SUBMISSIONS ARE NOW CLOSED

 

The 26th Astra Film Festival will take place between 14 and 20 October 2019.

 

Established in 1993, Astra Film Festival has become one of the main platforms of documentary cinema in Romania and Eastern Europe. AFF seeks documentaries with a strong presence of the filmmaker’s point of view both in form and content. Cinematographic qualities, and the honesty of the filmmaker’s approach to the subject are highly valued. Creative documentaries and auteur films are especially welcome.

The deadline for submissions is March 25th, 2019

 

PROGRAM & ELIGIBILITY

 

Submitted films must be documentary works only.

For Astra Film Festival 2019 selection we are looking for feature length documentaries (minimum 40 minutes).

Only for Docschool competition section we can accept short documentaries (not less than 15 min).

 

Astra Film Festival is comprised of competition programmes and non-competitive sections. You may not submit your film directly to any specific Festival programme. If your film is accepted into the Festival, our Programming team will decide which of the Festival programme categories it will be slotted into.
However, please note that for the competition eligible films must be copyrighted in 2018 or 2019. This year limit does not apply to films entering non-competitive sections.
The decision of programming selected films in a specific festival section is made by the Festival Board.

 

SUBMISSION

All films sent to the festival must be submitted by filling out the online submission form available on the website. Your submission will be considered once the festival receives the preview of the film.
Films sent for the pre-selection process must be in their final version and with English subtitles (if spoken in another language).
Provide a password protected online preview. Make sure the film is downloadable, and the link stays valid until the end of the festival.
The festival keeps the viewing material in the festival archive for the sole purposes of documentation, and viewing by professionals on its premises.
If the film is selected, you are expected to provide additional information for the festival catalogue, publicity, screening of the film and participation of the director.
A selection committee composed of film professionals selects films for the Competitive Sections.
The submission of a film gives the organizers of the Festival the right to select and screen it in the Festival programmes (competitive, non-competitive and extended programmes).
The authors and-or right-holders cannot withdraw the film after on line submission.

 

JURIES & AWARDS
The international juries will be composed of respected academics and cinema specialists. The jurors will select the winning films for the Festival awards:
The finalists are nominated for the following awards:
Best International Doc Award (international documentaries, feature length);
Best Central&Eastern European Doc (documentaries produced by and/or on Central &
Eastern European contemporary issues, feature length);
Best Romanian Doc (Romanian productions / co-productions);
Best DocSchool Film (European film school productions);
The prizes in total amount of Euro 25,000 will be awarded to the authors of the winning films.

 

SELECTION
The official selection will be published on the festival’s website by the end of August. No letters or emails of refusal will be sent.
Once a film is selected, the right-holder automatically authorizes ASTRA FILM to screen it in the Festival programme.
The right-holders of the films selected for one of the four competitive sections of the festival agree to the screening of the film free of charge, and will not request a screening fee.
All scheduling of selected films is at the discretion of the Festival programmers.

 

PRINT TRAFFIC
The Festival will cover the transport and return cost of the screening copies.

 

PARTICIPATION

The films presented at Astra Film Festival are the object of animated discussions with the authors in the cinema theatres after the screenings.
The Festival invites the author(s) of the films in the program or a delegate from the part of the director/producer to be present for the official screening. Accommodation is offered by the organizers.

 

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND ACCEPTANCE OF THE TERMS

Once a film is selected, the festival has the right to:
– Use a maximum of three minutes of video from the documentary for publicity and online purposes unless an official trailer is provided;
– Publish the film trailer on the Astra Film Festival Youtube channel;
– Use all publicity material to promote the festival;
– Programme the films selected in the competitive sections free of charge during the festival;
– Programme the award-winning films free of charge in the Astra Film Festival Extended Programmes