15 Ways to Mitigate Film Festival Rejection
The first date is going well. You had a wonderful dinner, saw a terrific movie, and now you both are on a lovely stroll through the park, but the cliché date does not end there, my friend. It ends after you walk this person you wish to continue pursuing to their front door.
This walk is maybe ten steps in length, but it is one of the most anxiety driven moments of a person’s life because every step taken is filled with anticipation — Your heart pounds, sweat seeps from your armpits, your hands shake, and million questions race through your mind because you are worried about the outcome of your future.
At the end of this moment, all you want is the allowance to proceed to the next stage of development, but despite how diligently you have worked to influence this opportunity to go in your favor, you know you have absolutely no control over that decision. You will either be accepted or rejected and that decision is ultimately in the hands of an outside entity…
And this utterly helpless front door feeling is exactly what a filmmaker experiences when they await the decision of whether their film is accepted into a festival or not!
All we want as filmmakers is a premier of our work… and recognition, and praise, and potential resources to either make another (better) film, and or get a paid gig on a real filmset as a result — the list is endless, but for those things to happen, you must first go through the evaluation process and become accepted.
The truth however is that there is more rejection when it comes to these outside entities — Not everyone gets a trophy, yet, aspiring filmmakers from all over world hand over the outcome of their future to these organizations. Why is that?
Well, film festivals offer a streamlined unit of distribution to the public with the potential of a marketed artistic accolade of awareness — and the higher tiered the festival, the wider the outreach in comparison to online hosts such as YouTube, Vimeo, or other social media platforms. Now, should the filmmaker use these online platforms to host their work? Absolutely — most of them are free and are wonderful spaces to let an independent film live after the festival run is over, but if the filmmaker is looking to broaden the awareness of their brand, it is good to know that these platforms are limited to the number of social media followers garnered prior.
So, there is a value with a film being showcased and associated with a festival. That said, the competition is fierce. Here is a realization I had after working for three different film festivals over the last seven years. Presently, there are two surpluses within our current culture when it pertains to the demonstration of artistry:
1. There is a surplus of the wannabe artist — everyone and their grandmother is told they have a voice and need to share it.
2. There is a surplus of technology — affordable, easy-to-use, and conveniently accessible gadgets which everyone’s grandmother can learn how to operate through DYI tactics.
Put these surpluses together and what do you get? A sea of mediocre media which floods the market and here is another hard truth: This flood is what every filmmaker longing for the chance to be seen as a professional must swim above… and one way to avoid drowning is to be accepted by a film festival. So, how does a filmmaker become accepted by a festival?
No clue — There is not a secret formula to follow when it comes to application process of submitting a film and every festival is different when it comes to the qualifications of submission. Thing is, you can make the most beautifully shot, heart wrenching, Oscar-worthy film and still be rejected for numerous reasons… and it is nothing personal, it is just business.
On that note, on the surface, festivals are viewed an entity which celebrates an artist’s voice, but they are also a business — Technically most are a 501(c)(3), a nonprofit. Investopedia describes a business as “an organization or enterprising entity engaged in commercial, industrial, or professional activities… to organize some sort of economic production of goods or services.” A film festival is an organized entity which engages with the public to promote the efforts and activities of artists within the medium of filmmaking. So, given what is understood of a business is and what it does… the filmmaker needs to understand its agenda.
Why does a business provide goods/services? Well, quite simply to earn a profit. Despite the type of business and its good/service, its goal is to make money and if history has proven anything, businesses will do just about anything to accomplish this goal. Some even go so far to invest in an operation to decrease their risk of failure. This is what executives call, Risk Mitigation.
To provide clarity, an article by ZenGRC describes risk mitigation as “the process a business undertakes to reduce its exposure to the various risks it might face… [such as]… severe disruption or financial loss.” For example, suits will meticulously measure and assess everything they can put their hands on before a venture is pursued to have the chance to obtain the highest monetary gain with the least amount of exposure — ‘How do we get more by using less?’ Sure, this way of working is more on the left brain in comparison to being artistic and introspective, but to increase the chances of being accepted and having that stepping stone towards professionalism, risk mitigation is something, I believe, every filmmaker should utilize.
Personally, I believe this operation is owed to the film itself well before it is submitted for evaluation. The filmmaker, in my opinion needs to do this out of respect to the cast and crew’s investment of time, energy, and efforts making the film a reality. Here is the thing — all those resources are at risk of being wasted if the film is blindly submitted to a festival. The risk of being rejected is high and sure, by some about of sheer luck, the film could be accepted, but if the filmmaker were to apply risk mitigation that amount of risk could be decreased.
So, how does a filmmaker apply this operation? Well, it all boils down to efficiently categorizing a film before it goes to market. The ways to categorize a film can be found below, but there are two things the filmmaker needs to acknowledge going forward: First, categorizing a film will transform the perspective of a creator’s art into a sellable product and second, categorizing a film does not guarantee acceptance from any festival. It simply lowers the rate of potential failure.
Now, here are the ways to mitigate the risk of rejection from film festivals: For context, let us use a female led, short (7 min) horror film made in Augusta, Georgia by a college student who is originally from Winston-Salem, North Carolina who just finished an internship with a festival in Austin, Texas.
To mitigate risk of rejection…
- Aim for the City of Production:
The film above will have a higher chance at being accepted into a festival within Augusta in comparison to a festival within Atlanta, or one out-of-state because it was produced in the city of Augusta. Festivals love to support the city they reside for economic and cultural impact reasons — For a deeper dive, read The NGO IFF article.
2. Aim for the State of Production:
The film above will have a higher chance at being accepted into a festival outside the city of Augusta such as one in Atlanta if it is made aware that either the director or majority of its cast and crew are Georgia filmmakers. Festivals love to support their state for sponsorship reasons. For a deeper dive, read the Jagran FF article.
3. Aim for the Filmmaker’s Hometown:
The film above will have a higher chance at being accepted into a festival within Winston-Salem, North Carolina due to the filmmaker originally being from there. Festivals love to support their community. For a deeper dive, watch the BAFTA video.
4. Aim for Other Associated Connections:
The film above will have a higher chance at being accepted into festivals which the filmmaker has additional connections to such as having interned/worked for a festival in the past, won an award with a previous film/script submission, and or knows someone who works within one. Festivals love to support their alumni. For a deeper dive, read the Staffmeup blog.
5. Match the Genre:
The film above will have a higher chance at being accepted into a local or out-of-state festival which showcases horror in comparison to one which showcases comedy. Festivals have a brand to uphold. For a deeper dive, read the Backstage article.
6. Match the Audience Demographic:
The film above will have a higher chance at being accepted into a local or out-of-state festival which caters to the female oriented voice in comparison to one which caters to the male oriented voice. Festivals have an audience to satisfy. For a deeper dive, read the Phys.org article.
7. Match the Group Demographic:
The film above will have a higher chance at being accepted into a local or out-of-state festival which caters to student-oriented work in comparison to one which caters to the work of independent contractors. Festivals have a reputation to uphold. For a deeper dive, read the Arts Management & Technology Laboratory article.
8. Timeslots:
The film above will have a higher chance at being accepted into most festivals given that is within the 5-to-10-minute range in comparison to the 30-to-80-minute range. Festivals have a limited number of allocated slots and each one has more slots for short form content than long form. For a deep dive, watch the Film It Yourself video.
9. Increase the Chances of Opportunity:
In the duration it takes a filmmaker to develop a single 30-minute short film which is considered one submission at a 50% approval-rejection rate, they could make three 10-minute short films, apply them all to the same festival, and lower the rate to 30% being three different submissions. Festivals are all about the numbers. For a deeper dive, read the Musicbed article.
10. Budget. Part 01 — Top Ten:
Though the cost of most submissions is reasonable, it can become pricy if the filmmaker sporadically purchases a large amount over time. One way to avoid breaking the bank is to create a list of festivals whose brand matches the film, cap it off at 10 festivals, and build a budget to hit those selected. For a deeper dive, watch the Standard Story Company video.
11. Budget. Part 02 — Aim for Early Bird:
Every festival has different prices associated with submissions — Especially when it comes to deadlines. If the filmmaker has budget set aside for festival submissions, it would be in the filmmaker’s best interest to apply to festivals as soon as they open the gates due to the lower price point. Note: typically, the closer the submission deadline gets to the festival event, the higher the cost will become. Note: the higher the price of submission does not equate to a higher rate of acceptance — for a deeper dive, read the Film Festival Secrets article.
12. Tier:
The film above will have a higher chance at being accepted into a low tiered festival in comparison to a high tiered one given that is a student production. Most high tiered festivals have strict requirements when it comes to the film quality and additional packaged elements such as recognizable cast and crew members. The filmmaker looking to submit should evaluate their film and determine if their product holds up against these high tier standards. If it does, great — if not, allocate the funds for the high tiered festival to a low tiered submission. For a deeper dive, watch the In Depth Cine video.
13. Build Awareness:
The film above will have a higher chance at being accepted into a festival if the filmmaker, or the institution involved in production, markets the film prior to its submission. Some festivals find value this component especially if there is a notable cast or crew member attached. Festivals love to showcase similar branded material which could generate additional audience participation. For a deeper dive, read the Raindance article.
14. Premier (Evaluate the REAL Reason) Part 01 — A Film’s Purpose:
A film is built to serve as a calling card, to promote the artist, to garner funding for a feature, to get more likes on social media… The reason behind making a film is endless — What can lower the rejection rate though is the filmmaker’s ability to recognize how a festival can support the film’s purpose. For a deeper dive, read Dowler’s Medium article.
15. Premier (Evaluate the REAL Reason) Part 02 — A Filmmaker’s Purpose:
A filmmaker can want notoriety within the community, an award of being the best, the ability to rub elbows with other more successful filmmakers… The motive behind a filmmaker is endless — What can lower the rejection rate though is the filmmaker’s ability to recognize what it is they want and apply to festivals which offer those opportunities — for a deeper dive, read the Academy of Cinematic Arts article.
These 15 applications of risk mitigation are simply a taste when it comes to other tactics. So, I would recommend the filmmaker do some digging and learn how else they can use this good practice. That said, risk mitigation again is an applicable to all sorts of pursuits when it comes to goal orientation. The underlining theme here though is all about the practice of strategic thinking.
One last note when it comes to film festivals: They are not the end-all be all. Despite whether the film is accepted or not, at the end of the day, the true value of it lies in the team of people who built the film.
Hypothetically, if the film is accepted, the filmmaker will go through all the processes of there being a premiere, the ability to network, and some news coverage, or podcast interviews could surface, but what does the filmmaker do after all that comes to a halt?
Well, they do the same thing that the filmmaker who was rejected would do: They post the film online, splice it up for the cast and crew use build their demo reels, and start on the next project.
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