Rules


These are the rules for the short film competition. For Screenplay Rules, click here.

ELIGIBILITY: Anyone can enter the competition with the exception of the following: Members of the Winterfilm management team, Judges of the competition and their immediate family members, Media partners, Sponsors and their immediate family members.

TO ENTER: Eligible parties please register online. Registration begins Jan. 1, 2025 and will remain open until the Feb 1. Launch Event or until all available team slots are claimed. Entry Fees: $170.  If you need to pay by check please contact us and make arrangements.

Production may begin Feb. 1. Films must be turned in March 1, 2025

If a team must withdraw, refunds of 85% will be offered up until one week prior to the launch meeting.

Basic Rules in a Nutshell

This bit is suppled for a quick reference reflecting the basic rules of the competition. But we implore you, read this whole page. It answers everything.

  • All films will have the same theme and prop that must be integrated into the story. This will be announced at Launch.
  • All films are limited to 10 minutes long INCLUDING credits.
  • All writing and production must take place between Launch and Turn-in. No pre-writing, filming, editing.  This includes motion graphics or animation.
  • Pre-Launch, you may:  Secure team members, actors, locations, equipment.
  • Cast and crew may work on as many films as they want. That’s between you and the producers.
  • All cast and crew must be volunteer.  This is for two reasons – leveling of playing field and for those that use SAG/AFTRA talent it keeps everyone compliant with the contract.
  • You may rent equipment. You may pay for a location (many folks have rented AirBnBs in the past).
  • You must behave with respect and decorum to your fellow cast and crew.  If we receive complaints we will investigate, and find it’s legit, your film and all your team’s hard work will be disqualified.
  • Team leads will receive a link for uploading your final film prior to the turn-in date.
  • Producers MUST complete the team roster before turn-in.Now that you have this, read on for all the important details. ‘Cause there are indeed important details below.

Winterfilm XII RULES

Upon Registration, entrants will be required to click the form’s checkbox they have read the Terms and agree to them. Talent, crew, music, location and materials release forms will need to be filled out by all appropriate parties. These documents are available for download prior to the Launch Event, and must be scanned and sent as a .pdf along with the completed film.

Before turning in your film you are also required to fill out the online Team Roster. This is vital to not only make sure we know who worked on your film, but also so we have correct name spellings for potential awards.

SELECTION OF WINNERS: Entries will be judged by a panel of qualified judges for a selection of awards. The overall criteria being judged on the following merits:

Artistic Merit (e.g., Story, Character Development, Creativity, Entertainment Value) (50%)
Technical Merit (40%)
Adherence to the Assignment (10%)

Films will be awarded top honors based upon the above, and each film will be competing for the following:
Best Film
Best Director
Best Actor
Best Actress
Best Supporting Actor
Best Supporting Actress
Best Screenplay
Best Cinematography (DP/Gaffer)
Best Sound
Best Editing
Best Sound Design
Best Composer
Best Original Song
Best Art Direction
Best Visual Effects
Best Costume Design
Best Makeup

Winterfilm may assign special awards for outstanding achievements in other areas on a per-film basis. These awards will acknowledge said film, but will not be part of the above specific awards all teams are competing for. Decisions of the judges are final.

WINNERS: Winners will be posted online here, and on the Winterfilm Facebook Group page.

FILMMAKING RULES:

The following applies to all participating teams.
Winterfilm will occur between midnight at the end of the Feb. Launch Event and midnight at the end of the March Turn In Event
Participating teams must complete all creative work between those times.

Concerning Pay:  All crew and actors must be volunteer. This levels  the playing field, especially where the SAG/AFTRA contract is concerned.  You may pay for gear, other rentals, things of that nature, but all talent in front of and behind the camera must be volunteer.

Only films that meet the deadline will be eligible for “Best” awards (listed above)
All films turned in will be screened.
All films turned in will be eligible for an “Audience Choice” award.

All filmmaking and creative activity must take place during the official time frame listed above. This includes but is not limited to:
Writing the Script
Rehearsing
Costume design
Set design
Shooting
Editing
Sound Design
Rendering
Outputting to deliverable media

Prior activities permitted:
Assemble your team (cast and crew)
Scouting and securing locations
Securing equipment
Music for score – may be pre-existing as long as the team secures permission to use.

ALL FOOTAGE OR MOTION GRAPHICS MUST BE SHOT/CREATED DURING THE OFFICIAL TIME FRAME

There are no requirements on type or number of cameras that can be used.

There are no limits to the number of teams folks can be on. That’s entirely up to you and the film producers.

At the Launch Meeting in January, all teams will be given a general “Theme” to base their stories upon. This will be the same for all teams, and be broad enough to allow for interpretation.
All teams will also be given a single prop that must be integral to their story. A prop is defined as an object that is used in the film, not just set-dressing. This will also be the same for all teams.

TRT of each film -including- credits will not exceed 10 minutes. Your films can be as short as you’d like, just no longer than 10.

Pre-film Required Slates (not considered part of the 10
5 seconds of black
Team title card with “Winterfilm 2024”,  Team Name, Title, Date, and Total Runtime
2 seconds of black

Your film immediately follows the above required slates.

End Credits:
End credits ARE included in the length of the film for competition purposes with no limit on how long they are, as long as they don’t cause the film to exceed the total time limit.
End credits must include the words “This film was made for Winterfilm XII”

Turning in Your Film:
Please turn in your film as an 1920×1080 24p H.264 .mp4 file via file transfer link or USB Flash Drive. THIS IS IMPORTANT – Our screening methodology is geared towards films being shot in 24p. If you chose to work at a different frame rate please be aware that there may be playback issues at the screenings.

Releases:
Each team must secure releases for all talent, crew, music, and locations. These forms are available in our Documents section. All forms must be turned in with the finished film, and the preference is that you scan them and submit digitally as a single .pdf file along with your film.

SAG/AFTRA Talent:
If you are using SAG/AFTRA talent, you must fill out the Micro Budget Project Agreement.

In the ‘Project AKAs’ section, put:  “Winterfilm 2025 Entry”

NOTE – this agreement is for under $20k projects, and can have no nudity/sex scenes or stunt work, so keep that in mind.

Rights and Distribution:
Winterfilm retains no rights to the films created for this competition. Winterfilm does reserve rights to distribute the films to our judges for consideration prior to screening events, public viewing at our screenings and/or awards event, and inclusion in part or whole for promotion of future Winterfilm competitions. Upon completion of the competition and awards being presented, all filmmakers have the ability to pursue any and all avenues of promoting their films. HOWEVER, NO ONLINE DISTRIBUTION OF THESE FILMS WILL BE PERMITTED PRIOR TO THE AWARDS EVENT. Failure to follow this will result in disqualification.

Content Eligibilty:
While Winterfilm does not presume to limit or censor content, Winterfilm does reserve the rights to disqualify any entries containing extreme, inappropriate, or prohibited content. This will be at the discretion of the judges and Winterfilm staff, and notice will either be given in writing, or an announcement will be made at the screening event regarding the content of the film.

Tell us your best story. You've got a month to do it.