PORTO/POST/DOC: ONE OF THE 25 COOLEST FESTIVALS WORLDWIDE!

Porto/Post/Doc: Film & Media Festival was considered one of the 25 coolest festivals in the world by MovieMaker Magazine. The selection panel gathered five film industry professionals: Garrett Bradley, Sky Hopinka, Eran Polishuk, Ryan Werner and Ela Bittencourt.

About the festival, the magazine highlights "a great atmosphere, thoughtful friendly team, and a romantic setting", in Bittencourt's words.

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Porto/Post/Doc takes place annually over the course of ten days in venues across downtown Porto, and consists of international contemporary and retrospective "cinema of the real". The film selection is guided by a rigorous concern for new forms of cinematic expression that extend and test the boundaries of what is possible in nonfiction cinema, and is also never averse to exploring the non-fictive edges of fiction. Crucially, in its programming Porto/Post/Doc makes no distinction between the two camps, allowing contemporary cinema to inhabit a space that draws from both practices. And yet, it draws its core identity from its complex relation to the "the real”.

With an eclectic selection, the festival is organized around competitions and several parallel programmes.

· International Competition;
· Cinema Falado Competition (Portuguese-speaking or Portuguese-culture related films);
· Cinema Novo Competition (films from Portuguese film schools or from Portuguese students studying abroad);
· Transmission Competition (films about music);
· Mini/Teenage (films for children and teenagers);
· Full Dome Planetarium (immersive films made for planetariums).

Each competition will have a specific jury, composed of experienced professionals and creators, which will attribute the following awards:

GRAND JURY PRIZE VICENTE PINTO ABREU
For best film in the International Competition
Value: €3000

SPAUTORES – CINEMA FALADO AWARD
For best film in Cinema Falado Competition
Value: €1500

TRANSMISSION AWARD
For best film in the Transmission Competition, unless otherwise excluded
Value: €1000

CINEMA NOVO AWARD - CANAL180
For best film of Cinema Novo Competition
Value: €500

TEENAGE AWARD
For best film in a selection chosen from various programme sections. Awarded by a group of students from various secondary schools across Porto.

WORKING CLASS HEROES AWARD – FILMAPORTO
For best Working Class Heroes project. Value €20.000.

ARCHÉ AWARD BY COMPANHIA DAS CULTURAS/FUNDAÇÃO PEREIRA MONTEIRO
Awarded to the best project presented in the Arché Porto Lab
Artist Residency at Companhia das Culturas

Other awards will be announced soon.

1. GENERAL INFORMATION

1.1. About the Festival:
The 11th edition of Porto/Post/Doc will take place from the 22nd to the 30th of November 2024.

1.2. Submissions and programmes:
Submission to the Festival International Competition is open to documentaries, experimental documentaries and innovative visual productions close to documentaries with duration of or over 50 minutes. Documentary films with a strong fictional component will also be considered. These films must be produced in 2023 or 2024, or premiere in these years. The Open Call will be open from December 1, 2023 until August 31, 2024. The films submissions are made through the FilmFreeway platform. The user must follow all the steps and procedures suggested by FilmFreeway. The costs associated with using this platform are the responsibility of the user, as well as the respect and fulfillment of all data requested to complete the application.

1.2.1 Submissions are also accepted for:
· Cinema Falado Competition, for Portuguese-speaking or Portuguese-culture related films, produced in 2023 or 2024;
· Cinema Novo Competition, for documentary films with less than 40 minutes, produced in a Portuguese School or directed by a Portuguese student outside Portugal, in 2023 or 2024;
· Transmission Competition, for films about music, produced in 2023 or 2024;
· Mini/Teenage, for films (animation, fiction or documentary, either short or feature formats), suitable for children and/or teenagers, produced in 2023 or 2024.
· Full Dome Planetarium, for immersive films made for planetariums, produced in 2023 or 2024.

1.3. Screening Formats:
The festival is able to screen DCP, Blu-Ray, ProRes files and 35mm film.

1.4. Premiere Policy:
The Festival gives priority to World and Portuguese Premieres. Films that have already been shown in Portugal or on Portuguese television are not eligible for selection unless specific authorization is given by the Selection Committee.

1.5. Language Policy:
Films are screened in the original language. If the film doesn’t have English dialogues, it must be subtitled in English. If necessary, and only with the approval of the Festival, a film can be subtitled using an electronic subtitling system (Portuguese and English subtitles). All films in the International Competition will be subtitled in Portuguese and English.

2. AWARDS AND POLICIES
2.1. Awards:

Each competition will have a specific jury, composed of experienced professionals and creators, which will attribute the following awards:

· Vicente Pinto de Abreu Grand Prize for best film in the International Competition;
· Cinema Falado Award for the best film in the competition;
· Cinema Novo Award by Canal180 for the best film in the competition;
· Transmission Award for the best film in the competition.

The festival also gives a Teenage Award, given by a group of students of Porto’s schools for the best film in a group of films of several programmes.

Other awards will be announced soon.

2.2. Withdrawal Policy:
After accepting the invitation to participate in one of the programmes of Porto/Post/Doc, the film in case cannot be withdrawn.

2.3. Promotion:
Producers and distributors of participating/winning films are requested to include in future promotional material the mention of participation in/winner of Official International Competition at Porto/Post/Doc, along with the Festival's logo, available on request from opencall@portopostdoc.com.

3. SELECTED FILMS
Porto/Post/Doc must receive all physical and digital materials on its address. Materials must be shipped right after the acceptance of participation on the Festival, never after October 17. Additionally, it is necessary to mention the contact of the owner of the legal rights of the work, as well as a document signed on the date of the shipment of the film’s copy, mentioning the authorization to screen the film on Porto/Post/Doc.

3.1. Festival Catalogue:
The catalogue will include the following technical and artistic credits: original title, international title, Portuguese title, director, running time, country(ies) of production, year of production, premiere status, format, production company, producer, distribution company/world sales, short and long synopsis (PT and EN), director’s works and contact information of the producer and the owner of the copy. Please send a film still for the Catalogue. The file must be 10 cm wide and 300 dpi, compressed on JPEG – level 8.

3.2. Dialogues:
We request the dialogue list of the submitted film in the original language and in English, for subtitling purposes.

3.3. Technical Information:
Porto/Post/Doc will only accept films on the following formats: DCP, 35 mm, BluRay and ProRes files (preferably under 100 GB) exported on MPG4 and H264. The Aspect Ratio values accepted for screening by the Festival are: 1.1:85, 1.1:77, 1.1:66, 2.1:35 and 2.1:39. The audio on the copy has to be 5.1 or 2.0.

3.4. Press Kits:
The owners of the films participating in the Festival are requested to send separately an adequate amount of press kits and stills to be made available to the Festival Press Office for distribution to the press and Festival guests.

3.5. Trailers And Excerpts:
After the official selection of a film, the Festival is qualified to use excerpts from the film, with a maximum of 3 minutes, nationally and internationally, for promotional purposes. If possible, please send a link of the trailer of the work or the video file itself.

3.6. Stills:
For the promotion of the whole selection and of each selected film, the Festival website is allowed to use any photo or digital film clip (of less than 3 minutes’ duration).

3.7. Screening Schedule:
General scheduling and timetabling of the screenings are entirely at the discretion of the Festival.

3.8. Screening Fees:
The Festival does not pay a screening fee to the selected films unless specific authorization is given by the Festival Organization.

3.9. Special programmes:
The selected films are eligible for a 'Best Of' programme in Portugal, until March of the following year. If a film does not allow this screening, it should notify the Festival, by e-mail, of its non-eligibility.

4. DISPATCH OF SCREENING PRINTS OF SELECTED FILMS
4.1. Shipment of Film Prints:
Detailed print/video shipment information will follow upon acceptance of the film.

4.2. Film Prints Availability:
Unless authorized by the Festival, the print/video must be made available for the whole Festival period and the print/video must arrive in Porto, Portugal before October 22, 2024. The sender is requested to inform the Festival on the means of dispatch, date of shipment and Airway bill number.

4.3. Shipment Policy:
The film must be sent prepaid by sender. No collect shipments are accepted unless authorized by the Festival. The Festival will pay for the return transportation charges, excluding any additional costs for tax and custom clearance in the country of return.

4.4. Return of Prints:
All prints will be returned within four weeks after the Festival. It's the responsibility of each participant to inform the Festival in due time on (any change in) the details of the return address as well as the desired date of arrival at the return address.

4.5. Print Insurance:
The insurance of the copies comes into effect the moment the film has arrived at the Festival's office. The insurance remains in effect until the film is reshipped. In case of damage to or loss of a film during the Festival, the Festival is only responsible for the costs involved in making a new print or replacing the damaged reel(s) based on the current laboratory rates for ordering a standard print.

4.6. Print Damage:
Damage to the film print must be reported to the Festival in writing within a month after return and prior to any following screening. Any claims will be judged by the reported state of the print. The insurance does not cover any damage during normal screening use.

5. CONCLUSION
Entry and participation of films imply unconditional acceptance of the regulations. In unspecified cases, any final decisions are at the discretion of the festival.

Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Vasco Viana

    Welcoming people and great atmosphere!

    December 2023
  • Juliana Schwindt

    Finalmente no pude asistir al festival, pero estuve en contacto con otros directores a través de la plataforma :)
    Desde el festival fueron muy amables!!!
    La programación es excelente!
    Espero poder ir en otra edición!!!

    December 2021
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    Response from festival:

    Thanks Juliana.

  • One of the most prolific film festivals from Portugal. Go and see.

    December 2021
    10325308 1510185722538532 4561034463290044380 n
    Response from festival:

    Thanks Welket.

  • Fantástico como sempre! Obrigada e até para o ano!

    December 2020
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    Response from festival:

    Obrigado.