Welcome to Reel Equals International Film Festival, a production of Through Women's Eyes in beautiful Sarasota, Florida! Our signature 28th annual festival, Reel Equals, is March 4-9, 2027, and we supplement this with year-round Pop-Up film showings.

We are a mission-driven festival, dedicated to showcasing works that challenge traditional stereotypes, support female filmmakers, or address issues inadequately represented in the mainstream media.

We are an international festival, and every year we host significant numbers of films from all over the world.

Branded Content/Advertisements will be featured in a film block for the first time in 2027. This is in recognition of the power and impact of this media and the importance of acknowledging creative Branded Content that refuses to reproduce traditional stereotypes.

At the 2027 March festival, we will be supporting visiting and local filmmakers through a networking and pitch panel designed to help foster collaboration and enrich new and established filmmakers alike.

We frequently select films that go on to commercial success, publicize the work of voices that need to be heard, and remind the world about issues that need more attention.

In 2027, our films will be shown in three ways: in person at theaters in Sarasota (March 5-7, 2027); on our virtual, on-demand platform for a global audience (March 4-9, 2027); and in select, invitation-only settings throughout the calendar year.

PLEASE READ OUR SUBMISSION CRITERIA WITH CARE.

We are looking for films that illuminate women's universal experiences and we welcome films from any country. All of our films must be captivating and, if there's some humor, that never hurts!

We accept films:

- That focus on women's stories, interests, and lives; OR
- That refuse to perpetuate traditional stereotypes, on any topic; OR
- Made by anyone identifying as female, on any topic.

We strongly encourage selected filmmakers to attend our in-person festival; it is a great opportunity to publicize the film, answer questions from the audience, and participate in our receptions and panel discussions with other filmmakers. We have a very engaged base of supporters who host filmmakers and appreciate the entire weekend.

Our organization, Through Women's Eyes, is a non-profit gender equality and advocacy organization.

Awards & Prizes

Awards will be selected for:

Best Feature
Best Short
Best Branded Content/Visual Advertisement
Best Emerging Filmmaker
TWE Team Choice
New Gate Inspiration Award (*New Gate High School is our student jury partner.)

Homestays are available to filmmakers selected for the festival.

Rules & Terms

1. All films must be in English OR contain English subtitles. All subtitles must be burnt into the file (embedded, not removable) and clearly within the visible frame.

2. All film genres are accepted.

3. Emerging Filmmaker category: to be eligible for the Emerging Filmmaker category, the producer or director must be either under the age of 30 OR enrolled in an accredited film school during the production of the submitted film. Documentation proving one of these criteria is required at the time of submission. For example, submission of a valid government ID or a student card/transcript. Please send documentation to team.throughwomenseyes@gmail.com. If this is your “first” film and you are NOT under 30 or enrolled in an accredited film school, please do not submit in the Emerging Filmmaker category. Your film will not be considered and your submission fee will not be refunded. You may resubmit in the general festival categories.

4. Branded Content category: films must be NO LONGER than 5 minutes.

5. Films should have been completed AFTER July 15, 2025. All film submissions will be reviewed initially by 2 - 3 screeners; high-scoring films will then be reviewed by our advisory panel and referred to a final selection committee.

6. Films completed PRIOR to July 15, 2025, may be submitted and will be reviewed. However, they will not be considered for awards.

7. If selected, TWE has the right to use stills, posters, titles, film clips, or any information from the submission for promotional purposes.

8. Films that are publicly available prior to our festival, either in theatrical release or through electronic or digital media, or DVD sales, may not be selected. The only exception is showings in recognized film festivals.

9. EXHIBITION COPY OF ALL FILMS ACCEPTED MUST BE IN 1080p .mp4 FORMAT ONLY by upload to our digital partner. THERE ARE ABSOLUTELY NO EXCEPTIONS TO THIS EXHIBITION FORMAT. Details will be provided to accepted filmmakers.

10. Films selected for the festival will be shown in both the live and online festival.

11. Selected films may also be shown prior to the festival for promotional purposes. Selected films may be shown throughout the year to select invitation-only audiences, subject to filmmaker approval.

12. Copyright permissions are the sole and express responsibility of the filmmaker/s.

43 Reviews
Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Honey Lauren

    What an honor to be a part of this amazing festival. I was so taken with everyone I met there. This truly was one of the best festival experiences I’ve ever had. Thank you to all the incredible people who worked there. So many people to thank. Scott Osborne, thank you for this fabulous experience. And organizing the panel after our film, MISTAKE. Please know that I really appreciate all the support and the dinner and all the engaging films. I hope to come back again. Thank you all so much.

    March 2026
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  • aida tebianian

    We are truly honored to have been part of this festival, dedicated to women’s voices and perspectives in cinema, and are thrilled that our film received an award. It was an invaluable opportunity to have our work showcased alongside such powerful and inspiring films. Our heartfelt thanks to the festival organizers for creating a meaningful platform for filmmakers and supporting independent cinema.

    March 2026
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  • Jessica Daugherty

    Our team is so happy that we submitted to this film festival. We were selected and attending this festival in person was a phenomenal experience! For all films made by women or about women protagonists, we encourage you to submit, don't sleep on this one! The directors and the board, the selection committee, and the festival volunteers all felt like family the moment we walked in the door. They knew our film intimately, cared for us and our story, and put together an epic weekend of opening night soireés, filmmaker dinners, post screening Q&A's, panel discussions, and networking opportunities with other filmmakers. Their attendees were equally incredible humans and networking with them brought new avenues for us to pursue with our film. The smaller screening rooms at Ringling College and Sarasota Art museum are what made that closeness possible, in part. Felt like there were between 50-200 people at every screening. Sarasota is a buzzing hub of art and creativity of all kinds and it's no surprise that it hosts this very special, energetic, and engaged film festival. No wonder they are celebrating 27 years running. This is an important, valuable, uplifting, thoughtfully curated festival. The quality of the films was truly stellar and many of the films we saw will likely find distribution and come to streaming soon. Our film was awarded one of 4 film awards, the TWE Team Choice Award. We are beyond honored to receive this award for Over the Kitchen Table and to have been a part of this festival. They have also invited us to include our film in their pop-up program which makes films available to organizations and groups looking for film content, giving our film more wide exposure. Thank you Through Women's Eyes and thank you Reel Equals Film Festival for everything you do!

    March 2026
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  • Lindsay Nyman

    From start to finish, this festival was a fantastic experience. Everything was so well run, and the team was incredibly thoughtful and supportive of filmmakers. Thank you for creating such a welcoming environment and for uplifting and platforming women in film. So grateful that They Call Me The Tattoo Witch was part of this wonderful festival!

    May 2025
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  • Mohana Rajakumar

    This was an amazing festival because of how communicative the organizers were and how generous they are with free tickets for filmmakers etc.

    Thank you! Would definitely recommend.

    March 2025
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