1. General Information
1.1 Submissions will open on 21st July 2025.
1.2 Submissions will remain open until 23:59 GMT on 8th September 2025. We reserve the right to close the submission platform at an earlier date. We recommend submitting your film as early as possible to avoid disappointment.
1.3 Upon submission, the filmmakers agree that their films can be included in promotional activity and publicity material shared by Watersprite Film Festival and its sponsors and partners.
1.5 Watersprite has the right to distribute the details of selected filmmakers with mentors and industry professionals who may help you.
1.6 Selected films will be screened at the festival. They will also be available to watch online via our digital festival platform from 17th February - 15th March 2025, unless separately negotiated with Watersprite Film Festival.
1.7 By agreeing to these rules and terms, you are confirming that you have sought the necessary permissions and/or are the owner of the material submitted.
2. Eligibility
2.1 All films must have a total running time of 23 minutes or less.
2.2 All films must either be in English, dubbed in English or subtitled in English.
2.3 No advertisements, propaganda or hate speech.
2.4 All films must have completed production no earlier than January 2024.
2.5 We will accept a maximum of two films per entrant per year, unless the individual submitting the film is an agent/film school acting on behalf of others.
2.6 Films may only be submitted to Watersprite once. We will not consider films that have been amended from previous submissions.
2.7 All entrants must be at least 16 years of age at the time of the festival. Under 18s will need parental permission to attend.
2.8 For a film to be eligible for consideration, at least two out of the following three must have been students during film production: Director, Producer, Writer.
2.9 In order for a film to be eligible for a Watersprite technical award, the person responsible for that particular technical aspect of the film must have been a student during film production.
2.10 Watersprite defines 'student' as those who are in full or part-time education at any age or those who graduated no more than one year ago. Proof of student enrolment will be required at the submissions stage.
2.11 The exception to this rule is ‘Best Performance’, for which the actor must be an amateur in a student-directed film, and must not have an agent.
2.12.1 In regards to the use of AI, the submitter must declare where and in what capacity AI has been used to assist the making of the film.
2.12.2 Where AI has been used to assist a specific aspect of filmmaking, the film will automatically become ineligible for the corresponding category. e.g. if AI has been used on script writing/editing, the film will be ineligible for the Writing Award.
3. Submission Procedure
3.1 Submissions must be made online via upload onto Watersprite’s FilmFreeway page with all the required information.
3.2 All entrants must specify the year in which their film was made.
3.3 Entrants must submit their film to the most appropriate genre category. Entrants must only select one genre.
3.4 Entrants should select all roles on the submission form where a student was responsible for that particular technical aspect of the film.
3.5 In order to be eligible for the Best Screenplay category, you must upload a copy of the film’s screenplay in English and reply ‘Yes’ to the question ‘Do you wish to be considered for the Screenplay Award?’ when you submit your film. The screenplay should be written in standard industry format and uploaded to your submission’s “Files & Attachments” section of its FilmFreeway page.
3.6 In order to be eligible for the Original Film Music category, the film’s entire score must be original work by a student.
3.7 Only the film’s main actor may be considered for the Best Performance Award. Where a film has two protagonists with equal screen time, please select which actor you wish to nominate.
3.8 After submission, entrants must provide dated photographic proof that those who were responsible for their respective technical awards were students at the time of film production. The entrant must upload this proof via the Google form which appears immediately after you have submitted your film. The link to the Google form is also emailed to the entrant in the email entitled "Checkout Success". Valid forms of student identification are: student card, a copy of a student finance bill, or a letter from the university/institution.
3.9 After submission, entrants will be asked to fill in an equality and diversity form. This form is voluntary and is for internal use only, but we would greatly appreciate it if you could complete it. As a charity, it is helpful for us to know who our filmmakers are so that we can improve year after year. This form is anonymous and will not be taken into consideration when judging your film.
3.10 Film must be submitted in the correct format. Films which do not correspond to the required format will not be considered.
3.11 Entrants will be asked to upload a copy of the film’s poster onto the project page on FilmFreeway, if available. While not necessary during submissions, a poster will be required immediately if your film is selected for the shortlists. The festival will use this for marketing purposes.
3.12 Entries which do not comply with the Watersprite guidelines may be at risk of disqualification.
4. Judging
4.1 Upon submission, every film will be reviewed by the Watersprite Committee for eligibility.
4.2 The Watersprite Committee may re-categorise the submitted film into a more suitable Genre category.
4.3 Films will be considered according to the following criteria: excellence in executing its creative function.
4.4 Every eligible film will automatically be considered for the Watersprite Film of the Year and the Watersprite Social Impact Award.
4.5 Wherever the person responsible for a film’s particular technical aspect was a student, that person will automatically be considered for a technical award.
4.6 Some genre films cannot be considered for certain technical awards: Documentaries cannot be considered for Best Performance, Best Costume Design, Best Production Design or Best Screenplay; Animations cannot be considered for the Best Performance category.
4.7 Up to four nominees will be chosen for each award. From these nominees, one winner will be selected.
4.8 If your film is nominated, a member of your team is expected to attend the Awards Ceremony on 7th March 2026 either online or in-person.
4.9 Where possible, Watersprite will participate in fundraising activities and bursary applications to cultural institutes and other grant giving bodies for support with travel and accommodation to enable nominees to attend in person.
5. Recommended Upload Format
5.1 Your video file may not exceed 10GB.
5.2 You are not required to provide a screening quality copy of your film at this stage, as films will initially be judged online. Entrants may be asked to provide a screening-quality format of their film if they are nominated.
5.3 Video
5.3.1 Codec: H.264
(sometimes referred to as MP4). A codec is the format in which your video will be encoded. Different codecs have different features and varying quality.
5.3.2 Frame Rate: 24, 25 or 30 FPS. If you know at which frame rate you shot, it is best to encode at that same frame rate. If you are uncertain at which frame rate you shot, please set to either "Current" or 25 FPS. If there is an option for keyframes, use the same value as you used for the frame rate.
5.3.3 Data Rate: 2000 Kbps (SD), 10,000-20,000 Kbps (HD). This setting controls both the visual quality of the video and the file size. In most video editors, this is done in terms of kilobits per second (Kbps). Use 2000 Kbps for standard definition or 5000 Kbps for high definition.
5.3.4 Resolution: 720x576 (4:3 SD video), 1280x720 (HD), 1920x1080 (HD)
. If you have the option to control the pixel aspect ratio (not the display aspect ratio) make sure it is set to "1:1" or "1.00", sometimes referred to as "square pixels".
5.4 Field Order
5.4.1 If you are shooting on an older camera, enable this option. Otherwise, you may get bizarre horizontal lines appearing in your video.
5.4.2 With newer camera models this will not matter, so this option can be left unchecked. (Use progressive).
5.5 Audio
5.5.1 Codec: AAC (Advanced Audio Codec)
5.5.2 Data Rate: 256 Kbps
5.5.3 Sample rate: 44.1 kHz
5.6 Recommended free converters: MPEG Streamclip (Mac & PC), Handbrake (Mac & PC)
