Submissions are now open for the 61st Edition of the Cork Film Festival. Running from November 11th to 20th 2016, the festival will see Cork City and county play host to some very special events and screenings.
One of Ireland’s oldest film festivals, the Cork Film Festival plays a rich selection of the best of contemporary global cinema and is always on the look out for interesting new voices. The Festival is Ireland’s premiere Talent Discovery and Development Festival, and has a rich programme of activities for emerging filmmakers
Since November 2014, the Cork Film Festival has been Academy Awards® accredited, meaning that the winners of the Grand Prix Irish Short presented by RTÉ Cork and the Grand Prix International short qualify for the long list of the Academy Awards® for the Animated Short Film/Live Action Short Film category. Cork Film Festival is also a BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television) recognised festival for British Short Film, further enhancing the festival’s international reputation (filmmakers whose British shorts are selected for competition in the Festival’s Grand Prix International short competition can enter their films for BAFTA consideration). The Festival’s juries also submit a short film nomination to the European Film Academy Awards.
As well as playing a rich selection of the best of contemporary global cinema programmed from some of the world’s most interesting Festivals, Cork Film Festival is always on the look out for interesting new voices. The Festival boasts a lively and varied music on film programme, and runs a discussion series which uses films to explore some of the burning issues of our time. The main festival venues are Cork Opera House, Triskel Christchurch and the Gate Cinema. In 2015 the Festival screened 239 films, including 84 features, of which 21 were Irish, from 40 countries. The Festival exceeded 21,000 admissions, a 14% increase on 2014, and welcomed 120 filmmaker guests to the Festival. Both the features and shorts programmes are a mixture of invited (best of Festivals, work known to the Fest, catch up on films released but which have not played Cork, and previews) and submitted films.
In 2014, the Festival inaugurated a new prize for feature length films: the Gradam Spiorad na Féile / Spirit of the Festival Award. Details are here.
Submission deadlines and fees:
Early bird: Until midnight GMT Saturday 15 January [date TBC] – CorkShorts €12.50 / Shorts Irish, International, Documentary (not Cork) €15 / Features €25.
Regular submissions: Until midnight GMT Saturday 2 July – CorkShorts €12.50 /Shorts Irish, International, Documentary (not Cork) €20 / Features €35.
Late submissions: Until midnight GMT Saturday 6 August – CorkShorts €12.50 / Shorts Irish, International, Documentary (not Cork) €30 / Features €50.
Awards
There are eleven prizes at the Festival, including seven with cash prizes totalling nearly €8,000. Two qualify for the Academy Awards® long list. Each jury is independent of the Festival.
The International Jury will select:
- Grand Prix International short, Academy Awards® qualifying, €1,000 prize;
- Gradam Spiorad na Féile / Spirit of the Festival Award. €1,500 prize; and
- the Cork Film Festival’s nomination to the 2017 European Film Academy Awards.
The Irish Jury will select:
- Grand Prix Irish short, presented by RTÉ Cork, Academy Awards® qualifying, €1,500 prize; and
- Best Cork Short award, €500 prize.
The Documentary Jury will select:
- Gradam na Féile do Scannáin Faisnéise / Award for Cinematic Documentary, €1,000 prize;
- Best Irish Documentary short, €750 prize; and
- Best International Documentary short €500 prize.
Others:
- the Creative Director’s Award for Best Feature Film, €1,000 prize;
- the Youth Jury Awards for feature films; and
- the Audience Awards for feature films
Film submissions can be made via Flock. See the Cork Film Festival website for the full terms and condition.