IWFFT aims to make women directors and their films visible by bringing together female directors and female film workers in the first week of March every year within the scope of 8 March International Working Women's Day.

SURPASSING THE WAVES
Every time unemployement rears its head in our future, every time hunger sits our dining tables, every time drought dries up the rivers and turns water into dust, every time war destroys our houses, every time violence blows its breath in our faces, every time we walk barefoot on the roads, every time we find ourselves in the middle of the ocean in a tiny, crammed boat, every border we cross in the face of death, every time we face with impenetrable walls surrounding consciences, every time we face with injustice, inequality and discrimination… We are just like piers, fighting against the waves that grow bigger each day, trying to swallow us whole. We are looking at you from the lens of the camera, far away from the lands we were born while the roads of migration are flourishing with our femininity. We are writing new stories with women who refuse to be bystaders in life. We are surpassing the waves that coming up on us for you to see what we see, for you to feel what we lived through. To say we are still here despite everything! It’s not going to be easy but it’s going to worth our effort. We will be a tree most fruitful with our roots, our bodies, our branches…

AWARD SYSTEM
The festivals organizes national and international competitions in the categories of Short, Experimental, Documentary and Fiction. These categories vary every year depending on the magnitude of the films produced and the number of the participants.
The festival may combine national and international competitions or organize them separately according to the theme it has set for that year. Pre-selectors and jurors are determined by the number of the competitions and content of the films participating in the festival. The festival jurors cannot give more than one awards to the same film. Since the awards are given in order to motivate and encourage the directors to create more content jurors prioritize that the director of the film is alive while giving the awards.

To honour the women who make great effort in cinema and give them the value and recognition they deserve whe they are still alive the festival gives awards in the names of director Biket İlhan and cinema writer Sevin Okyay. Biket İlhan Best Director Award is presented to the best director selected by the jury every year and Sevin Okyay Cinema Writing Achievement Award is presented to a female cinema writer selected by the festival management.

B) FESTIVAL APPLICATION DATES
Application dates for the 6th International Women Filmmakers Festival which will be held on the dates between 7th -15th March 2023, are 30th May 2022 to 10th December 2022.

Awards & Prizes

Fem Reel Awards at 5th International Women Filmmakers Festival

National Competiton
Best Feature
Biket İlhan Best Director
Special Jury Award
Best Short Film
Best Experimental Short Film
Short Film Special Jury Award
Dokuz Eylül University Faculty of Fine Arts Special Award

International Competition
National Competiton
Best Feature Film
Best Director
Special Jury Award
Best Short Film
Best Experimental Short Film
Short Film Special Jury Award
Dokuz Eylül University Faculty of Fine Arts Special Award

Rules & Terms

TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR SENDING OF NECESARRY MATERIALS AND FILM SCREENINGS
• Documentary, short, feature and animated films will be screened during the festival.
• Festival screening copies must be sent by until 15/02/2023, the latest.
• Screening schedule of the selected films is to be decided by the festival.
• Films participating in the festival cannot be withdrawn from the program after the application deadline.
• The screening copies of featured films must besent to the festival in H 264 or MOV formats, and the documentary and short films must be in H264 or MOV formats.
• The information forms regarding the films included in the selection of the Sixth International Women Filmmakers Festival must be completely filled out and sent via email.
• The forms of all films will be processed and published in the festival catalog following the official announcement of the selected films.
• • In order to avoid mistakes in the festival catalog and website, you are kindly requested to fill in the selected fields in the form as accurately and completely as possible.
• Applicants who do not want to screen their films online should specify this in the application form.
• 6th IWFFT will be entitled to use a part of the film at maximum of 3 minutes for press and the media presentations after the film is officially selected to the screening program.
• There must not be any watermarks such as logo, time code, etc. over the trailer of the film in order to be used in the festival promotional film or/and television promotions.
• Director of the movie may send his or her own curriculum vitae, filmography and the photograph (at least 300 dpi) by e-mail with the application form.

C) CONDITIONS FOR PARTICIPATION, SELECTING COMITEE AND WORKING CONDITIONS
1) Directors can participate the festival with more than one film.
2) With films that have more than one director, one of the directors must be a woman
3) There’s no time limit for the participating films. Each film is included in screening program with its own category (feature, short, documentary etc.).
4) All films that have not been shown at the festival in previous years can apply for a screening program.
5) The deadline for submitting an application for screening is 10th December 2022. Directors must make an online application on https://filmfreeway.com/iwffturkey website till this date.
6) All films included in the program are watched by the selecting comitee and subjected to pre-selection. Selected films will be anounced on www.kadinyonetmenlerfestivali.com.tr website on the date of 15th January 2023.
7) It is mandatory for the films to have subtitles in English. Selected films will be screened with Turkish electronic subtitles. Screening copies of the films must have English subtitles. If it’s not possible for the films to have English subtitles then director must provide an English SRT file for the English electronic subtitles.
8) Selecting comitee consists of women directors and women cinema field workers.
9) The reasons for the films that have not been screened are explained by an online or one-on-one meeting with the director between the dates of the festival if the director(s) wishes.
10) The applied films cannot be withdrawn from the festival after the deadline, whether they fit the festival’s criteria or not.
11) The selection committee makes its decisions regarding the films that will be included in the selection, taking into account the “artistic” qualities of the films and their relevance to the content.
12) The billing information and bank account information required for copyright payments must be consistent with the information of the legal owners specified in the application form.
13) The copyright fees for the screening will be paid no later than 15th June 2023
14) The accurateness of all the information written in the application document binds the person who signed it. The legal responsibility that may arise due to this information belongs to the signatory.
15) The applicant must be able to document that they have all the authority to apply, that the necessary permits have been obtained from all relevant institutions and organizations. It undertakes that the applicant will send the film, if selected, the necessary consent for the cost of the screening and a declaration stating that they are the legal owner of the film with a wet signature from a notary. These documents are required for the report of the Court of Accounts of municipalities that will pay copyright fees. All expenses arising from the notary belong to the festival management.
16) The films are presented to the audience in the halls that the festival management will deem appropriate and within the framework of the festival program. During the screenings, the festival management or the hall authorities may not recommend and make changes to the hall or the programme.
17) Applicants who do not want to screen their films online must specify this request in the application form.
18) If there is an application to the festival management about the airing of films on TV channels, the festival management aids in establishing a communication between the TV channel and the producer and/or director of the film.
19) The legal owner of the film is the sole party to any dispute regarding the copyright that may arise in any image, music, text or any matter used in the film.
20) Due to the exchange rate differences copyright fees cannot be paid to international films.
21) All producers participating in the competition are deemed to have accepted the points contained in this regulation.