Festive!

Getting a film into the film festival circuit is a matter of numbers and timing and luck and elements as arbitrary as who’s doing the gatekeeping on a given day for a given festival or how exacting a festival’s definition of a press kit is.

Hatboxes is a short film, clocking in at just over 18 minutes.  It gets a good deal of story told in just a few minutes, and it features several layers but purposefully does not try to spoonfeed its audience.

Several obvious target types of film festivals could suit Hatboxes—Jewish, lesbian/gay, women’s, short films—but general festivals usually include a “Shorts” category, as well.  Most festivals now route their application processes through the centralized Withoutabox, named for the ability of filmmakers to submit their films mostly via online upload rather than having to ship a disc or a tape in a box to festival organizers...although some festivals still require submission of a screener disc.

A film may seem like a good fit for a festival’s program, but factors like how it would balance with other works or whether it would make for an unwieldy segment may affect the outcome of an application.  Or a film may be too controversial for a given festival’s audience.  Or it may be one of thousands of entries for a field of just a few dozen slots, and other films edge it out.

Festival application fees range from $15 to upwards of $80 per short film submission. Once the filmmaker has selected festivals to submit a film to, the task is to keep up with submission deadlines, which roll throughout the calendar year.   Selecting festivals can go beyond choosing by types of festivals that suit the film to factors like where the filmmaker might have a couch to crash on or what cities the filmmaker has always wanted to visit.  Also, an arcane hierarchy of festivals can sway choices, too.

We have been submitting Hatboxes for consideration at festivals around the US and elsewhere and are confident that it will be met with enthusiasm.