CIFF exists to transform the way visual stories are shared and experienced. We discover and share the best and most remarkable, especially those that would not otherwise be seen.
We champion filmmakers, especially new voices, for the delight and benefit of the audience, to whom we are a guide and provider of the best stories, presented within a remarkable festival environment.
CIFF’s vision emphasizes discovery. We are proud to be the first to debut and give exposure to new filmmakers, particularly championing and fostering Alberta’s own creative voices. Highlighting their work alongside that of established contemporaries, we celebrate the new energy and ideas they bring to the future of the art form, and make them an integral part of the exciting milieu of the festival.
Music on Screen - Documentary or Narrative Feature
Narrative or documentary Feature over 60 minutes in runtime, where the primary focus is music, ie rockumentary, musical, musician biopics, stories featuring musicians
- Submitting under this category will not prevent your film from being considered for programming in other sections should your film be suitable for the festival, However if you qualify as Alberta Narrative or Documentary please submit as such.
Feature films from Canada over 60 minutes runtime.
Secure Online Link (optional):
You are encouraged to include a secure online screening link in your cover letter, as an alternate viewing option for staff.
Feature films from outside of Canada and the U.S, over 60 minutes in runtime.
If your film is a co-production with the U.S. or Canada, please select the section for your submission, which is the primary.
Secure Online Link (optional):
You are encouraged to include a secure online screening link in your cover letter, as an alternate viewing option for staff.
If your film is a co-production, please select the section for your submission, which is the primary.
Secure Online Link (optional):
You are encouraged to include a secure online screening link in your cover letter, as an alternate viewing option for staff.
Documentary feature films, produced outside of Alberta, over 60 minutes in runtime.
Secure Online Link (optional):
You are encouraged to include a secure online screening link in your cover letter, as an alternate viewing option for staff.
Any USA or international short film, with a runtime of 30 minutes or less.
Secure Online Link (optional):
You are encouraged to include a secure online screening link in your cover letter, as an alternate viewing option for staff.
Short films from Canada, with a runtime of 30 minutes or less.
Secure Online Link (optional):
You are encouraged to include a secure online screening link in your cover letter, as an alternate viewing option for staff.
****If you are an Alberta production please contact programming@calgaryfilm.com to receive a FEE WAIVER code.
In order for the fee to be waived filmmakers must contact the programming department to request a waiver PRIOR to submitting their film.
Secure Online Link (optional):
You are encouraged to include a secure online screening link in your cover letter, as an alternate viewing option for staff.
**If you are an Alberta production please contact programming@calgaryfilm.com to receive a FEE WAIVER code.
In order for the fee to be waived filmmakers must contact the programming department to request a waiver PRIOR to submitting their film.
Secure Online Link (optional):
You are encouraged to include a secure online screening link in your cover letter, as an alternate viewing option for staff.
**If you are an Alberta production please contact programming@calgaryfilm.com to receive a FEE WAIVER code.
In order for the fee to be waived filmmakers must contact the programming department to request a waiver PRIOR to submitting their film.
Secure Online Link (optional):
You are encouraged to include a secure online screening link in your cover letter, as an alternate viewing option for staff.
MISSION & OBJECTIVE
The Calgary International Film Festival (CIFF) is a 12-day showcase of up to 200 short and feature length multi-genre films, from Canada and over 40 other countries. The festival hosts gala events, screenings, an industry series, award ceremonies and special presentations.
ABOUT THE FESTIVAL
Each year’s line-up is presented in series that group CIFF’s offerings into easily identifiable categories including Canadian, American and World Cinema, Documentaries, Late Shows and Shorts. We also present a number of awards to outstanding films selected by our audiences and esteemed juries.
In addition to the festival, CIFF presents Doc Soup, a six-month screening series of award-winning and critically acclaimed documentary films presented in conjunction with the Hot Docs International Documentary Film Festival.
CIFF exists to transform the way visual stories are shared and experienced. We discover and share the best and most remarkable, especially those that would not otherwise be seen. We champion filmmakers, especially new voices, for the delight and benefit of the audience, to whom we are a guide and provider of the best stories, presented within a remarkable festival environment.
CIFF’s vision emphasizes discovery. Highlighting their work alongside that of established contemporaries, we celebrate the new energy and ideas new filmmakers bring to the future of the art form, and make them an integral part of the exciting milieu of the festival.
ORGANIZERS
Alex Rogalski (Features Programmer); Brenda Lieberman (Programming Manager); Brennan Tilley (Shorts Programmer); Cole Binder (Screening Technical Manager); Guy Lavallee (Features Programmer); Jennifer Crighton (Programming Administrator); Karilynn Thompson (Shorts Programmer); Karolina Gajewska (Operations Manager); Sachin Gandhi (Features Programmer); Stephen Schroeder (Executive Director); Veronica Reeves (Print Traffic Coordinator)
GENERAL RULES
1) Your film must be completed after January 1, 2015 and not previously submitted to CIFF.
2) Priority is given to films which have not yet screened in Calgary.
3) All applicable licenses and waivers of copyrights, moral rights, trademarks and other such intellectual property rights have been secured by the filmmaker(s).
4) All applicable legal waivers have been obtained from all participants.
5) Preview screeners accepted as secure ONLINE LINKS or on DVD (properly labeled).
6) (optional) Please also include a secure online link (Vimeo or Youtube) and password in your cover letter. This provides an alternate viewing option for staff, with a better quality picture/resolution.
*IF SUBMITTING ONLINE LINK: Please do not change the link address or password. If you do, please notify us immediately or you risk your film not being previewed and thus considered for the festival.
7) Films in a language other than English must be subtitled in English.
DEADLINES:
May 1, 2016 Earlybird Deadline for submissions
June 1, 2016 Regular Deadline for submissions
June 13, 2016 Final Deadline for LATE submissions
SUBMISSION CATEGORIES:
Narrative Feature - U.S
Narrative Feature - International (outside North America)
Narrative Feature - Canadian
Narrative Feature - Alberta**
Documentary Feature
Documentary Feature - Alberta**
Music Themed - Documentary or Feature
Shorts - International
Shorts - Canadian
Shorts - Alberta
** PLEASE REVIEW THE POINTS SYSTEM FOR ALBERTA SUBMISSIONS. If you are an Alberta production and would like to receive a fee waiver, please contact the programming department programming@calgaryfilm.com.
In order for the fee to be waived filmmakers must contact the programming department to request a waiver PRIOR to submitting their film.
NOTIFICATION:
Entrants will be notified of the decisions of the Selection Committee by August 24, 2016.
Upon notification of selection, the entrant agrees to immediately supply CIFF with requested publicity materials, and grants the Festival the right to utilize such materials for promotional purposes and to broadcast and/or screen clips.
Please do not contact the Programming Department regarding the status of your submission before that date.
Upon invitation, participants will be contacted via email by the Print Traffic Coordinator with specific shipping instructions. Feature exhibition prints/tapes must arrive at the Festival office by September 14, 2016. Short film files (as per specs provided on acceptance) must be uploaded to the server no later than August 24, 2016. Incoming shipping costs are the sole responsibility of the participant unless otherwise negotiated. Invited films must be shipped pre-paid, with all the necessary commercial invoices and customs paid, with return (or next festival) shipping information including the name of your preferred courier company and your account number.
SHIPPING & HANDLING:
The Print Traffic Coordinator will contact all accepted submissions with specific shipping instructions. Exhibition copies of short films must arrive by August 24, 2016. Exhibition copies of feature films must arrive by September 14, 2016.
We will pay one-way shipping, on exhibition copies.
All submissions must be sent pre-paid (unless otherwise negotiated); the Festival will not accept Collect or COD shipments.
CUSTOMS FOR INTERNATIONAL PARTICIPANTS:
The Customs Declaration on your submission package should state, “FOR FESTIVAL PURPOSES ONLY, NO COMMERCIAL VALUE”. Make sure to include all applicable labels, commercial invoices, customs declarations and waybills. Please keep your value less than $60.00 CDN.
SELECTION:
Preference will be given to submissions that have not been distributed/screened theatrically or broadcast on television in Alberta prior to the 2016 Festival. All submissions are screened and evaluated by CIFF Preview and Selection Committees. Their reports and decisions are final and confidential.
CIFF Programmers make final selections and determine in which section they are presented. Designation of a selected film’s program category, exhibition date(s), time(s), and location(s) is at the sole discretion of the Festival. In addition, the entrant grants CIFF the right to exhibit the selected film up to three times during the Festival, in addition to daytime Press and Jury screenings (closed to the public).
AWARDS:
Films invited to the 2016 Festival are automatically considered for nomination in all Award categories for which they are eligible. Nominations are made on the basis of achievement in form and content in their category by a jury of industry experts and leading cultural figures from Canada. Award categories may be expanded or changed at any time.
Discovery Award for Emerging Filmmakers (First time feature filmmaker / Feature films only – Documentary and Narrative categories)
Alberta Spirit (Shorts films only)
Audience Choice Award (Feature & Short films)
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
LIMITATION OF LIABILITY AND INDEMNITY PROVISIONS:
Although CIFF will take every reasonable precaution for the safekeeping and proper handling of entry and exhibition materials, including the Exhibition Print(s), from the time of receipt to the time of release to the Applicant’s courier company or shipping agent, CIFF shall not be liable to Applicant, his or her heirs, legal representatives, or dependents, or their respective assignees, for loss or damage to entry and exhibition materials arising out of the transportation to and from the Festival or the operations of CIFF, its officers, directors, agents, successors and assigns, whether or not caused by the act, neglect, or default of CIFF, its officers, directors, agents, successors and assigns, or otherwise.
Notwithstanding the above, CIFF's liability for claims, costs, losses, damages of any kind or any other cause, including but not limited to liability for any fundamental breach of this agreement or for patent or copyright infringement and regardless of the form of action, shall not exceed the fees paid hereunder for the submission to the Festival. The fees charged by CIFF reflect the allocation of risk herein and the limited recourse to the Applicant provided for in this Agreement.
In addition, International participants should note that CIFF will not assume responsibility for, nor will it accept shipments incurring expenses for terminal charges, duties, taxes or customs brokerage.
Finally, Applicant shall indemnify and hold CIFF harmless of and from any and all claims, losses, liabilities (including negligence, tort and strict liability), damages, judgments, suits or legal proceedings, including court costs, expenses and reasonable attorneys' fees, related to the use by CIFF of the entry and exhibition materials, including but not limited to any claim that the Applicant's entry and exhibition materials violates the intellectual property rights of another party.
The Calgary International Film Festival (CIFF) is a 12-day showcase of up to 200 multi-genre films from Canada and over 40 other countries. The festival hosts gala events, screenings, award ceremonies and special presentations. We host a large number of participating filmmakers from our backyard and round the world and connect them with the audience through post-screening question and answer periods, mingling at our events, and through panels and film talks open to the general public.
Each year’s line-up is presented in series that group CIFF’s offerings into easily identifiable categories including Canadian, American and World Cinema, Documentaries, Late Shows and Shorts. We also present a number of awards to outstanding films selected by our audiences and esteemed juries.
In addition to the festival, CIFF presents Doc Soup, a six-month screening series of award-winning and critically acclaimed documentary films presented in conjunction with the Hot Docs International Documentary Film Festival.
This year's festival will run from Septermber 23rd-October 4th, 2015, and submissions are now open! Please visit http://www.calgaryfilm.com/2015-submissions for submission details and rules.
