*** Se você deseja inscrever um trabalho brasileiro, vá direto em www.riowebfest.net***

Rio Webfest takes place in November in the wonderful city of Rio de Janeiro. We have festival partners from all around the globe, including Los Angeles, Copenhagen, Marseille, Bilbao, Sicily, Rome, Melbourne, Berlin, and Seoul!

Join the webfest celebration in Rio de Janeiro and get together for some caipirinhas and coconut water at our beautiful beaches!

Some of our main attractions:
- CASH AWARDS!
- SUPER PROJECT: pitching sessions and business meetings with international producers.
- SILVER TICKETS: Direct official selection to other web fest partners of the Web Fest International Circuit.
- GOLDEN TICKET: Direct official selection to other web fest partners (including plane ticket and accommodation paid).
- BUSINESS ROUNDS with representatives of Brazil's TV Channel such as Canal Curta!.
- KEYNOTES from university professors about the web video in Brazil and abroad.
- PANELS with creators from Brazil and abroad.
- SCREENING SESSIONS of web series.
- CLOSED PARTIES and special events for festival participants only.
- RED CARPET and AWARDS SHOW broadcasted online.

Let us help you share your work with the world!

CASH AWARDS
Best Brazilian Series - R$ 1.500,00
Best International Series - R$ 1.500,00
Popular Vote - R$ 1.000,00
Web Pilot - R$ 1.000,00

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

My web series already participated in last year's festival. Can I join again?
Yes, because every year we will have a different jury.

My web series has only one chapter or has not been filmed yet. Can I participate?
The minimum number for a product to be considered a web series is two episodes. They have to be ready at the time of registration. If you have a project, you can't participate in the competitive show, but you can submit for the SUPER PROJECT.

Is there a duration limit on the episodes submitted?
No, there are no duration limits for your submitted show. However, if it gets in the official selection and you want it to be screened at the festival, you need to send us a video with a maximum duration of 12 minutes.

How do the official selection process and awards of the festival work?
The festival staff reviews the submissions, watches the uploaded videos, and selects the nominees for each category. The official selection list will be posted on our website and social media. During the event, our national and international jury will select the winners for each award. You can submit your web series, trailer, podcast, webcomic, web ad, music, or dance video on this website or via Film Freeway.

I read in the regulations that English subtitles are mandatory, even for English speaking shows. How does it work?
As the festival staff is bilingual, there is no need to subtitle the submitted episodes in English to participate in the official selection. However, if your web series is nominated for an award, you must send copies with English subtitles so the international jury can evaluate your work, even if it is spoken in the English language.

I do not have a webseries. Can I come to the festival to watch the screenings and make contacts?
Of course you can! Our festival will be held in Cidade das Artes (City of Arts), a gigantic complex near the beautiful beaches of Barra da Tijuca, in the West Zone of Rio de Janeiro. The festival attractions, except the opening and awards ceremonies, are free so everyone can participate. The venue is safe, it has a paid parking lot and is right next to the Alvorada bus terminal, with easy access via bus or BRT.

What are trailer and web ad categories?
In the festival. we have the trailer and web advertising categories. If you do not wish to submit your whole series or if it is not ready yet, you can compete only with the trailer. Web ads are for advertising videos made especially for the internet. We believe that the web requires a different language from conventional TV and the commercials made to be watched mainly through digital platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube need recognition!

What is the minimum age to participate?
The event has a minimum rating of 14 years of age to participate. Minors can go with their parents.

What is the SUPER PROJECT?
Please head out to www.riowebfest.net to find out more about these other types of submissions.

COMEDY
Best Comedy Series
Best Writing (Comedy)
Best Directing (Comedy)
Best Female Performance in a Comedy
Best Male Performance in a Comedy
Best Ensemble Performance (Comedy)

DRAMA
Best Dramatic Series
Best Writing (Drama)
Best Directing (Drama)
Best Female Performance in a Drama
Best Male Performance in a Drama
Best Ensemble Performance (Drama)

ACTION/HORROR/SCI-FI
Best Action Series
Best Writing (Action)
Best Directing (Action)
Best Female Performance in an Action Series
Best Male Performance in an Action Series
Best Ensemble Performance (Action)

DOCUMENTARY/VARIETY/EDUCATIONAL (NON-FICTION)
Best Documentary Series
Best Variety Series
Best Educational Series
Best Directing (Non-Fiction)
Best Writing (Non-Fiction)
Best Performance (Non-Fiction)
Best Lifestyle

RIOWF SPECIAL AWARDS
Best Musical Series
Best Trailer
Best Web Advertisement
Best Stories
Best Influencer
Best Diversity Series
Best Music Video
Best Dance Video
Best Performance Video
Best Original Idea
Best Filmed Theater
Best WebComics
Incentive to Brazilian Digital Production
RioWF Internacional Circuit

TECHNICAL
Best Cinematography
Best Editing
Best Costume Design
Best Production Design
Best Makeup
Best Soundtrack
Best Visual Effects
Best Sound Design
Best Production
Best Videographics

INFANTILE-JUVENILE
Best Infantile-Juvenile Series
Best Infantile-Juvenile Performance

ANIMATION
Best Animated Series

PODCASTS
Best Fiction Podcast
Best Non-Fiction Podcast
Best Cast (Podcast)
Best Directing (Podcast)
Best Podcast Actual Play Video or RPG Video or Video Cast
Best Standalone Audio Fiction

CASH AWARDS
Best Brazilian Series
Best International Series
Popular Vote
Web Pilot

SUPER PROJECT
Meeting Sessions with international TV and VOD producers (find out more at www.riowebfest.net).

SILVER TICKETS - DIRECT SELECTION TO THE WEB FEST INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT
Direct Selection to Melbourne Web Fest (Australia)
Direct Selection to Los Angeles Web Fest (USA)
Direct Selection to Seoul Web Fest (South Korea)
Direct Selection to Webfest Berlin (Germany)
Direct Selection to Sicily Webfest (Italy)
Direct Selection to Digital Media Fest (Spain)
Direct Selection to Die Seriale (Germany)

We are looking for all kinds of web series.

To be able to compete, a web series must have at least two episodes released or ready to be viewed by festival selectors by the time of the submission deadline. There is no duration limit for each episode in the submission and web series that participated in our past editions can also participate this year since we have a different jury every year.

Creators are welcome to submit as many web series as they want, but each one requires one submission fee.

Any non-English or non-Brazilian Portuguese language web series must have subtitles in English and/or in Brazilian Portuguese available by the time of the submission. If your series is officially selected, YOU MUST PROVIDE English subtitles for the screening copies.

Although there is no duration limit for submitting, the screening time limit for each selected web series is 12 minutes (including credits). You are allowed to either send a shorter episode with a total running time of no more than 12 minutes or an edited reel of two episodes if your chapters are really short.

Music Videos, Dance Videos, Art Videos, Podcasts, and Web Comics are also welcome in our festival.

Selected entries are required to provide a high-resolution copy of the screening episode(s) encoded in .mp4 or .mov files in 1080p, h264, max 20mbps bitrate, NTSC or PAL. Please double-check your screening files before sending them.

Regulations and Procedures
1. Rio Web Fest will take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in late November.
2. Submission Deadlines: Submissions are open from February until September. Official selections will be announced in October 15th.
3. Submission Format: For Web Series, a minimum of 2 episodes must be submitted online. For Trailers, Web ads, Music and Dance Videos, just the link for the video will be enough. You can submit your series, podcast, trailer, web ad, music or dance video, etc. on our website or via FilmFreeway.
4. Submission Eligibility: All projects produced anytime and anywhere in the world with a two-episodes minimum for series or one video for the rest are eligible for submission. Web series that participated in our earlier editions are still eligible since we have a different jury every year.
5. Submission Fee: All FilmFreeway submissions for Rio Web Fest must be paid by credit card. The submission fee is non-refundable.
6. Selection of Web Series: Submissions are reviewed and selected under the following criteria: quality of narrative and production, acting, originality, cinematography, sound, and other technical categories. Official selections will be announced on October 15th and the results will be informed by email. Nominees should send digital files for screening encoded in .mp4 or .mov files in 1080p, h264, max 10mbps bitrate, NTSC or PAL.
7. Official selections MUST PROVIDE English subtitles for the screening copies, regardless of the original language of your show.
8. Screenings are scheduled during the festival under the criterion of Rio Webfest. Whilst every effort will be made to fulfill the published schedule, we reserve the right to make changes at any time for any reason and we'll not be liable for any costs claimed as a result of a change in scheduling.
9. Filmmakers can submit as many web series as they want.
10. The festival is sovereign in its decisions regarding the distribution of prizes, trophies, and laurels and is free to modify them if necessary, for reasons of "force majeure", keeping that resolution always as a last resort, to be used only if all the alternatives are exhausted.
11. Silver Tickets (direct selection for partner festivals) are a courtesy exchanged between festivals and, therefore, are the responsibility of the partner festival and not of the Rio Webfest organization. Our team will give the winners' contact details to the partner festival, which will ask for the necessary travel documents. The winners, in turn, have the responsibility to issue these documents and to meet the demands of partner festivals. We cannot be held responsible if a partner festival ceases to exist or cancels the prize on your behalf for any reason. These prizes are also non-transferable and cannot be adjourned to the following year.
12. All submitters declare themselves as responsible for the rights of all contents of their episodes in the act of submission. For example, the soundtrack, logo, and images. In case of the true rights holder inquires about the unauthorized use of his creation, the festival will not be responsible for it.
13. The creator is also responsible for well functioning of the episode links sent to curators during the entire submission period, from the submission date until the official selection.
14. During the awards show, the winner trophies will be given to anyone representing the series, all exceptions must be specifically asked in writing before the festival starts. If you are not present at the awards show, we can still send your trophy by mail afterward, as long as you can cover the shipping costs.
15. Payment of the submission fee and filling out the submission form does not mean that your web series will be automatically nominated for an award or that you'll be eligible for the pitching sessions. The festival will preselect the series for the awards nominations and preselect projects to participate in the pitching sessions.
16. All CASH PRIZES will be paid only via Paypal account transfer up till one month after the awards show is over. Paypal taxes and fees are also responsibility of the prize winner.
17. If you plan on attending the festival in person, please note that Brazil requires a TOURIST VISA for citizens of specific countries. Please check out if your country is on the list and how to require your visa at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visa_policy_of_Brazil#Tourist_visa.
18. Please arrive early to ensure your ticket purchase because all spaces are subject to stocking.
19. By submitting to Rio Webfest, you hereby agree to the use your image and small excerpts of your work to promote the festival in trailers, teasers, and live coverage of the festival on live streaming and social media such as Facebook, Youtube, Twitter, and regular television.

Please follow us on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook for the latest info.

Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Jamie Hart

    Rio Webfest is a really high quality competitive well-organized festival. They do a lot of promotion and hold a great live event. We could not attend this year but hope to in the future. Excellent Festival!

    January 2024
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    Response from festival:

    Dear Jamie, thank you for your honest review! Northern Nightingales was a delight for us and we really hope to meet you in person one day. Send our best wishes to Susie. Much love from Rio!

  • Travis Vengroff

    Very professional and communicative! They put on a great event :)

    December 2023
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    Response from festival:

    Dear Travis, thank you for your kind words! We really loved The Boar Knight and we hope to meet you in person one day. Cheers and much love from Rio

  • Thank you very much for selecting our film " Mad Scientist: A.I. Maxima "! We are very grateful to be part of this prestigious festival and got the opportunity to introduce our film in the workshop panel. We highly recommend this film festival to every filmmaker fellow! Great experience! Thank you!

    December 2023
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    Response from festival:

    Dear Antonia, thank you so much for your words, it means a lot to us. AI Maxima was a delight to review and we certainly would love seeing more from you in the future. Cheers and all the best from Rio,

  • Damali Kai

    Thank you Rio Web Fest for selecting, nominating, and awarding "CCF's Solstice Stories". The care, communication, and overall event were a wonderful opportunity. 100% worth it!
    Advice to readers: Apply, participate, connect, there is community and the Rio Web Fest proves that. Take hold ... create and collaborate.
    Rio Web Fest is nurturing the streaming revolution that is remapping the media landscape.

    December 2023
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    Response from festival:

    Dear Damali, thanks for the positive feedback and congrats on the awards received by CCF Solstice Stories! It was an amazing achievement and we hope to see more from you in the future. Much love from Rio!

  • Chido Mwat

    Great communication and many opportunities to be involved internationally. Look forward to entering again!

    December 2023
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    Response from festival:

    Dear Chido, Adult-erers is amazing and we really enjoyed your project! Thank you for submitting to Rio and we hope to see more from you in the future! Cheers and much love from Rio