Irish Film Festival, Boston

Festival: Submissions open for 2016 Irish Film Festival, Boston

Submissions are now open for the 2016 Irish Film Festival, Boston, which will take place at the Somerville Theatre, Davis Square, from Thursday, March 10th to Sunday, March 13th, 2016.

There is an early bird deadline of October 15th, 2015 while the regular submission deadline is November 15th, 2015. Discounts for IFTN members are available. Entries are accepted through withoutabox.com.

The IFF awards, inaugurated in 2003, honor those filmmakers whose work constitutes celebrating the very best of Ireland and the Irish on screen – past, present and future. Submissions will be considered in the following categories:

  • Feature
    The Breakthrough Feature Award honors those filmmakers whose feature films represent the very Best of Ireland and the Irish on screen.
  • Documentary
    Global Vision Documentary – Work that challenges, highlights or explores issues that are global, with a unique Irish perspective.
  • Short Fiction/Animation
    A short fiction, documentary or animated film that represents the best of Irish film a hundred years after Independence. The winning film will headline the “Sixteen in Sixteen” short film program at the festival.

Winners in each category will receive a flight and accommodation to attend the event. The Awards will be presented during the festival following a special screening of the winning films. Filmmakers will also have the opportunity to set up meetings with US distributors, while at the festival.

The Irish Film Festival, Boston was included in Moviemaker Magazine’s list of Top 20 Coolest Film Festivals in the world! The Boston Irish Film Festival (BIFF), was founded in 1999 by Jim Lane and Peter Flynn. Originally conceived of as a once-off film series, the festival became an annual event with Flynn as director. In 2003, the festival expanded its operations to include the annual BIFF Awards, to celebrate the work of outstanding filmmakers. The festival became a non profit in 2008 with Dawn Morrissey as its Director and Siobhan Fanning as its Producer. The festival went through a re-branding in 2009 and now goes by the name Irish Film Festival, Boston. It is now the largest of its kind outside of Ireland, offering an annual festival, a film market, seminars and year round screenings.