We have reached our final phase of evolution. The Norwich Radical Film Festival and Manifesto Film Festival have organically transcended into something larger… beyond just socio-political relevance. This absolute re-branding captures the true essence of who we are.

What is this international -cross genre phenomenon that has linked our entourage, our filmmakers, our crew for the past 5 years? It is the “spirit of the age”. We are the Zeitgeist.

As any new entity, you experiment and collect data to find the true nature of what you represent, what you advocate and what you are passionate about. We found the words resonating within us to truly describe both the festival that we are and the type of content we want to showcase: the zeitgeist “refers to an invisible agent or force dominating the characteristics of a given epoch in world history.” This is what we have been doing subconsciously all along, and now we are aware of our purpose, and what truly sets us apart from other festivals. We want to bring this consciousness to the forefront and contextualize as to why films are produced at a certain point in time, how they are received, and the historical and universal meaning they have carved out in retrospect.

How both present and past films are cultural artifacts offering a glimpse into who we are, who we were, and perhaps, what we are becoming.

Welcome to the Zeitgeist Film Festival….live in the moment, appreciate the past and celebrate the future!

This year we are screening in Los Angeles. The theme is Apocalypse LA. We have a wonderful retrospective centerpiece planned and panels and parties as usual! Do not let the theme limit you...any depictions of the unravelling of society/culture/politics/capitalism are welcome. Films beyond the main theme are welcome as well as we follow the zeitgeist and see threads of narrative themes running through the submissions. We are so grateful to be back and to have a blast for the first season in the USA!

Awards & Prizes

Best Feature
Best Short
Best Short Documentary
Best Feature-Length Documentary

Rules & Terms

Please read the description of our festival before submitting.

By submitting your film you understand and agree that the festival may use any portions of your of film, to be determined at the festival's discretion, not to exceed 5 minutes in length, for any marketing activities to promote the festival and your screening. Use of film content may include, but is not limited to, playback over Access non-profit community TV channels, printed marketing pieces, commercial advertisements and Internet distribution.

We also require all non- English speaking films to have subtitles please.

We do not pay screening fees for submitted films.

You understand that should your film be accepted, you will be notified and asked to provide the final screening copy. You understand that unless otherwise arranged, final screening copies on acceptable formats will be due no later than May 1 2021. If we have not received your digital file by then, you WILL unfortunately be dropped from the festival line-up.