The festival circuit can be a little bit tricky to navigate. Ok, it's very difficult to navigate. We're always here trying to make some sense of which may be worth your time, but when it comes down to it, the choice really all comes down to you.

Maybe, as much as you'd like for your film to premiere at Sundance, your weird little low budget horror feature might not fit the bill. The most important thing here is not prestige, but to find a festival that is a good match for your specific film.

That being said, we always suggest FilmFreeway as a good place to get a sense for what festivals can make your Academy dreams come true. Just sort by Academy Award Qualifying festival or MovieMaker Magazine's 50 Films Worth the Entry Fee to get a sense for the festivals that could help in that regard.

But if you want even more control over your festival choices than you need to check out this comprehensive database of around 900 established American film festivals compiled by festival guru Michael Forstein. It includes a 2019 calendar, interactive maps, and a sortable spreadsheet with fest dates, submission deadlines, websites, genres, etc. 

Database & Calendar: https://bit.ly/2STeqlR
Google Map: https://bit.ly/2Dbf20G
ArcGIS Map: https://arcg.is/uryuf

As Forstein explained to us, this great resource is a living document and will be continually updated to reflect any changes in the circuit as they happen. We hope it helps!

film festivalsubmissions
Festivals & Events