"Paris is always a good idea." —Audrey Hepburn.

The Paris Sessions is a totally independent event with its own team, its own screening, its own networking options.
It benefits from the massive network of the PAMA, Paris Art & Movie Awards, but it became through the years a real stepping stone for filmmakers who might not be in a position to travel to Paris, but still can benefit from the event.

🤝 MISSION STATEMENT: THE DEMAND FOR NETWORKING 🤝
The Paris Sessions (Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall) focus on networking, filmmakers talking to filmmakers, filmmakers promoting their films. We create a rendez-vous for every creator to be used as a platform to discuss their work, 4 times a year.

5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ REVIEWS

"Invaluable experience. My Instagram Interview provided an opportunity for me to share with others about my script" Jules Corriere

"Best thing that happened to me. Thanks for this opportunity and encouraging me to do my thing no matter what the obstacles are." Lam Vissay

/
/

The Paris Art and Movie Awards network exists since 2011.
It includes the PAMA, the HAMA, the YVFF, and the PAMA Sessionss
All our events are 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ reviewed here on FilmFreeway.

The PAMA Sessions is for all active and motivated filmmakers and scriptwriters who are looking for their work to be noticed and discussed, in Paris, France.

🎞️ PRESS about our flagship event the PAMA 🎞️
FOX: "The number 1 film festival in Paris, France"
AUTHORITY MAGAZINE: "screenings on the Champs-Elysees, and in all the most historic movie theaters of the City of Love"

🇫🇷 𝗪𝗘𝗟𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗘 TO THE NETWORK 🎉
You can enter the network through any of our events, then benefit from the perks or the PAMA events and connections.

🏆 Winning award for every category
🤝 Networking offered to every participant
💵 Free submission to the Yucca Valley Film Festival for all winners
🎬 Free access to watch our previously recorded events starring
- Alex Proyas
- Matthias Schweighöfer (preview here)
- William Baldwin (preview here)
- James Morrison (preview here)
- Shane Stanley
- Nick Powell

🥇 𝗔𝗪𝗔𝗥𝗗𝗦 🏆
Our awards are recognized by the movie industry, Imdb & Imdb pro qualifying.
We are:
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ - all our events are reviewed 5/5 stars on FilmFreeway
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ - ranked "#1 film festival in Paris" by CBS, NBC, FOX, Authority Magazine.
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ - ranked by The Culture Trip best event not to miss in Paris
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ - ranked by Time Out best local event
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ - labeled GOLD by FilmFreeway
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ - "a must watch" on the platform XERB.

DISCLAIMER:
All event dates will be set by the festival. It is the artist/submitter responsibility to make one self available to the set time and date.
Festival is not responsible of any change in guests and participants availability.

SUBMISSION & SUBMISSION FEE
We accept all genres and nationalities and language for all international categories.
Work may be entered into more than one category and will be reviewed separately for each category entered. All entries entered into multiple categories will be eligible for recognition in each and will be judged accordingly.
You are allowed to have multiple entries and submit to multiple categories, with the same or different films. Each category requires its own fee.
Entries are non refundable.
Please check the recommended lengths.
We do not provide free submissions.
We do not provide free submissions to movies from Iran.
We sometimes offer discounts : follow us on Instagram and Facebook.
We do not review movie submissions sent directly to us by email, unless we requested it. We only accept online digital submissions via selected platforms.
Each entry and submission category must have its own submission fee. 

Films or pieces submitted must be dated from 2 years maximum before the date of the festival.
If you submitted to the wrong category, contact us (there may be a fee).
If selected, you grant the PAMA the right to utilize any image, excerpt, titles, words you submitted to us, for promotion purposes.
The festival organizers may refuse any illegal, non-artistic, fake, false, incomplete entries.
Each student film submitted has to provide proof of studies. If you do not provide, your entry may not make it to selection and be set to incomplete or end up disqualified.
Animated short films (even student made) must submit to animated category.
Animated features (even student made) must submit to feature category.
A documentary (even student made) must submit to the documentary category,
Works in progress are not accepted.

OFFERS
Special offers, discounts, invitations do not guarantee a selection.

PRIZES
In the case of networking events accessible to submitters placing in the official selection: all event dates will be set by the festival. It is the artist/submitter responsibility to make one self available to the set time and date.
We do not ship trophies or certificates.

MATERIAL
You FilmFreeway profile must include :
- your country
- a poster of your project (whether it is a film, a script, or any piece of work. You don’t have one -> We can recommend a couple of designers).
- minimum 5 lines about your project (synopsis)
- a biography of the director or the artist.
- at least 2 pictures from the film with no watermarking.
- a trailer will be used. Your trailer must be on YouTube OR any other platform so we can embed it to our website and to our press releases. If you have no trailer: we can recommend several editors.

If an element goes missing or is not ready yet: tell us.

The names, title, country and all elements you fill your FilmFreeway profile with will be used if you get selected to the festival. Fill your profile fully and careful.
ALL communications are sent to the email address you provide. The festival is not responsible for any lost communication whatsoever.

Your FilmFreeway profile must provide a direct access to your work (video, film, photo) at all times. If your film or video disappears from your profile, your submission may be set to incomplete or even disqualified, if the incident happens after the official selection.

SOCIAL
We strongly recommend you have a Facebook and/or Twitter and/or Instagram page for your project or film so we can fully promote you.
We strongly recommend to supply us with a 59 seconds maximum version of your trailer, for Instagram purposes. We may decide not to use your file if it does not meet ou quality standards.

EVENT
Screenings at movie theaters like the Grand Rex require a DCP. We offer very accessible DCP services via our Paris studio, ask us.
Screenings at other venues require a HD digital file, sent by WeTransfer, following these specifications : .mp4, H264. Films below 5 minutes : less than 500MO. Films 5 to 10 minutes : less than 1G. Films 10 to 30 minutes : less than 2G. Feature films : less than 5G.
NO .mov will be used.
It is your responsibility to provide with the proper screening file, whether this demands a DCP or a special format.

ALUMNI NETWORK
The festival management alone validates the past and present Alumni Members. For more on this, please check our website.
The PAMA Sessions are an exclusive Alumni network, open to the selected and winning filmmakers joining the network with every Session. The Sessions offer another door to enter the PAMA network, and benefit from networking and all other options available at the time.

DISQUALIFICATION, ATTENDANCE & PLAGIARISM
Over the years, we dealt with some disqualification cases and some rare cases of plagiarism.
If your film raises some concerns about illegal copy or plagiarism, the case will be discussed. You may face public announcement. If the management team feels so, the submission platform will be alerted.
Once the decision of the festival is made on a case, it is definitive. Our decisions are made and remain public.
If you are selected or win, you are expected to attend the festival and participate.
If we face a situation with no response or no confirmation of participation, this obviously is the opposite of the will to network.
We then reserve the right to un-select the project and/or replace it.
If you confirm participation but do not show up, you will be unselected and disqualified.

ACCOMMODATION & TRANSPORTATION
The festival does NOT take care of travel nor accommodation expenses. We provide with a list of serious addresses.

SELECTION & NOTIFICATION
We may announce the first nominees before the notification date. This does not mean the selection is complete, this means we may make a first wave of selection to facilitate attendance.
When you receive the first platform update as a selected submission, that means you are selected, and you get an Official Selection Laurel. The selection does not grant a screening in every case, please check our website.
We cannot give each submitter a personal answer regarding their selection.
The selected talents receive an email with a link to the laurel center and all information about the festival.
If you're not selected, your movie status will be updated on FilmFreeway, and the platform will send an automatic notification at due date.

INSULTS, STALKING & TROLLS
Any insult or ill intended comment or email or message will results in immediate disqualification and blacklisting.
If your film has dozens or hundreds of awards, it does not mean it is good. Very few festivals and competition actually have some value. We will not respond to trolls.

SCRIPTS
Accepted scripts are only un-produced, 2018 or later.

We accept short movies, feature, short script/screenplay, feature script/screenplay, drama, horror, fantasy, comedy, documentary, animation, student, music video...

DATES
Our listed dates are anticipated dates.
Dates may change depending on local health regulations in Paris, as well as venues availability and best dates for press promotion.

COVID-19 NOTICE
Our event will respect all local Covid regulations.

RELEASE & RIGHTS
We do not pay screening fees. FilmFreeway is a third party platform you chose to use to submit for consideration to festivals.
We might set up screenings for free, or with a box 0ffice, at the discretion of the festival, and there will be no share of gross with participating filmmakers.
By submitting to the festival, you expressly authorize the festival and its affiliates to use every piece of content and information presented in your FilmFreeway project page, in connection to the festival, the event, and for promotion of the festival, now and in the future. That includes all videos, pictures, texts (biography, logline and other) hosted on your FilmFreeway project page submitted to us.

Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Bianca O'Neill

    Great festival! Wish could have attended in person but was such an honour for our award of Yellow Daisy Butterfly. Highly recommend for great networking opportunities.

    August 2024
  • Maing Caochong

    Many thanks to the PAMA Winter Session for awarding INNERMOST the Best Animation Short. It was a huge boost for me and the whole team!

    February 2023
  • Winning Best Short Script for my screenplay “Standing in Line” at the PAMA Summer Sessions has been an invaluable experience. My Instagram Interview provided an opportunity for me to share with others about my script, and why I think it is important to tell this story right now in the political climate of my country. Though I have been a playwright for many years, I am a newcomer in the field of screenwriting, and winning at the PAMA Summer Sessions has helped connect me to others in the industry. It also provided an acknowledgement that the stories I care about- true stories about the extraordinary lives of ordinary people- has a place in the world of film. I am so honored that “Standing in Line” was chosen for this award, and grateful for the new connections I am making because of it.

    August 2022
  • The PAMA Sessions are the best thing that happened to me.

    The film has gone through many obstacles, like the four-month lockdown from hell in Vietnam where nobody could leave their homes, or the one year it took me to finish it because of COVID interfering and affecting post-production immensely.
    There were people who told me not to do a Vietnamese sci-fi, not to write, direct and most importantly be the lead all at once or shoot it entirely in Vietnamese because I wouldn't stand a chance against English language films. Luckily I didn't listen to those voices and pulled through but to those who believed and supported me.
    We won, no one can take that away from me.
    I can not mention enough what that means to me. I am motivated to shoot more in my home country and my home language knowing there are people out there like the ones from PAMA who would appreciate it. Thanks for this opportunity and encouraging me to do my thing nomatterwhat the obstacles are.

    August 2022
  • Pelayo de Lario

    An honour and a fantastic experience. I hope to meet you again next year!!

    December 2021