The National Institute of Urban Affairs, India under the City Investments to Innovate, Integrate and Sustain (CITIIS) program is organising the Urban Climate Film Festival to showcase the impact of climate change on cities around the world and the lives of their citizens. The festival intends to contribute to the discourse on climate-centric urban development and provide a platform for filmmakers and other practitioners working to highlight pressing concerns related to climate.

CALL FOR ENTRIES:
> Entries are now invited from professional and amateur filmmakers residing anywhere in the world.
> All formats are welcome: short films, feature films, documentaries/ non-fiction, fiction, animation, etc. However, the films must pertain to the theme of the festival and reflect the environmental, social and/or economic impacts of climate change in the context of cities.

Please see detailed terms of entry before submitting your films.

LAST DATE FOR SUBMISSIONS: 13 March 2023

CITIIS is a joint program of the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs, Government of India; the Agence Française de Développement (AFD); the European Union (EU), and the National Institute of Urban Affairs, India. The program is assisting 12 Indian cities with implementing integrated, innovation-driven and sustainable urban infrastructure projects, some of which have components dedicated to benefit the ecosystem of the city, improve air and water quality, protect indigenous flora and fauna, and foster urban biodiversity.

Awards & Prizes

The Festival will be launched in New Delhi in March 2023 and travel to Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata and Ahmedabad. Selected films will be felicitated at the Urban Climate Film Festival and screened in all five cities.

Rules & Terms

ELIGIBILITY & TERMS OF ENTRY
1. Fiction, documentary/non-fiction, and animation films – both features and shorts – are welcome.
2. Entries in all languages are invited. The films must have English subtitles – either embedded or as an accompanying .srt file with English subtitles and accurate time codes.
3. All films are required to be submitted in HD format (DCP, Blu-Ray, digital file .MP4 or .MOV, 1080p or 720p) through the FilmFreeway portal.
4. Entries can be submitted by the director, producer, co-producer, commissioner, or any individual/organisation that has the right to submit the entry.
5. The names on the credit roll must match the names in the entry form. Please ensure that all information provided in the entry form is accurate.
6. More than one film may be submitted, but each film must be submitted using a separate entry form.
7. Once a film is submitted to the festival, it cannot, for any reason, be removed by the person or organisation that submitted it.
8. By filling in the entry form and submitting the film/s, the entrant provides full legal authorisation to the organiser to exhibit the film in the Urban Climate Film Festival and allied programs.
9. NIUA-CITIIS will not be responsible for any damage or loss to submitted entries. The applicant may insure all films and related materials against any damage or loss that may occur during the submission process or in the course of the festival.
10. There are no fees for submitting entries to the festival.

TERMS OF SELECTION
1. Selection of the films for the festival will be done by an internal committee. Members of the committee should not be contacted directly by the applicants. Any attempts by the applicants to contact or influence the internal committee will be regarded as unfair and be a strong reason to disqualify their submissions.
2. The decision of the committee shall be final. No queries or correspondence in this regard would be entertained.
3. The committee will assess the entries on the basis of their relevance to the theme and objectives of the Urban Climate Film Festival, the contents of the film, treatment and presentation, technical excellence, authenticity, accuracy of information provided, and educational or motivational value. The committee reserves the right to formulate and modify the criteria for selection.
4. Submissions that do not fit the selection criteria will not be considered for inclusion in the Festival. NIUA-CITIIS also reserves the right to exclude films that do not conform with the aims and values of the organisation, program or the festival.
5. The organiser of the Festival will inform the applicants that have been selected for the competitive section by email or phone. The organiser also reserves the right to not contact applicants whose submissions have been disqualified/not selected or provide reasons for not selecting a film.
6. Submissions will not be discriminated against on the basis of genre, region, identity of the filmmaker/s or any other limitations, apart from the elements described in point 3. All submissions will be analysed with equal attention and rigour.
7. Filmmakers of the selected submissions may be required to send additional information and high-resolution photographs (of the director and/or actor/s, production stills, etc.) for purposes of the press and publicity.
8. Any trophies or awards for the selected films will be handed during the Festival to the filmmakers/designated representatives only. Any requests for shipping trophies or awards to the filmmaker’s native region will not be entertained.

TERMS OF SCREENING
1. All the selected films confirmed for screening will be presented at festival locations provided by Alliance Francaise in Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Kolkata.
2. The organiser will define the screening schedule, programming and protocol of the Urban Climate Film Festival. All matters related to organising the Festival will be decided by the organizer and such decisions will be final.
3. The organiser reserves the right to decide the date/s of the screening of the selected films and will not alter the date for the convenience of the applicant/filmmaker.
4. The organiser also reserves the right to change the festival dates, venues, events, awards, eligibility requirements and any information mentioned here without further notice.
5. All films and materials sent for the Urban Climate Film Festival will be retained by the organiser and will remain in the festival archive.
6. The organiser also reserves the right to not include all the submitted information and choose only specific information to be featured in publications or other platforms.
7. NIUA-CITIIS is not obliged to pay screening fees, and any applicant submitting entries to the Urban Climate Film Festival acknowledges and agrees to this.
8. All disputes are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of competent courts and forums in Delhi.

In case of any issues with the submission of entries, requirements of the festival, or general queries, write to citiis@niua.org by 13 March 2023. The subject of the email must contain the title of the film and the name of the director. Please note that the organiser reserves the right to not reply to queries or requests sent after 13 March 2023.