FAQ (Frequently asked Questions)

How many entries do you normally receive?

We receive roughly 150 entries, and

generally select around 50 for the program.

Who gets the money from our entry fees?
Virtually all of the fees are used to pay for the
festival expenses, such as publicity, award
certificates, postage, and projection equipment.
Even a "small" festival is expensive to produce. 

We notice that you do not conduct seminars.

Why is that?

We have been able to survive as an independent

film festival by ”keeping it simple”.  We hold a

basic one-day film festival without the expensive

extras such as parties or seminars.  “No frills…just

films”. 

automatically be in your festival, right?

No.  Your film will be evaluated by a panel

of five judges for its technical quality, 

creativity, entertainment value, acting, and

script development. The films with the

highest scores will run in the festival.  Our

acceptance rate at present is around 30%..

I’ve heard that because I’ve entered your

festival, I will get an IMDB page.  How

does that work?

We are registered as a film festival with the

IMDB.  Once we receive your film,  you will

automatically be contacted by IMDB within

a few weeks.  They will set up your page for

you free of charge.

You have informed me that my film will

be shown at the festival. What do I do now?

If you have won an Award Certificate, it will

be mailed to you, as we do not hold a formal

award ceremony.  All “Official Selections”

will receive a JPG “Festival Seal”, which will

be emailed to you for use on your publicity

materials. Make sure that you upload a poster

and other publicity information to withoutabox

so that we can include it in our website.

If I don't attend the festival, will this affect

your decision to run my film?

Absolutely not.  If you can't make it to the

festival, we fully understand. Traveling is

very expensive. If you have flyers for us to

hand out at the screening, simply mail them,

and we will be happy to distribute them for

you. If your film has won an Award Certificate,

it will be mailed to you regardless of whether

you attend or not.

Do I get free tickets for the screening?

Yes. You will receive two free tickets, which

will allow you to stay all day, for all shows.

Additional tickets are available at the theatre

boxoffice, for only $2 per 2-hour show.

My film was NOT picked for the festival,

but I feel that it's pretty good.  Please explain.

It’s often hard for a filmmaker to be objective,

because you are too close to the project.

Was your audio good, or was it recorded

off of your camera mic?  Was the music mix

too loud?  How was the acting?..the lighting?...

the script?  Is your film entertaining or

thought provoking?  Is it too much about

what kind of equipment was used, but the

film has no story or point?  Our judges take

everything into consideration.

As Festival Directors, what is your

background in film?

Ray worked as a television cameraman/editor

for over 30 years. We are now retired, and have

made numerous  "no-budget" feature films, and

a number of shorts. If you'd like to read more

about us, please click here