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ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

• Feature films, short films, and music videos must have been completed after January 1, 2009.

• Feature films must not have had any public or festival screenings in the greater Los Angeles area, including Los Angeles, Orange, and Ventura counties.

• Feature films and short films must not have had any commercial theatrical or television play in the US. Features films must not have been broadcast on the internet.

• For feature films, especially American films without US distribution, world and US premieres are not required but are strongly preferred, and premiere status will be one of the factors considered when determining a film's inclusion in the Festival. For short films and music videos, premiere status is not a factor in the selection process.

• Feature films and short films in a language other than English must be subtitled in English for Festival presentation.

• Music videos must have a running time of less than 10 minutes.

• For submission purposes, DVD screeners may be of works-in-progress, films with temporary soundtracks, or digital outputs.

• Filmmakers must deliver final format (as indicated) for Festival screenings. No exceptions will be permitted.

• High school films must be works shot, directed, and produced by high school or secondary school (pre-college) students. Adult supervision must be limited to an advisory capacity.

FESTIVAL PRIZES
Select narrative features, documentary features, and short films participate in the Festival’s three competitive sections, the winners of which are chosen by special juries. In the Short Film Competition, awards are given for Best Animated or Experimental Short, Best Documentary Short, and Best Narrative Short.

Most features and shorts are eligible for Audience Awards, which are chosen based on ballots submitted by Festival audiences and are presented in the following categories: Narrative Feature, Documentary Feature, International Feature, Short Film, and Music Video.

The Los Angeles Film Festival is a qualifying festival in all categories for Film Independent’s Spirit Awards and is also a qualifying festival for the Narrative and Animated Short Film categories of the Academy Awards®.

SUBMISSION MATERIALS (ALL SUBMISSIONS MUST BE MADE THROUGH WITHOUTABOX.COM)

• Completed submission form, submitted electronically on via Withoutabox.com.

• Preview DVDs (Region 0 or 1 and NTSC preferred) For feature-length films (50 min. or more), submit two DVDs. For short films (under 50 min.) or music videos, submit one DVD.

• Entry fee payment

• Optional - For confirmation of receipt, a self-addressed postcard with return postage affixed

All submission materials must be delivered together in one package. If completing your submission form online, do not deliver your submission materials until you have completed your online entry and be sure that your online entry number is printed clearly on all materials.

SCREENING REQUIREMENTS
If your film or music video is selected for exhibition, please be advised that the Festival will require:

• 35mm, 16mm, HDCam, or DigiBeta (NTSC) prints/tapes for features and shorts; DigiBeta (NTSC) or Beta SP tapes for music videos; DigiBeta (NTSC), Beta SP, MiniDV, or DV Cam for High School Shorts.

• Press kits with photo stills (color and black & white)

• Headshots of Director(s) and Writer(s)

• Biographies of Director(s) and Writer(s)

• Film trailers, clip reels, posters, postcards, and EPKs, if available.

ENTRY FEES*
Payment in US dollars may be made by check, money order, American Express, Visa, or Mastercard. Checks or money orders (from a US bank in US Dollars only) should be made payable to “Film Independent”. The film title must be clearly printed on all checks/money orders. Do not send cash.

Early Regular
Final Feature Films (50 mins. +) $50.00 $60.00 $70.00
Short Films (Under 50 mins.)
$30.00 $40.00 $50.00
Feature Films (50 mins. +) $10.00 $15.00 $20.00
High School Shorts no charge
no charge
no charge

SUBMISSION DEADLINES
Early Deadline December 4, 2009
Regular Deadline January 15, 2010
Final Deadline
Short films and music videos: February 5, 2010
Feature-length narrative and documentary films: March 5, 2010

$5.00 discount on entry fees for Film Independent members. Additional discounts and extended deadlines may be available for submissions made through Withoutabox.

LABELING
For all submissions, include the English language title and the running time on the DVD itself. Indicate the region-coding of the disc, and, if the DVD is in PAL format, print “PAL” on the disc. If submitting a work-in-progress, indicate the elements that are incomplete on the DVD.

MULTIPLE ENTRIES
You may submit more than one film or music video, but each one must be on a separate DVD and must be accompanied by its own completed submission form and entry fee.

SHIPPING
All costs for shipping submission materials to and from Los Angeles are the responsibility of the sender. Ship your DVD in a protective envelope. The Festival recommends bubble-pack envelopes over fiber-pack envelopes as the fiber type can lead to damaged DVDs and DVD players The Festival is not responsible for damage to submitted materials incurred in shipping.

INTERNATIONAL ENTRIES
All entries from outside the US should be sent Air Mail Registered or by a parcel or express service. We cannot accept entries shipped via air-freight if customs and delivery fees have not been paid.

RECEIPT OF ENTRIES
For confirmation of receipt, include a self-addressed stamped postcard with each entry. The Festival will not confirm receipt of submitted materials by telephone or email.

RETURN OF ENTRIES
Unless indicated on the submission form, preview DVDs will not be returned. To have your DVDs returned, you must pay an additional return fee of $12.00. Do not include pre-paid envelopes for the return of DVDs. DVDs that are not pre-paid for return will be recycled. Submitted press materials will not be returned.

PRESS KITS
No paper press kits are accepted (save the planet). An electronic press kit for feature -length films can be submitted on a separate DVD or CD. The name of the film and "press Kit" must be written directly on the disc.

NOTE
Shorts and high school films submitted to the Festival may be asked to participate in an on-line project.

THANKS!!!!

DELIVER ENTRIES TO
Los Angeles Film Festival
Film Independent
9911 West Pico Blvd, 11th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90035, USA
310.432.1200
310.432.1203 FAX
lafilmfest@FilmIndependent.org

Submission must be made through withoutabox.com