WHERE
Clermont-Ferrand, the home of the yearly International Short Film Festival, is one of the oldest towns in France located just south of the center of this country in the Auvergne Region. It is not a large town by American standards but it is a metropolis with an excellent transit system. This city is prepared to handle the crowds and tourists needs during the world-famous film festival, so it is important to book rooms now. Dress warm because during the festival weeks, visitors can expect lows approaching freezing and daytime temperatures in the high-40’s. Luckily this is not the rainy season but do bring a raincoat or at least a hat, because it is likely to precipitate daily.

WHAT
The International Short Film Festival is divided into three segments screening almost 200 short film entries. There is the French Film Competition which will be in it’s 32nd year this 2010 festival. Currently over 700 films have been submitted and there is still time to enter. There will be 12 programs for the 65 films selected to screen. All of these short films will be en Francais. The International segment of this festival already has over 3000 submissions from filmmakers around the world. 400 shorts have been submitted by the United States, 250 plus from Brazil and well over 100 from Australia. There is also a Lab Competition which has been a success for 8 years; the entrants are chosen from the two main competitions.

HOW
There are 13 venues which house and screen the many events and programs the International Short Film Festival has to offer. If you have not submitted yet, you better hurry. This is the short film festival that can put you on the map especially with its progressive and thorough Short Film Market providing vendors and artists alike the tools to make a sale. Video libraries, terminals, directories, professional services, meeting support and networking opportunities are at your fingertips. Don’t miss the International Short Film Festival in Clermont-Ferrand, France January 28th – February 6th, 2010.

Some of the Best Known Short Film Festivals—

The LA Shorts Fest in Los Angeles, California—The largest short film festival in the world held annually in July. This past year, the LA Shorts Fest showed more than 280 short films, which included commercial ads and music videos, all within a one-week period. The festival this year drew some of the biggest names in the film and music industry including, Scarlett Johanssn, Courtney Cox, Kevin Bacon, Isabella Rossellini, Nick Cave and Michael Stipe.

The Manhattan Short Film Festival, New York City, NY—This is another well-known short film festival which runs for a week every September. This year’s motto was “One World-One Week-One Festival. Films at this festival are simultaneously shown at venues throughout North America, Europe, Asia, South America, Central America, Australia and the Middle East.

Movie Extra Tropfest-Australia, Sydney, Australia—Tropfest also calls itself the largest Short Film Festival in the World. This annual event takes place in February, and has been doing so for 18 years. The event is free to the public and can draw crowds of upwards of 150,000 people in one night. This festival is a more casual event than those held in L.A. and New York.

What You Can Expect to See at a Short Film Festival—

You can expect to view shorts films on literally any subject, from fiction to non-fiction to science fiction. You’ll also see animated shorts, as well as music videos and the occasional commercial advertisement. You’ll also see plenty of A-list celebrities, many of which star in, or have a stake in, the films being shown.

Just about every major city in the world has its own annual short film festival and some festivals are centered around a specific genre such as Science Fiction or Documentaries. Go to http://www.insidefilm.com/calendar.html and scroll through the various film festivals to find out where the next short film festival is being held closest to you.

Location and Dates

The International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam will be held November 19-29 in 2009. While originally held exclusively in the Leidseplein area of Amsterdam the festival’s events have spread to several other locations including Filmmuseum Cinerama, the Hotel American, Pathé De Munt multiplex, Arti et Amicitiae, de Balie, Pathé City Theater, and Stadsschouwburg Amsterdam.

About the IDFA
The IFDA started as a small festival that wanted to highlight some more creative international documentaries. It quickly grew into an 11 day festival that attracts over 200,000 people. The festival screens over 300 films each year and introduces many world and European premieres.

Film Selection

The festival’s selections are notable for their political content and the diverse genres represented. According to their mission statement, IFDA selects the films out of a broad pool of applications, selecting those “documentaries that are interesting from a stylistic point of view, or are particularly innovative, relevant to social issues and successfully manage to communicate with their audiences.”

Prizes Awarded

• IDFA Audience Award – audiences vote on this selection
• IDFA Award for Best Student Documentary – chosen from film academies throughout the world
• IDFA Award for Best Feature-Length Documentary – awarded for documentaries over 60 minutes long
• IDFA Award for Best Mid-Length Documentary – given to documentaries 30-60 minutes long
• IDFA Award for Best Short Documentary – awarded to films less than 30 minutes long
• IDFA Award for Best First Appearance – given to debut films

Notable Award Winners

Films that won awards at the International Documentary Film Festival and then went on to worldwide recognition include Bowling for Columbine, China Blue, The Angelmakers, We Are Together / Thina simunye, and Djembéfola.

References:
IDFA Homepage http://www.idfa.nl/