Rules and Guidelines

ELGIBILITY

● 24fps is a juried competition, open to any independent or student filmmaker worldwide.  The 2023 festival will be held November 3-4, 2023. Works will be considered for competition only if they are of a total running time of 20 minutes or less and were completed after January 1, 2021.

● All qualified entries must be independently produced and financed.  Films produced, financed, or developed by a major film studio or television network are ineligible for competition.  The Festival committee reserves the right to determine the eligibility of any project.

● To submit your film via the Film Freeway submission platform visit them at www.filmfreeway.com.  The 24fps International Short Film Festival proudly accepts entries on FilmFreeway, the world's #1 way to enter film festivals and creative contests.

● To submit your film via the Festhome submission platform visit them at www.festhome.com. Submit to the best film festivals and make use of the best distribution tools for film industry professionals.

● To submit your film as an online VIMEO link:  Please provide a SECURE online link to the film on the VIMEO website platform.  All appropriate passwords must be included on the entry form.  Please note: only VIMEO online screeners will be accepted.  We do not accept films that are currently playing on YouTube. These links should be emailed directly to: bsmoot@paramount-abilene.org.

● All submitted promotional materials become the property of the 24fps International Film Festival and its presenting organization, the Historic Paramount Theatre, Inc.  These materials cannot be returned.  By submitting this material, you acknowledge 24fps’ right to use it for the festival’s non-commercial rights only.

DEADLINES

● The entry deadline for the 2023 competition and festival is 5:00 PM US CST on Friday, June 16, 2023. Applicants will be notified of their status after Screening Committee viewing.

OFFICIAL SELECTION PROCESS

● Entries are pre-screened by the Festival Selection Committee.  This panel, headed by the Festival Director, selects twenty-seven films from the submission field.  These Official Selection Films are then given public exhibitions on three curated programs. Filmmakers are notified of Official Selection status via email. You may make multiple entries via Film Freeway.

THE JUDGING

● Two distinct Official Juries view the public exhibition programs and award the festival’s cash prizes. The Venue Jury views the Official Selection films during private screenings in the exhibition theatre. The Remote Jury views the films privately in cities across the United States prior to the public exhibitions. The voting results from both critical bodies are then combined to determine the festival awards. Both jury panels are made up of artists, critics, writers, filmmakers, and educators.

AWARDS

● All awards are presented at the close of the second night program of public exhibitions (Saturday, November 4, 2023). The cash awards are:
GRAND JURY PRIZE--$1,000
SILVER MEDAL--$600
BRONZE MEDAL--$400
HORIZON AWARD (outstanding student or first film) --$600
AUDIENCE AWARD--$400

● All films screened as Official Selections are eligible for the Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award. The Audience Award is based solely on audience voting at the film screenings. The Horizon Award is given to the outstanding student and/or best first film. Additional trophy and certificate awards are also presented.

SCREENING THEATRE

● All Official Selection films are screened in competition in the landmark Paramount Theatre in Abilene, Texas. The Paramount is a restored 1930 movie palace and live performance venue in West Texas. The 1,200-seat theatre is a multi-use arts facility and home to the Paramount Film Series, a year-long repertory program which includes classic, Arthouse, foreign and independent films.

● All public performance/screenings for the 2023 24fps International Short Film Festival are presented digitally, with a state-of-the-art digital projection and sound. Official Selection Filmmakers will be asked to supply the festival program committee a screening copy of their competition film upon notification of acceptance to the festival.

PUBLICITY

● By submitting a project for consideration, the filmmaker gives the 24fps International Short Film Festival permission to use all submitted promotional materials, including but not limited to film stills, descriptions, director’s biography and film screening history in any and all forms of media for the express purpose of festival promotion and publicity.

Please note: 24fps may petition filmmakers to use clips from Official Selection Films for both television and Internet publicity. However, 24fps will limit footage to less than one minute, and will not authorize television broadcast of any footage without the direct consent of the filmmaker and/or producers.

THE FESTIVAL

● The mission of the 24fps International Short Film Festival is to celebrate and encourage aspiring independent and student filmmakers. Festival public screening programs are designed to highlight the creator as much as the work itself. All exhibited films are introduced by a commentator, and filmmakers in attendance are given the opportunity to speak to the festival audiences at the close of their film’s exhibition.

● The 24fps International Short Film Festival on the web:

Festival Website: www.24fpsfest.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/24fpsfest
Theatre Website: www.paramountabilene.com
Festival Director: bsmoot@paramountabilene.com
Phone: 325-676-9620