General Regulations
The Festival is organized by the Kulturveranstaltungen des Bundes in Berlin GmbH. The Official Programme comprises films in Competition, Out of Competition, Berlinale Special, Berlinale Shorts and in the Panorama. The programme of the Berlin International Film Festival includes the section Generation, the Perspektive Deutsches Kino, the European Film Market, a Retrospective and the Forum which is organized independently. Applicants may choose to which section(s) they wish to offer their film.
Regulations for Participation
There are distinct regulations covering participation in each section of the Festival.
Submission
Submission of a film must be made on the official Festival entry form, duly completed and sent with a synopsis and the complete cast and credits. The form must be sent to:
Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin
Programme Department
Potsdamer Straße 5
10785 Berlin
Germany
phone +49 · 30 · 259 20 · 444
fax +49 · 30 · 259 20 · 499
You can also use the online film entry
.
. Deadline for Submissions
The following deadlines must be strictly observed:
- Feature length films: application and prints/cassettes/DVDs for selection: October 31, 2008
- Short films: application and prints/cassettes/DVDs for selection: November 15, 2008
Transport of Prints, Tapes and DVDs
Screening material sent for selection must be addressed as follows:
• Film prints, tapes and DVDs sent by courier or (air)mail:
Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin
Print Coordination
Voxstraße 3
10785 Berlin
Germany
phone +49 · 30 · 259 20 · 888
fax +49 · 30 · 259 20 · 899
The costs of transport, including customs fees, insurance of all prints, tapes and DVDs offered for selection, as well as their return freight, must be borne by the producers or responsible representatives. The Festival is only responsible for the costs of storage and insurance of films while on the premises of the Festival in Berlin.
Tapes and DVDs have to be marked as samples.
All prints of films either submitted or invited to participate coming from countries outside the European Single Market must be directed to the Festival's approved shipping agent who will handle temporary import of the prints into Germany. Film prints thus imported can only be returned by air freight through the same agent.
• Film prints sent by air cargo:
Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin
c/o Kroll, Internationale Spedition Flughafen Berlin-Tegel
13405 Berlin
Germany
phone +49 · 30 · 417 48 · 510
fax +49 · 30 · 417 48 · 529
Notice of Dispatch
The sender should inform the Festival by fax or e-mail of the title of the film, the date and means of shipment, and the shipment number or airway bill number.
Responsibility of the Festival
In case of damage to or loss of a print, either during the selection process or at the Festival itself, the Festival is only responsible for the costs involved in making a new print according to the current laboratory rates for ordering a standard print.
Return of Film Prints and Tapes/DVDs
Film prints will be returned by the Festival or its shipping agent against reimbursement according to the print owner's instructions, once the entry fee has been paid. All costs relating to the transport are the responsibility of the entrant. All prints of films imported temporarily into Germany by the Festival's shipping agent must be returned by the same means and by air freight.
Entry Fee
No submission will be considered until the entry fee has been paid. The fee is at € 125 (7% VAT included), for each submission, regardless of the number of sections for which the film is to be entered. This equals app. US-$ 185 per exchange rate of August 12, 2008. Please get the present rate from your bank.
For short films the fee is € 50, app. US-$ 75.
Means of Payment
Bank transfers as well as payment by credit card are accepted for payment of charges. All payments must clearly indicate the title(s) of the film(s). Money orders should be made payable to Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin. Bank transfers should be sent to:
Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin
Berliner Volksbank eG
Account Number: 8841017014, BLZ: 100 900 00
IBAN: DE92 1009 0000 8841017014
SWIFT-CODE (BIC) BE VO DE B B
Visa, Mastercard/ Eurocard, and American Express credit cards are accepted.
Selection
For a selection screening, films must be submitted in their original language. Films in German and English may be submitted without subtitles, but films in another language should be subtitled in either German or English.
Accepted formats for submission are 35mm and 16mm prints, HDCAM, Digital Betacam (PAL), BetacamSP (PAL), DVD and VHS.
In exceptional circumstances, work prints and double-headed prints may be accepted.
Obligations on Selection
No film selected may be withdrawn from the Festival programme after its publication. During the Festival itself no film selected may be screened outside the Festival venues before its official presentation.
Official Logo and Promotion
For the films selected, the Festival expects the official Festival logo to be included in all promotion and publicity material in a prominent place. The Festival provides suitable logos for each programme section.
To book advertising space within the Festival areas producers and distributors should please contact the Berlinale's advertising partners.
. Press Service and Press Conferences
Producers and distributors are required to provide the Festival press office with an appropriate supply of press brochures, photos and video excerpts. The Festival professionally records all press conferences of the Competition and Panorama Special with 3 cameras in BETA SP format. The recordings are available in German, English and original version. For a licence fee, producers and distributors can purchase the recordings for their Electronic Press Kits or DVDs.
More information can be found under Press Service.
. Programming
The programming of the films selected is entirely at the discretion of the Directors of the sections whose decision is irrevocable. Each film may be screened up to a maximum of five times during the Festival in Berlin. The general public will be admitted to screenings according to the availability of seats as determined by the Festival.
Your contact in Berlin
The Festival has representatives around the world to facilitate participation.
For further information please contact:
• Submission of films:
Daniela Weber
phone +49 · 30 · 259 20 · 444
fax +49 · 30 · 259 20 · 499
• Technical details and dispatch of prints:
André Stever
phone +49 · 30 · 259 20 · 878
fax +49 · 30 · 259 20 · 899
Right of Participation
Participation in the Festival implies adherence to the regulations as here set out. It is the responsibility of producers, distributors, or other organizations submitting a film to ensure that they are legitimately entitled to enter a film in the Festival.
The Festival Director has the right to settle all cases unforeseen in the regulations of participation, as well as to permit exceptions from the regulations in special, well-founded cases.
A Jury, consisting of at least three International personalities is appointed by the Festival Director to award the Best First Feature Award, endowed with € 50.000, founded by GWFF.
This award is not specified by section.
Independent Juries
Besides the official juries the following juries award prizes at the Berlin International Film Festival:
The prize of the Churches of the Ecumenical Jury is awarded to a film in Competition, in the Panorama and in the Forum.
The FIPRESCI-Jury awards its prizes to a film in Competition, in the Panorama and in the Forum.
The Jury of the Guild of German Art House Cinemas awards its prize to a film in Competition.
The Reader’s Prize of the daily Berliner Morgenpost is awarded to a film in Competition.
The C.I.C.A.E. Jury awards its prizes to a film in the Panorama and in the Forum.
The Panorama Audience Award presented by the magazine Tip and by Radio Eins is awarded to a film in the Panorama.
The ”Label Europa Cinemas” presents an award to a European film in the Panorama.
The ”Amnesty International Film Prize” ist awarded to a film from either Competition, Panorama or Forum sections, that tackles the topic of human rights.
Germany’s Association of Women Working in Film awards the Femina Film Prize for ”outstanding artistic contribution of a female technician” in a German-language feature film in the areas of set design, camera work, costumes, music or editing.
The Peace Film Prize is awarded to a film in either the Competition, the Panorama, the Forum or Generation.
The Teddy – Queer Film Award is awarded each to a feature film, a documentary film and a short film in either the Competition, Berlinale Shorts, Berlinale Special, Perspektive Deutsches Kino, Panorama, Forum or Generation.
The Reader’s Prize of the magazine Siegessäule is awarded to a gay/lesbian film of either the Competition, the Panorama or the Forum.
The Caligari Film Prize is awarded to a film in the Forum.
The NETPAC Prize is awarded to an Asian film in the Forum.
The Reader’s Prize of the daily Tagesspiegel is awarded to a film in the Forum.
Deadline for the receipt of entry forms and films
Feature length films: October 31, 2008
Short films: November 15, 2008
Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin
Potsdamer Straße 5
10785 Berlin
Germany
phone +49 · 30 · 259 20 · 444
fax +49 · 30 · 259 20 · 499
Download the General Regulations 2009, PDF (74 KB)