Submissions must be received by 11:59pm PST, Sunday, November 7, 2021. There is no submission fee.
Please submit your film or video if ALL of the following conditions are met:
(1) it was completed AFTER January 1, 2020
(2) it has a minimum duration of 2 minutes and a maximum duration of 31 minutes including credits
(3) the filmmaker(s) has secured permission to use all copyrighted and trademarked material (music, images, text sources, etc).
(4) it has English subtitles if applicable
The following films or videos are INELIGIBLE. Please DO NOT submit if ANY of the following conditions apply to your film or video:
(1) it has been previously submitted to RSFF (Reel Shorts Film Festival)
(2) it is too short (less than 2 minutes) or too long (over 31 minutes)
(3) it is an experimental film (lacks a story plot)
(4) it is a dance video
(5) it is a music video that promotes a performer or band
(6) it is part of a web series
(7) it is on YouTube
(8) it is submitted as a private YouTube screener or as a Dropbox or Google docs link. We ONLY accept submissions that are uploaded to FilmFreeway as a file or Vimeo link. If it is submitted as a YouTube video, it will NOT be considered even if it is a private link.
(9) it has or will screen for the public in Grande Prairie before the last day of the RSFF on May 8, 2022.
All persons submitting films and videos warrant that they have the authority to submit the work to RSFF. Such persons indemnify and hold harmless the Reel Shorts Film Society, its judges, funders, sponsors, directors, staff and volunteers, individually and collectively, from and against all claims, demands, losses, damages, costs, liabilities and expenses including legal expenses arising out of or in connection with any and all claims, including third party claims, based on films/videos/artworks submitted to RSFF.
Submissions are judged on 4 criteria: (1) is it a good story; (2) is it beautifully crafted; (3) is it memorable; (4) does it offer insight into an unfamiliar world or a fresh perspective on a familiar one. The festival welcomes dramas, comedies, documentaries, and animated films as submissions. Two types of films are of special interest:
1. Films that are appropriate and entertaining for children and teens since over half of our audiences are school groups
2. Horror films since we have a very popular late night horror package
The festival prefers to program films that are NOT available to watch online by the public before the last day of the festival (May 8, 2022).
If the submitted film has a connection to the Peace Region (northwest Alberta or northeast British Columbia), please email Festival Director Terry Scerbak at terry@reelshorts.ca to identify how the film is connected to this region and give the title and tracking number for the submitted film. The connection can involve location (shot in the region), creative personnel (producer, director, and/or writer are or have been residents of the region), or actors who are or have been residents of the region.
If one of the creative personnel (producer, director, and/or writer) is an alumni filmmaker of the festival (i.e. such person was the producer, director, and/or writer of a selected film at a previous Reel Shorts Film Festival), please email Festival Director Terry Scerbak at terry@reelshorts.ca to identify who the alumni filmmaker is, the name and tracking number for the current submitted film, and the name of the previous selected film that person was also involved with.
If a submitted film is selected and invited to screen at the festival, we request that the filmmaker provide the best quality HD 1920 x 1080p digital file (MOV or MP4) of the film using the H.264 codec. If an HD 1920 x 1080p digital file (MOV or MP4) of the film encoded with ProRes 422 or ProRes 422(HQ) is available, please provide it as well. We will not accept ProRes LT, 4444, or Apple Animation Codec files. Please include English subtitles if applicable. Please DO NOT include a film leader countdown. Digital content should be submitted with 2-channel 16 bit, 48 kHz audio.
RSFF screens selected films for a live audience, and has an online festival component that can be accessed only by registered pass or ticket holders.
