Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires Festivales de Buenos Aires Agenda Cultural de Buenos Aires

Rules

Film Submission and Participation Rules

  1. General Terms

    1.1- Organizer and dates

    The 15th Buenos Aires International Independent Film Festival (BAFICI), organized by the Ministry of Culture of the Government of the City of Buenos Aires, will be held from April 10 to April 21, 2013.

    1.2- Eligibility

    Submissions are open to Argentine and foreign fiction, documentary, and experimental full-length films, and to Argentine short films. All productions must have been completed after January 1, 2012.

    The Festival gives priority to local and foreign premieres. Films that have already been screened in Argentina will not be given priority.

    1.3- Sections

    The program of the Festival will include competition and non-competition sections. The selection committee will decide the section in which films will participate.

    1.4- Entry

    Entry of films to the Festival is free.

    The producer who holds the rights of the film shall communicate to the Festival, prior to January 31, 2013, his/her wish to participate by sending the duly completed entry form. Once signed, the entry form will be legally considered as a sworn statement and as a testimony of the producer's knowledge and acceptance of the present Rules.

    1.5- Participation

    Participation in the Festival entails the acceptance of the present Rules.

    Once submitted and selected, a film cannot be removed from the Festival lineup or be exhibited at any other event in Argentina before its official screening at BAFICI.

    All people related to the selected films agree not to make public their participation until the lineup is announced by the Festival Organizers at a press conference.

    Competitions

    2.1- Official Competitions

    The Festival's selection committee is responsible for programming the different competition sections. The program includes three Official Competition Sections aimed at promoting new filmmakers:

    • International Official Competition, for national and international fiction and documentary feature films, provided that they are the directors' first, second or third work. Films must be completed in 35mm, 16mm and HD.
    • Argentine Official Competition, for local fiction and documentary feature films. If they are available in film format, this will be the screening format at the Festival.
    • Argentine Short Film Official Competition, for local fiction or documentary short films. If they are available in film format, this will be the screening format at the Festival.

    2.2- Unofficial Competitions

    The Festival’s selection committee reserves the right to create other parallel competition sections.

    2.3- Jury

    The Festival's selection committee shall appoint the members of the Jury. The conditions for Jury members are the following:

    • International Official Competition: the Jury will comprise a minimum of five members, with no less than 2/3 being foreign personalities.
    • Argentine Official Competition: the Jury will comprise a minimum of five members, with no less than 2/3 being foreign personalities.
    • Argentine Short Film Official Competition: the Jury will comprise a minimum of three members, with no less than 2/3 being foreign personalities.

    Any person who has an interest in the production and/or exploitation of any film screened in competition cannot be a member of the Jury. The Jury's votes shall be secret, and the final decisions shall be made by simple majority.

    A representative from the Festival may attend the Jury's deliberations, with no right to vote.

    The members of the Jury vow to refrain from expressing publicly their opinions on any of the films subjected to consideration prior to the official award announcement.

    2.4- Awards

    The International Official Competition Jury will grant the following awards:

    • Best Feature Film
    • Best Director
    • Best Actress
    • Best Actor

    The Jury may propose up to three special mentions. No film may receive more than two awards.

    The Argentine Official Competition Jury will grant the following awards:

    • Best Feature Film
    • Best Director

    The Jury may propose up to three special mentions. No film may receive more than two awards.

    The Argentine Short Film Jury will grant the following awards:

    • Best Short Film

    The Jury may propose up to three special mentions.

    2.3- Mention of Participation

    The producers and distributors of films participating in the Competitions shall include the phrase "International Official Selection" or “Argentine Official Selection” in all their film advertising and press material, using the logo of the Festival. This commitment applies to both theater and DVD releases.

    The producers and distributors of award-winning films shall mention such award(s) in all their film advertising and press material, using the logo of the Festival. This commitment applies to both theater and DVD releases.

    The logo will be available on the Festival’s website.

    Submission and Materials Required for the Selection Process

    3.1- Required Materials

    The producer who holds the rights of the film shall submit the following to the Festival:

    • A DVD (PAL or NTSC, any zone) copy of the film, in English or Spanish or else subtitled in one of those languages. The DVD copy must be correctly labeled with the title of the film, director's name, runtime, format, and subtitles (if any) and a contact address. Please indicate if the work is a final cut, a rough cut, or a work in progress.

    3.2- Submission deadlines

    Full-length films: To be eligible, films must be sent before January 31, 2013 and reach the Festival Offices by February 8, 2013, without exception.

    Short films: To be eligible, films must be sent before February 8, 2013 and reach the Festival Offices by February 15, 2013, without exception.

    The selection committee is under no obligation to view films submitted after the deadline.

    3.3- Shipment of Materials

    For films from any origin other than the City of Buenos Aires, all entries shall be sent (and paid in advance by the sender) to the address below.

    Shipping via certified mail is recommended over a courier service.

    Please declare "no commercial value, solely for cultural purposes".

    Buenos Aires Festival Internacional de Cine Independiente
    Oficina de programación
    Av. Roque Sáenz Peña 832 Piso 6
    C1035AAQ
    Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires
    Argentina

    Applicants from the City of Buenos Aires can bring their entries in person to the Festival Offices, at the above mentioned address, from Monday to Friday, 11 a.m.-7 p.m.

    3.4- Customs

    The Festival will not be responsible for any customs duties on the materials submitted, should they be retained.

    3.5- Returns

    None of the materials submitted for consideration will be returned.

    Selected Films

    4.1- Catalogue

    With the purpose of issuing an accurate catalogue, the Festival requires, for each selected film, a duly completed entry form and the following materials: film synopsis, director's biography and filmography, one film still, and the full artistic and technical credits. The required materials shall be submitted as soon as possible upon acceptance of the invitation to participate in the Festival and before the deadline, which will be duly notified.

    Choices on catalogue editorials are entirely at the discretion of the Festival.

    4.2- Press materials

    If available, posters, postcards and other press materials will be requested by the Festival press office for promotional use.

    4.3- Excerpts for Promotional Purposes

    The Festival may use excerpts from national or foreign films – with a maximum length of 3 minutes – for promotional purposes (excerpts from short films used promotionally will not exceed 10% of their total running time).

    Should a producer fail to submit the required film excerpts, the Festival may copy one or more fragments from the movie for promotional use during the Festival.

    For promotion of the Festival lineup and each of the selected films, the Festival may upload digital photos of films and film clips (of a maximum of 3 minutes) onto the Festival's website.

    4.4- Video Library / Industry Office

    The selected films will be available at the Festival’s Video Library for a predetermined period of time. The video library is only accessible to Festival accredited press members and guests. By entering the Festival, rights holders give permission for their films to be included in the video library, unless stated otherwise on their entry form.

    For these purposes, the producers of films in the Festival lineup shall provide extra copies in the format that will be duly specified.

    Demos and trailers will be received and distributed through the Industry Office.

    4.5- Screening Schedule

    The film programming and the screening days and times are decided by the Festival Organizers.

    4.6- Screening Format

    Festival screening formats are: 35mm, 16mm, DCP, HDCAM (neither HDCAM SR nor DVCAM), Betacam SP (PAL) and Betacam Digital (PAL).

    The submission of works in other film or video formats requires the authorization of the Festival.

    If works were completed in film format, this will be the screening format at the Festival.

    Once the screening format has been informed to the Festival Organizers, it may not be changed.

    4.7- Language and Subtitling

    Selected films will be screened in their original version.

    Foreign Films:

    A Spanish-subtitled screening copy is preferred if available. If this should not be the case, a copy with English subtitles will be required (unless the latter is in fact the language of the film).

    In addition, a list of the script lines in the original language and in English shall be made available (with time codes), as well as a DVD of the final cut, the exact same version to be screened, for electronic subtitling.

    Argentine Films:

    An English-subtitled screening copy is preferred if available. If no English-subtitled copy should be available, the Festival may request a list of the script lines in English (with time codes), as well as a DVD for electronic subtitling.

    In the case of Argentine films in competition, all copies shall be subtitled, except for films that have more than one language and always with express authorization from the Festival Organizers.

    Shipment and Return of Screening Copies

    5.1‐ Shipment Instructions

    Details about shipment of film and video copies for screening will be duly explained by the area of Print Traffic once a film has been invited to the Festival. The producer shall not submit the copy until having received such instructions.

    5.2‐ Copy Availability

    Unless otherwise authorized by the Festival, the print/video shall remain available throughout the entire duration of the Festival. The print/video shall arrive in Buenos Aires before March 15, 2013.

    5.3- Invoice

    A pro forma invoice shall be attached to the print/video stating the name of the sender as well as the following details about the film: name, format, runtime, and number of reels (if applicable). An invoice template will be provided by the Festival Organizers. Additionally, the sender shall also attach a technical report describing the condition of the copy, which will be checked by the screening team of the Festival.

    5.4- Return

    The Festival will cover the return shipment charges for the copies, excluding additional costs for customs taxes or any other type of taxes at the destination country. Each participant is responsible for supplying the Festival with the desired return address and date. If the address confirmation is not received within two weeks after the end of the Festival, the screening copy will be returned to the place where it came from. The Festival will not be held responsible for any inconvenience this may cause.

    5.5- Insurance

    The copy insurance comes into effect from the arrival of the film at the Festival offices or else from its acceptance by a Festival agent at the local Customs.

    The insurance will remain in effect until the film is reshipped by the Festival.

    The insurance does not cover damages produced due to wear and tear during screening.

    About These Rules

    Participation in the Festival entails the acceptance of the present Rules. In the event of any conflict (concerning the organization or operation) not covered in these regulations, it will be resolved by the Festival Organizers.

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Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires