USA Film Festival

MISSION & OBJECTIVE

One of the oldest and most respected festivals and film arts organizations in the U.S., the 55-year old USA Film Festival is a Dallas-based, 501c3 non-profit organization dedicated to the encouragement and recognition of excellence in the film and video arts. Through its YEAR-ROUND "live cinema" programs and special events, the USA Film Festival provides an opportunity for the public to discover new films and sheds new light on familiar films by facilitating discussion and encounters with master, mid-career and emerging filmmakers. Programs include a major annual film festival, now in its 55th year; the International Short Film & Video Competition; the annual KidFilm festival, the oldest and largest-attended children's film festival in the U.S.; tributes and retrospectives organized around important themes and filmmakers; and extensive educational community outreach activities. With the exception of special member screenings, all events are open to the public.

ABOUT THE FESTIVAL

55th Annual USA Film Festival (April 2025)

A curated event featuring only the best new features & shorts; U.S. and foreign films; Tributes to master artists; International Short Film & Video Competition with awards administered by national jury. Filmmakers present their works and discuss them with the audience; If your short film is also selected to play in the curated showcase, air travel (U.S. filmmakers) and lodging (all filmmakers) are provided to enable you to be with us to present your film. (Air vouchers and hotel are limited quantities; We distribute as films are booked until the resources are exhausted.)

Master Artist Tributes
Tributes & retrospectives honoring master artists including directors, actors, screenwriters, cinematographers, composers, art directors, editors and more.

Since its inception in 1971, the USA Film Festival has presented the world, national or regional premieres of thousands of studio and independent feature films and short experimental, animated, documentary and dramatic films. The full roster of filmmaker guests numbers in the thousands and is too long to list in total, but includes ACTORS Ed Harris, Kevin Spacey, Benjamin Bratt, Brian Cox, Thomas Haden Church, M. Emment Walsh, Chris Cooper, Peter Fonda, John Turturro, Andy Garcia, Dakota Fanning, Anthony Hopkins, Gary Oldman, Alfred Molina, Christopher Walken, Tommy Lee Jones, James Earl Jones, Ed Asner, Jimmy Smits, Jodie Foster, Marcia Gay Harden, Richard Dreyfuss, Audrey Hepburn, Diane Baker, Dennis Hopper, James Stewart, Robert Duvall, Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine, Burt Lancaster, Kirk Douglas, Gregory Peck, Jackie Chan, Derek Jacobi, Ian McKellen, Richard E. Grant, Josh Lucas, Wanda Sykes, Martin Short, Charles Durning, Stephen Tobolowsky, Harry Shearer, Dennis Quaid, Gregory Hines, Terry Jones, Ray Liotta, Rene Auberjonois, Timothy Busfield, Melissa Gilbert, Rupert Everett; SCREENWRITERS/WRITERS George Axelrod, Robert Towne, Buck Henry; James V. Hart, Paul Rudnick; EFFECTS WIZARDS Dennis Muren; VOICE ARTISTS June Foray, Will Ryan; ANIMATORS Frank Thomas, Ollie Johnston, Michael Sporn, John Dilworth, Don Bluth, Gary Goldman, Ray Harryhausen, Henry Selick; AUTHORS John Grisham, Kimberly Willis Holt, Cari Best, Rosemary Wells, Richard Condon, John Boyne, Dominick Dunne; PRODUCERS Bernie Brillstein, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Jerry Bruckheimer, Polly Platt, Christine Vachon; COMPOSERS Mark Mothersbaugh, Quincy Jones, Elmer Bernstein, Hans Zimmer, Paul Williams; EDITORS Dede Allen; Dennis Virkler; CINEMATOGRAPHERS Owen Roizman, Conrad Hall, Laszlo Kovacs; ART DIRECTORS Henry Bumstead, Richard Sylbert; CRITICS/FILM WRITERS Roger Ebert, Leonard Maltin, Mike Clarke, Stephen Rebello; DIRECTORS Milos Forman, Danny Boyle, Mark Herman, Neil LaBute, Ken Russell, Ismail Merchant & James Ivory, Albert Maysles, Peter Greenaway, Blake Edwards, Robert Benton, Michael Apted, Wim Wenders, Norman Jewison, Arthur Penn, Alan J. Pakula, Paul Mazursky, Sydney Pollack, Stanley Donen, Paul Schrader, Martha Coolidge, Mel Stuart, John Waters, Andy Warhol, Charles Burnett, Budd Boetticher, Robert Altman, Oliver Stone, Atom Egoyan, John Frankenheimer, Martin Ritt, Alan Rudolph, Michael Powell, Chuck Jones, Richard Brooks, Frederick Wiseman, John Cassavetes, Frank Perry, Peter Bogdanovich, Robert Wise, Rouben Mamoulian, Sidney Lumet, George Cukor, King Vidor, Mervyn LeRoy, William Wyler, Joseph L. Mankiewicz, Raoul Walsh, Frank Capra, George Stevens, Whit Stillman, and many more.

ORGANIZERS
Ann Alexander (Managing Director)

Tori Collatos (Program Coordinator)

The festival is open to professional and nonprofessional filmmakers.

International Short Film & Video Competition

Winning filmmakers will receive a complimentary DCP conversion of their film.

Narrative/Fiction
(Free DCP conversion)
Includes narrative works, dramatized events and adaptations of literary or dramatic works. Winning filmmaker will receive a complimentary DCP conversion of their film (approximate value $1,000 - $5,000 depending on length of film).
Value of Goods/Services: approx. $1,000

Nonfiction
(Free DCP conversion)
Includes documentaries or portraits of actual persons or events. Winning filmmaker will receive a complimentary DCP conversion of their film (approximate value $1,000 - $5,000 depending on length of film).
Value of Goods/Services: approx. $1,000

Animation
(Free DCP conversion)
Includes animation of graphics or three-dimensional objects. When submitting your work, please specific the method/s used (e.g. AI, illustration, stop motion, etc.)
Winning filmmaker will receive a complimentary DCP conversion of their film (approximate value $1,000 - $5,000 depending on length of film).
Value of Goods/Services: approx. $1,000

Experimental Award
(Free DCP Conversion)
Works that explore personal experience or film and video forms in innovative ways (can employ elements of animation, fiction or documentary). PSAs, music videos, industrials and educational films may also be submitted in this category. Winning filmmaker will receive a complimentary DCP conversion of their film (approximate value $1,000 - $5,000 depending on length of film).
Value of Goods/Services: approx. $1,000

Texas Award
(Free DCP conversion)
Works shot in Texas, or made by current residents of Texas and filmmakers with ties to Texas are eligible for this additional award. Winning filmmaker will receive a complimentary DCP conversion of their film (approximate value $1,000 - $5,000 depending on length of film).
Value of Goods/Services: approx. $1,000

Student Award
(Free DCP conversion)
Works eligible for this award must have been completed while enrolled as a student; please include the name of your school/university with your submission. Winning filmmaker will receive a complimentary DCP conversion of their film (approximate value $1,000 - $5,000 depending on length of film).
Value of Goods/Services: approx. $1,000

Special Jury Awards
(Free DCP conversion)
The National Jury awards multiple prizes at will for special achievement in any category. Winning filmmakers will receive a complimentary DCP conversion of their film (approximate value $1,000 - $5,000 depending on length of film).
Value of Goods/Services: approx. $1,000 each award

CATEGORY RULES

ALL SHORT FILM SUBMISSIONS

All entries must be under 60 minutes in length. Running time is calculated by timing the head frame to the last frame on the end credits.

The appropriate entry fee must accompany each entry. This nonrefundable fee covers screening and handling costs and will not be returned.

Select ONE MAIN CATEGORY (Narrative/Fiction, Nonfiction, Student, Animation, Experimental, Texas) for your film's submission.

If submitting an animated film, please include the specific the method/s used (e.g. AI, illustration, stop motion, etc.) with your submission.

All short films/videos must have been completed between January 1, 2024 and February 15, 2025.

Films/videos using uncredited, non-licensed, copyrighted musical or literary properties without legal permission and appropriate attribution credits are not eligible.

The competition is open to professional and nonprofessional filmmakers.

Entries must be submitted in the completed form in which they will be judged.
(Please note: We do accept work-in-progress films, but the final version of the film must be submitted by our Late Deadline of February 1st.)

The decisions of the Jury are final. The Jury reserves the right not to select a winner in any given category. The Jury reserves the right to change a category to the benefit of the film.

The JURY TIMELINE is as follows:

February 2025 - March 2025
Pre-screenings take place to (1) identify potential Finalist** films and (2) to identify films The Festival might play in the curated showcase. **National Jurors have final say in determining awards.

Early March - Early-April 2025
Filmmakers that are selected to screen in the "Curated Showcase" are contacted and confirmed. (The Curated Showcase is separate from the Competition. To be considered for the Curated Schedule, the film cannot have premiered in North Texas before the Festival.)

April 2025 (During Festival Dates)
Nat'l Jurors begin judging all Finalist films

Closing Day of Festival
Announcement of winning films.

Note -- All Competition films REMAIN IN COMPETITION process until the National Jurors make their final selections. A list of all winning films is provided to all submitting filmmakers after the program in May. PLEASE DO NOT CALL THE FESTIVAL TO INQUIRE ABOUT THE STATUS OF YOUR FILM.

Eligible finished formats include 70mm, 16mm and 35mm film, DVD, Beta SP, DigiBeta, IMAX, HDCAM, DV/DVCAM, DCI, and Blu-Ray in the standard American NTSC format. (It is understood that there exists a multitude of shooting formats for video production.)

FEATURE SUBMISSIONS

The appropriate entry fee must accompany each entry. This nonrefundable fee covers screening and handling costs and will not be returned.

USAFF accepts feature films in all genres; U.S. and foreign works accepted; any length feature works accepted.

For our purposes, feature films are generally not less than 60 minutes in runtime.

Professional and nonprofessional film and video-makers may submit works.

All shooting formats are accepted.

The film or video must have been completed between January 1, 2023 and February 15, 2025. Work-in-progress films will be accepted, HOWEVER the final version of the film must be completed by March 1st.

The film cannot have premiered in the North Texas area before the Festival.

All screenings will take place in Dallas during the 55th Annual USA Film Festival.

Filmmakers are eligible to receive air travel and local lodging during their stay. (Air vouchers and hotel are limited quantities; we distribute as films are booked, until the resources are exhausted.)

Filmmakers are honored during the festival with nightly receptions following all screenings and on-stage discussion of their work.

The USA Film Festival is a NONCOMPETITIVE event. Feature films accepted for inclusion are not prevented from being considered for subsequent competition in the Cannes Film Festival or other competitive events.

Overall Rating

Quality

Value

Communication

Hospitality

Networking

Gregg Jaden

We are honored that The Curse Effect was a Finalist at the USA Film Festival. It is meaningful to be recognized by such a renowned festival that celebrates the art of storytelling. We are grateful for the opportunity to participate in this prestigious event. Thank you, USA Film Festival, for this incredible acknowledgment!

December 2024

Helpful
Sai Karan Talwar

Thank you to the USA Film Festival for the Finalist placement for our film GHANIMAH, we are very grateful to be acknowledged by such a great institution with a rich history!

May 2024

Helpful
DIane Fredel-Weis

Excellent organization and screening! Thank you!

May 2024

Helpful
Nadine Wilson

It was such an honour for my debut short film, Wuss to be selected as a FINALIST in such a prestigious film festival. The festival was run so smoothly from start to finish with excellent and friendly communication throughout. Tori went over and above in helping me try to get out to the festival, but sadly it wasn't to be (this time). Thank you so much for selecting Wuss. I would definitely recommend this festival.

April 2024

Helpful
Charles Pinck

I could not have been more honored to have the short documentary I produced for The OSS Society, "Filming Under Fire: John Ford's OSS Field Photo Branch," receive a Jury Prize from this year's USA Film Festival. I look forward to submitting our next film for its consideration.

April 2024

Helpful

Add to List

Dates & Deadlines

June 7, 2024
Opening Date
November 15, 2024
Earlybird Deadline
December 31, 2024
Regular Deadline
January 31, 2025
Late Deadline
February 28, 2025
Extended Late Deadline
April 4, 2025
Notification Date
April 23 – 27, 2025
Event Date

Categories & Fees

U.S. and International Feature Films
The USA Film Festival is a major showcase for new and significant American and foreign work. Only about 20 feature-length films are selected for exhibition in the curated event. Submit as early as possible to increase your chance for inclusion. Filmmakers are provided with (U.S.) air travel and hotel to enable their attendance at the festival to present their works. (Air vouchers and hotel are limited quantities; we distribute as films are booked, until the resources are exhausted.) For our purposes, feature films are generally not less than 60 minutes in runtime. The film cannot have premiered in North Texas prior to April 30, 2025.
- Earlybird Deadline
- Standard: $50
- Gold Members: $45
- Regular Deadline
- Standard: $60
- Gold Members: $54
- Late Deadline
- Standard: $70
- Gold Members: $63
- Extended Late Deadline
- Standard: $95
- Gold Members: $85
Submit Now
U.S. and International Short Films - Narrative/Fiction
The USAFF's International Short Film & Video Competition is a major showcase for new and significant works from the U.S. and around the world. Entries are judged by a nationally-renowned Jury of filmmakers, critics and scholars, who award prizes based on originality of concept, style and technical execution. The Festival is committed to filmmakers working in the short format. Professional and nonprofessional film and video-makers may enter. All entries must be submitted in the completed form in which they will by judged. The competition is a highlight program of the annual USA Film Festival Spring Festival, a curated event showcasing new features and shorts, master artist tributes, retrospectives and other special programs – all with filmmakers in attendance to present their works. All entries must be under 60 minutes in length. To be considered for play in the curated schedule, the film cannot have premiered in the North Texas region before the Festival.
- Earlybird Deadline
- Standard: $50
- Gold Members: $45
- Regular Deadline
- Standard: $60
- Gold Members: $54
- Late Deadline
- Standard: $70
- Gold Members: $63
- Extended Late Deadline
- Standard: $80
- Gold Members: $72
Submit Now
U.S. and International Short Films - Nonfiction
The USAFF's International Short Film & Video Competition is a major showcase for new and significant works from the U.S. and around the world. Entries are judged by a nationally-renowned Jury of filmmakers, critics and scholars, who award prizes based on originality of concept, style and technical execution. Professional and nonprofessional film and video-makers may enter. All entries must be submitted in the completed form in which they will by judged. The competition is a highlight program of the annual USA Film Festival Spring Festival, a curated event showcasing new features and shorts, master artist tributes, retrospectives and other special programs – all with filmmakers in attendance to present their works. (To be considered for the Curated Schedule, the film cannot have premiered in North Texas prior to April 30, 2025.) Works eligible for this category are documentary films or portraits of actual persons or events.
- Earlybird Deadline
- Standard: $50
- Gold Members: $45
- Regular Deadline
- Standard: $60
- Gold Members: $54
- Late Deadline
- Standard: $70
- Gold Members: $63
- Extended Late Deadline
- Standard: $80
- Gold Members: $72
Submit Now
U.S. and International Short Films - Animation
The USAFF's International Short Film & Video Competition is a major showcase for new and significant works from the U.S. and around the world. Entries are judged by a nationally-renowned Jury of filmmakers, critics and scholars, who award prizes based on originality of concept, style and technical execution. Professional and nonprofessional film and video-makers may enter. All entries must be submitted in the completed form in which they will by judged. The competition is a highlight program of the annual USA Film Festival Spring Festival, a curated event showcasing new features and shorts, master artist tributes, retrospectives and other special programs – all with filmmakers in attendance to present their works. (To be considered for the Curated Schedule, the film cannot have premiered in North Texas prior to April 30, 2025.) When submitting your work, please include the method/s used (e.g. AI, illustration, stop motion, etc.) with your submission.
- Earlybird Deadline
- Standard: $50
- Gold Members: $45
- Regular Deadline
- Standard: $60
- Gold Members: $54
- Late Deadline
- Standard: $70
- Gold Members: $63
- Extended Late Deadline
- Standard: $80
- Gold Members: $72
Submit Now
U.S. and International Short Films - Experimental
The USAFF's International Short Film & Video Competition is a major showcase for new and significant works from the U.S. and around the world. Entries are judged by a nationally-renowned Jury of filmmakers, critics and scholars, who award prizes based on originality of concept, style and technical execution. Professional and nonprofessional film and video-makers may enter. All entries must be submitted in the completed form in which they will by judged. The competition is a highlight program of the annual USA Film Festival Spring Festival, a curated event showcasing new features and shorts, master artist tributes, retrospectives and other special programs – all with filmmakers in attendance to present their works. (To be considered for the Curated Schedule, the film cannot have premiered in North Texas prior to April 30, 2025.) Works eligible explore personal experience or film/video forms in innovative ways (can employ elements of animation, fiction or documentary).
- Earlybird Deadline
- Standard: $50
- Gold Members: $45
- Regular Deadline
- Standard: $60
- Gold Members: $54
- Late Deadline
- Standard: $70
- Gold Members: $63
- Extended Late Deadline
- Standard: $80
- Gold Members: $72
Submit Now
U.S. and International Short Films - Texas Filmmakers
The USAFF's International Short Film & Video Competition is a major showcase for new and significant works from the U.S. and around the world. Entries are judged by a nationally-renowned Jury of filmmakers, critics and scholars, who award prizes based on originality of concept, style and technical execution. Professional and nonprofessional film and video-makers may enter. All entries must be submitted in the completed form in which they will by judged. The competition is a highlight program of the annual USA Film Festival Spring Festival, a curated event showcasing new features and shorts, master artist tributes, retrospectives and other special programs – all with filmmakers in attendance to present their works. (To be considered for the Curated Schedule, the film cannot have premiered in North Texas prior to April 30, 2025.) Works eligible for this category are films either shot in Texas, with post-production completed in Texas or films made by current residents of Texas.
- Earlybird Deadline
- Standard: $50
- Gold Members: $45
- Regular Deadline
- Standard: $60
- Gold Members: $54
- Late Deadline
- Standard: $70
- Gold Members: $63
- Extended Late Deadline
- Standard: $80
- Gold Members: $72
Submit Now
U.S. and International Short Films - Student
The USAFF's International Short Film & Video Competition is a major showcase for new and significant works from the U.S. and around the world. Entries are judged by a nationally-renowned Jury of filmmakers, critics and scholars, who award prizes based on originality of concept, style and technical execution. Professional and nonprofessional film and video-makers may enter. All entries must be submitted in the completed form in which they will by judged. The competition is a highlight program of the annual USA Film Festival Spring Festival, a curated event showcasing new features and shorts, master artist tributes, retrospectives and other special programs – all with filmmakers in attendance to present their works. (To be considered for the Curated Schedule, the film cannot have premiered in North Texas prior to April 30, 2025.) Works eligible for this category must films completed while enrolled as a Student. Please include the name of the school/university with your submission.
- Earlybird Deadline
- Standard: $50
- Gold Members: $45
- Regular Deadline
- Standard: $60
- Gold Members: $54
- Late Deadline
- Standard: $70
- Gold Members: $63
- Extended Late Deadline
- Standard: $80
- Gold Members: $72
Submit Now

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Sai Karan Talwar

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