WorldFest-Houston 2010 FAQs & Rules

Welcome to WorldFest, we look forward to your entry!
The 43rd Annual WorldFest-Houston - April 09 - 18, 2010
(International Competition for all Film & Video Production & Screenplays)
< Scroll down to the bottom for FAQ's in French, Italian & Spanish! >

	43rd Annual WorldFest Festival dates are -- April 09 through April 18, 2010 -- 10 Great Days in April! Entries Are Now Officially Open for 2010! We are awaiting your entries and will confirm! Entries are now CLOSED! If your entry is ready now, please send us an Email for a special exception with no late fee - entry@worldfest.org - As long as the juries are still at work, we will do our very best to accommodate you! FOR A LATER ENTRY DEADLINE EXTENSION - Simply email us - entry@worldfest.org - Easy! We will check with your Category jury to see if it is OK! FINAL "Brick Wall" Entry Deadline is FEB 1, 2010 - Late Fee $15 is WAIVED! Jury sessions in all categories will be completed by 30 March 2010 All entrants will personally learn the jury results before March 31st, win or lose Feature and Short Film Screening Schedule will be posted on or before March 15th Screenplay/Script Awards offer Cash Prizes, Options, Production Deals & Seminars!

NOTE: IF YOU ARE RUNNING A MAC OR APPLE PLATFORM, FOR SOME STRANGE REASON, OUR ENTRY FORM IN WORD DOES NOT SEEM TO DOWNLOAD EASILY. PLEASE EMAIL FOR THE ENTRY FORM AND WE WILL SEND YOU ONE THAT OPENS IN WORD!

	Entering the festival is really easy. First, read this FAQ, it should answer all your questions. 2nd, go to - Categories, and we would suggest printing it out, at least the section you are entering. Shorts are all in the 300 series, Features are in the 000 series, Film & Video production is in the 200 series. Scripts are in the 700 category series, Experimental in the 500 series, TV Production is in the 100 series and so forth. Simply scroll down to find your Main Competition Category. Then go to – 1. ENTRY FORM: We now offer a ONE PAGE Adobe Acrobat or Word Entry Form. Fill it out, send it in. It's that easy. Pick out your best productions, no limit to the number of entries that you may submit. Please type or block print very clearly, neatness does count! It can be filled out in less than five minutes! All Entry Fees are clearly listed on the Official WorldFest Entry Form - 2nd Page. You can easily fill out our form in less than 5 minutes! Students send only a COPY of their student ID or a letter from your school. 2. DEADLINES: The "EarlyBird" Discount Entry Deadline is Monday, November 16th, 2009, a Postmark/ship by deadline! Entries do not have to be here by then. (The EB Discount is $5 OFF each entry and each extra category!) The Main Entry Deadline is December 15th, 2009 - a Postmark-By/Ship-By Deadline, entries do not have to reach us by then. For a Special Entry Deadline Extension, simply email your request to - entry@worldfest.org - Your wish shall be granted! The Final Entry Deadline is January 15th, but must reach us by January 31st 2010. We are very flexible here, as our juries cannot finish their work over the weekend! But the Brick-Wall Deadline is January 31st, 2010!) 3. ELIGIBILITY: Productions from 2006 to 2010 are eligible. The Entry Form is now fully Mac/Apple compatible! If it does not work for you, just ask, and we will email or fax you a Microsoft Word or Adobe AcrobatFile. The most frequent error that is made is not putting in your email address and/or a category number. The "Indie" rule applies only to Feature Films, not to any other categories. (The "Indie Rule" means we screen only Indie Features, not major studio features, but do accept entries in all other categories from all major companies. No worries!) 4. CATEGORIES: Click on the "Category" page. Select the main competition category number that seems most appropriate. You can enter in up to four additional categories for an additional fee of just $30 per category. Certain categories are very competitive, so it is very important to consider other appropriate categories. If you do not receive an award in your first choice, you will then be automatically considered in your additional categories! WorldFest receives more than 4,500 entries in all 200+ sub-categories, which is about 23 entries (average) per sub-category. Some categories have more than 400 entries. For all Series entries, submit one to three examples, no more.) 5. LOGISTICS: You may send just one tape for multiple category entries. You may combine multiple TV commercial entries on a VHS, DVD or Beta-SP single tape, with no color bars, and a 5 second break between spots. Make sure their titles and order/sequence are correct on the tape. Screenplays must be bound in some way, and can be optioned but not produced, and there is no limit to the number of screenplays that can be entered. Tape entries must be re-wound, Heads Out! It does not amuse the jury to have to stop and rewind your tape back to the beginning. It is not professional to submit a tape that starts somewhere in the middle, and it certainly won’t get points with the jury. VHS & DVD Entries can be NTSC, PAL, or SECAM , DVD's - any and all regions. There is no extra charge for PAL or other formats. We accept all regions and all formats. 6. PAYMENT: The actual Category Entry Fees are listed in detail on the Entry Form. Please fill out the Entry Form carefully. Please type or print very clearly. Neatness does count! Especially the email address! One Entry Form per entry. Fill in all the blanks possible. You may Photocopy/Xerox extra copies as required. You are required to use the official WorldFest entry form. Visa, MasterCard, Amex, Diner's Club, Discover Cards, checks, money orders, postal money orders & even cash are acceptable. Please make your check out to: WorldFest-Houston or Houston Intl Film Festival, Inc. International entries MUST pay by credit card or US bank/US Funds checks only. We require an email address if at all possible! This helps us in contacting you quickly and easily. Please make your check payable to: WorldFest-Houston or simply - WorldFest. Our IRS Federal Tax ID # 74-2168997 - WorldFest is a non-profit 501-(c)-(3) educational/cultural organization founded in 1961. "Still Standin' After All These Years!" The third oldest International Film & Video competition in North America. WorldFest is the longest running film festival in the world operating under the same continuous management team! 7. SPECIAL MATERIALS: A short paragraph, 50-200 word synopsis is requested for all entries, (not TV commercials) which is for the jury and the program book.. Shorts & Features should provide a color or B/W production still photo of any size for the program book (Only if accepted - You do not have to send still pix with your entry!). Slides and jpeg photo files are OK (These are NOT required for video, cable, TVC, or Screenplay entries). You may wait until you are invited / accepted into the festival to send all of this material. The Video Tape, DVD or Screenplay, Synopsis and Entry Form are what really matter. If accepted, feature entries should also send several production still photos, a press kit and resume with photo of the director. We do accept jpeg disk or email photo files, Windows/IBM format only. We regret that photos and slides used for the program book cannot be returned. Please attach the Screenplay/script synopsis to the actual script entry. You may ID the script with title, your name & contact details. Scripts Must Be Bound in some way! We will not accept loose pages in a box! Unproduced scripts only! You may put your name and other info on the title page. 8. SHIPMENT: Ship or Mail your entry to our offices at: WorldFest-Houston, 9898 Bissonnet, Suite 650, Houston, TX, 77036 by MEDIA MAIL, 2ND DAY USPS PRIORITY MAIL, DHL, OR FEDERAL EXPRESS 2ND DAY ECONOMY or via UPS. ENTRIES OPEN AUG. 15, 2009, THE MAIN ENTRY DEADLINE IS TUESDAY, DECEMBER 15, 2009. THE FINAL ENTRY DEADLINE IS JANUARY 15, 2010 - A "BRICKWALL" SHIP-BY DEADLINE WITH A $15 LATE FEE! Entries must REACH US BY JANUARY 31st! Entries have to be received by this date! Need More Time? Call (713) 965-9955 or email us at -- entry(at)worldfest(dot)org -- to make special arrangements with the jury secretary for an additional Entry Deadline Extension. Members of our staff are all film/video makers, so we understand! 9. FURTHER SHIPPING NOTES: (Can save you money!) Send your Tape, DVD, entry forms, synopsis, credits, photos, and entry fee WITH your entry package. Please do not use fiber-padded envelopes, as they break open and spill fine paper dust/powder on your entry tape. Use bubble or foam padded envelopes! And for heavens sake, do not ship your VHS tape or DVD with just a mailing label and postage put on the bare tape or DVD sleeve! (do label the DVD/tape, though) Pack it carefully. The US Post Office will give you a FREE VHS shipping box, and Free larger boxes for multiple entry shipments, as will FedEx. Priority Mail with delivery confirmation is only about $4.50 for 1 or two VHS tapes or 10 DVD's! Media Mail is a little as $1.50 an entry! Remember, THE FINAL DEADLINE is an "ARRIVE BY" deadline, entries do have to reach us on the deadline date of JAN 31. Please do not waste your money on overnight or Saturday rush shipments or those fancy presentation folders... the juries just watch the entry VHS tape or DVD. The jury does not even see the package. They do amuse and delight the mail room entry processing team, though! 10. NOTIFICATION AND RESULTS: You will absolutely be notified by a personal email when your entry is processed! No Worries! (or later by snail mail if you do not have email) You will then be notified via email of the competition results before the festival. WINNERS WILL BE NOTIFIED AT LEAST 30 DAYS BEFORE THE FESTIVAL BEGINS! All award winning entries will be placed in the WorldFest Archives and recorded in the Library of Congress. The archives contain award-winning entries going back to 1980. If you want your entry returned, please provide an SASE. All Remi Winners will be retained in the WorldFest Archives (which goes back to 1968) and are listed in The Library of Congress. 11. QUESTIONS? Any questions or problems? PLEASE call us toll-free at (866) 965-9955 (in the USA) - International calls to 1-713-965-9955 or FAX (713) 965-9960. (Real people answer most of the time, no automated computers for us! No Press One for English either!) E-mail: mail(at)worldfest(dot)org - Or visit our Web Site: www.worldfest.org (The WorldFest Posters are famous! You can see the past ones under Merchandise. For the 2010 WorldFest Poster created for the 43rd WorldFest, we offer a rolled limited edition, numbered (1,000) poster 22x42, suitable for framing, shipped in a tube for $15 including postage, and you may order it right on the Entry Form.) 12. SOME SERIOUS THOUGHTS ABOUT "FESTIVAL SUBMISSION SERVICES." WorldFest does not really like these services. Here are our thoughts: A. They charge both you and the festival a fee. They charge the festival a very significant fee. This means we would have to raise our fees to cover the cost. And we get enough entries as it is, without their services! B. We do not like having our credit cards and personal details on the Internet. It is simply not secure. You read every day about some site being hacked and all the credit card info stolen. After processing, we shred all Credit Card info and only store the last four CC numbers in our computers. C. We do not like to have the Entry Form sent to us on-line with an Entry ID Code and have to match the form up with the DVD when it arrives. That is a total waste of time for our staff, as Entries now arrive at the WorldFest offices complete with all info and the DVD. D. We like to judge entries on our big 72 inch digital plasma screens with the juries in session. We do not think that your entry should be viewed on a tiny lap-top screen. We do not think your entry should be judged by one individual looking at his little lap-top screen. We like the Jury interaction, and the big picture on the big screen with surround sound. This shows your production at its best and give you a better chance. E. We will not accept on-line video and Screenplay submissions. Our script judges want to hold the script in their hands and read it, not play the "Kindle" game. Yes, We are old-school and proud of it. F. Finally, we do not want a third party (the Fest Entry Service) to know everything about everything; your personal details, the jury notes and scores, email addresses and contact information for all concerned. We think this is just a little too much information to be floating around out there in ether-land. Thanks for reviewing our very sincere concerns and we welcome your comments! (Pour les 2010 FAQ's en français, cliquer ici !) (For the 2010 FAQ's in Italiano, click here!) (Para el 2010 FAQ en Espanol, empuje aqui!)