry members in their marketplace are scouting for Feature Film and Television projects for all the major networks, studios and platforms. These Executive Members include:
Discovery Studios, Sony Pictures Entertainment Television, New Line Cinema, Warner Brothers, Echo Lake Entertainment, Relativity Television, CBS, WEtv, Authentic Entertainment, Forman Productions, Infinity Media Inc., Little Studio Films, Leftfield Pictures, Brian Graden Media... to name a few.
Their site also features educational content and interviews with industry notables such as: Mike Medavoy, Doug Mankoff, and Douglas Ross who share their experience and personal insights for our up and coming filmmakers and creatives.

Custom-made award trophies will be presented at the Closing Awards Ceremony on the final night of the Festival.

You can submit to more than one category if you feel it is applicable to your film. To make the subcategories more accessible for everyone they are listed at a lower price point to the main ones.

Please see the rules and terms for submission criteria of each category.

Rules & Terms

All films will screen with subtitles for accessibility (even those originally in English). Please ensure you submit a captioned version of your film or can create one if your film is selected. The Festival has a broad scope but an inclusive narrative.

GENERAL RULES AND CONDITIONS

1. Submission Format
Films must be submitted via online screener.

2. Submission Eligibility
- All submissions must have been completed after 1 January 2020.
- NEIFF prefers at least a North East premiere for all films.
- Works-in-progress and films with distribution are accepted.
- All films not in the English language are required to have subtitles.

3. Premiere Status
- NEIFF prefers at least a North East premiere for all films.

4. Film Classification
All films screened during the North East Film Festival receive an age rating that is decided by the Newcastle City Council.

5. Submission Fee
All FilmFreeway submissions for North East International Film Festival are to be paid by card. The submission fee is non-refundable.

6. Shipping
All shipping and postage costs, if the film is selected for the Festival, for all DCPs and additional materials sent to and returned from North East International Film Festival must be borne by the submitting party. NEIFF will not accept Cash On Delivery shipments. NEIFF will not absorb any fees incurred in British customs. All charges must be pre-paid. The onus is on the non-attending winning Filmmaker to cover cost of postage and packing of their custom-made award trophy.

7. Notification
NEIFF endeavours to complete all selection procedures by 19th August 2024 and inform all submitting parties, in writing, if their film has been successful or not after that time. Successful submissions will receive a Filmmaker Festival Pack that will include important information on shipping the DCP to the Festival, press and publicity, guest accreditation, contact information and how to make the most of participating in the Festival.

8. Festival Screenings
Selected films MUST provide a Digital Cinema Package (DCP) and video file (.mov or .mp4).in order to be screened at the North East International Film Festival. The film title MUST be clearly labelled on the hard drive.
A selected DCP or video file must be received by the North East International Film Festival no later than TWENTY days prior to its scheduled screening date.

9. Scheduling
Screenings are scheduled during the Festival at the discretion of NEIFF. Whilst every effort will be made to adhere to the published schedule, NEIFF reserves the right to make changes at any time for any reason. North East International Film Festival will not be liable for any costs claimed as a result of a change in scheduling.
No film may be withdrawn from the festival programme after its selection.

GENERAL AGREEMENT OF PARTICIPATION IN NEIFF:

By submitting to the North East International Film Festival I confirm that I have read and accept the terms and regulations of NEIFF. I will provide the festival with any additional information required pursuant to these rules and regulations. I authorize the NEIFF to exhibit my film, and if selected, I confirm that an exhibition copy will be available in a required format for screening during the 2024 festival (September 27th - 30th 2024). I certify that I hold all necessary rights for the submission of this film/video to the NEIFF and that all rights and clearances have been made. This film is not subject to any litigation nor is threatened by any litigation. I hold NEIFF harmless from damage to, or loss of any or all materials en route to, from or otherwise at the festival. I assume all legal responsibilities therein. By Agreeing to these terms, I transfer to NEIFF the right to use excerpts of the submitted film, its stills, and trailers, for the purposes of publicity and marketing of the film at the 2024 festival, and for other non-commercial uses related to the promotion of the 2024 festival. I hereby agree to indemnify NEIFF, in the event that such rights have not been properly transferred.

31 Reviews
Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Michael P. Spencer

    This was one of my absolute favourite festivals of the year and I'm so glad my film was selected. Newcastle is a wicked city, the festival and all of the people involved were really welcoming and involved with guests and filmmakers alike, and I hope it grows and grows over the years to come. The films shown were so well curated and of a great level. The team behind the festival did a great job of organising talks, networking Q&As, and social events. All in all, I had a great time and met some lasting connections / friends.

    December 2023
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  • Sunita Soliar & Statten Roeg

    We had an amazing time at North East International Film Festival. The Star and Shadow cinema was a great venue. The people were all so welcoming and nice, and it was a lot of fun to meet the other filmmakers. We would highly recommend!

    October 2023
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  • Tom Turner

    A really worthwhile weekend with masterclasses, loads of films to see and networking events that were fun and a great way to get to know fellow filmmakers.

    Would definitely recommend submitting to NEIFF, thankyou for having CATERPILLAR as part of your programming.

    October 2023
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  • Ryan Paige

    A great experience at a wonderful festival. First time visiting Newcastle and had a fantastic time. Lots of great communication from the team with plenty of events on offer and was lovely to meet fellow filmmakers at the closing night gala!

    October 2023
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  • Abbie Elliott

    Thank You North East International Film Festival! This was our UK premiere and what a great festival to begin with. Everyone was so lovely. Looking forward to entering again with our next film!

    October 2023
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