Spark Micro-Short Film Festival

Spark Micro-Short Film Festival (formerly MicroMania Film Fest) builds cultural awareness by showcasing amazing micro-short films by diverse creators. Since 2021 our annual festival opens with the distinct Haudenosaunee Micro-Short Film program, co-developed with curator/host, Haudenosaunee filmmaker Terry Jones.

Films that screen during Spark Micro-Short Film Fest events introduce social themes in creative connecting hearts and communities while celebrating the art and skill of films 5 min and under.

Our audiences are diverse, our events are free and we locate them at venues accessible to all our community members. Many of our events are located in communities impacted by the traumas of social, racial and economic justice. We keep this in mind when films are selected for our live events.

Films are selected based on impact first and production quality second.
Perfection is not necessary. We're grassroots and It's our goal to spark new voices to self-represent via film and video.

We have a multi-round selection with deadlines in late September, late December, Late March and mid April. Our final, late deadline is May 19th. Filmmakers are notified of selection status within a month of the deadline under which they submitted. Filmmakers are notified of finalist status on or before June 17th, 2023.

*** IMPORTANT - we send notifications through FilmFreeway and provide further instructions by posting notes to your filmfreeway project page. Please make sure that FilmFreeway.com is in your contact list or you may miss our notification. Failure to respond to acceptance notifications may result in an incomplete status and/or eventual disqualification.

*2023 SMSFF Officially Selected films:

1. Advance to our juried finalist round in June to determine which films will screen during our 2023 festival events as well as award winners.
2. Are invited to stream their film *MicroMania Channel that has topped 1.4M views since it's launch in 2020. We've discovered that micro-short films attract more views together than alone.
3. Sometimes get referrals to other festivals and invitations: to have their films, join panel discussions, be guest bloggers, be interviewed and have options to screen during Spark year-round events - some that may even pay a screening fee.

Only finalist films - screen and compete for awards during our 2023 festival event.

**If your film is over 5 minutes due to credits - enter your runtime as 5 min.

SELECTION PROCESS, JUDGES AND SPONSORS

Filmmakers are notified of official selection and invited to stream on our channel on a rolling basis. Official selection does not guarantee participation in Spark Micro-Short Film Festival 2023 events.

Officially selected films advance to our finalist round in July 2023 which determines which films will screen and compete during our 2023 festival event.

Check out former MicroMania Film Fest 2019-2022 Officially Selected films at micromaniafilms.com

IRANIAN FILMMAKERS - HOW TO REQUEST AND OBTAIN A CODE
1. Scan evidence of nationality (photo id - passport or driver's license) showing your name and address 2. Scan a postmarked and dated bill or another official document that shows your current place of residence 3. Send both via email to micromania@sparkfilmmakers.org 4. Once we confirm that you are eligible, we will send you a code. 5. Once you have received your unique code from us you may submit via this category and you must upload your documents to the docs section of your application. I request per submitter per year.

EVALUATION

Submissions are evaluated on a combined basis of impact, uniqueness of vision and production quality with a weight placed on impact.

Films are also evaluated in comparison to other recently submitted films as well as previous season official selections and award winners.

MicroMania Channel offers a good basis to acquaint you with the kinds of films that have been accepted previously. www.micromaniafilms.com

AWARD JUDGING

Officially selected films receive a laurel, the option to join the MicroMania® channel and advance to our finalist round which determines what films will screen during our annual festival event series.

Our judging panel reflects all members of a society so brilliant work isn't passed over due to unconscious prejudice or bias.

Films are juried by artists, industry professionals, film lovers, media academics, and previous year MicroMania award winners. Films are rated on a scale from 1-10 based on impact first and production quality second.

Festival Finalist films screen live during our festival and compete for prizes. Finalist notification date TBD but no later than July 30, 2023.

2023 Judges TBD

2022 Judges:
Ayana Harper - Director, Winner MMFF 2021 Best Micro-Comedy
Molly Smith - Filmmaker, Winner MMFF 2021 Best Micro-Freestyle
Colm Scully- Director-Winner Best Micro Animation 2021
Lukia Costello - Filmmaker, Executive Director, Spark Filmmakers Collaborative
Shayna Strype - Filmmaker/Director, Winner MMFF 2020 Best Micro-Experimental
Ada Defriez- Filmmaker/Director, Winner MMFF 2020 Best Micro-Experimental
John Massier Curator/Director, Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center)
Meg Knowles Documentary Filmmaker and Associate Professor of Media Production

2021 JUDGES:

Adam Gaudreault- Director, Winner MMFF 2020 Best Micro-Horror
Debbie Rudman - Community TV Programming Director & Producer
Lukia Costello - Filmmaker, Executive Director, Spark Filmmakers Collaborative
Kathy Spillman - Director, Community Outreach, Journey's End Refugee Services
Christopher Gallant - Filmmaker and Professor of Communications
Roxana Walker-Canton - Filmmaker and University Professor
Seaton Kay-Smith - Writer/Actor/Producer - 2020 Comedy in Micro filmmaker panelist
Paul Longley - Writer, Actor & Filmmaker
Jo Lane - Writer/Director
Tammy Mcgovern - Artist
Danielle Thomas - Critic
Léwuga Benson - Critic
Danielle Thomas - Critic

2020 JUDGES:

Carl Lee (Professor of Media Studies)
Nick Bigtower (Bigtower Pictures)
Killer Horror Critic
MJ Micheaux Film Club
Christa Avampato (blogger - Curating a Creative Life)
Black Girls Film Club
Tweed (Artistic Director Native Spirit Film Festival)
Richard Smith (Unexplained Podcast)
Kazuya Ashizawa (Filmmaker, MMFF 2019 Best Micro-Documentary winner)
Nick Brannigan (Real World Films)
MiMi Q. Atkins (Mystic Road Films)
Tilke Hill (Actor, Producer/Director and Festival Director - Buffalo International Film Festival 2017-2019)
Joanna White-Oldham (Writer/Director/Owner JWO Media)
Aaron Leventman (Actor, Playwright, Instructor)
Ed Cardoni (Director, Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center)
John Massier (Curator, Director, Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center)
Neil Weschler(Playwright/ Filmmaker/ Mixed Media Artist)
Tweed (Native Spirit Film Festival)

SPONSORS

Money isn't everything. MicroMania® takes care to only select sponsors and partners with a track record of inclusion and a sensitivity to undue financial barriers that impede diverse perspectives.

2022 Sponsors: Buffalo City Council North District, Native Spirit Film Festival UK, Torn Jersey Media (Haudenosaunee Micro-Short Film Program), Native Spirit Film Festival, Micro Budget Indie Filmmakers Podcast, CaraMax Studio, Buffalo Music Club, Spark Filmmakers Collaborative, Rezultz Marketing, Solar Ingram, Amy's Place Restaurant and the Buffalo and Erie County Public Library. Arts Services Inc.

MMFF22 was supported by a New York State Regrant and the office of the Governor of the State of New York as administered by Arts Services Inc. Additional support was provided by Buffalo Common Council Ellicott and Niagara District.

2021 Sponsors: Buffalo City Council North District, Native Spirit Film Festival UK, Torn Jersey Media (Haudenosaunee Micro-Short Film Program), Micro Budget Indie Filmmakers Podcast, Argle Bargle, CaraMax Studio, Buffalo Music Club and Spark Filmmakers Collaborative

2020 Sponsors: The New Hotness Media Institute, IndieVice, FREE AGENT, Argle Bargle: The Game Where you Insult Your Friends, Black Girl Film Club, CaraMax Studio, Mystic Road Films and Alycia Ripley.