FREQUENTLY-ASKED QUESTIONS
The following are answers to some questions that are often asked regarding submitting a film to the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. If you have any further questions, please email info [at] vconline [dot] org.
Q: Why should I submit my film to the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival?
Q: Are work-in-progress submissions accepted?
Q: Can I re-submit a film that was not accepted in a previous year?
Q: I’m an Asian / Asian American filmmaker, but my film has no Asian characters / subjects in it. What are the chances of my film being accepted?
Q: Do you have any premiere status requirements?
Q: Is running time a consideration in the selection process? (Is it possible for my short film to be too long, for instance?)
Q: I’m a poor student/starving artist and I spent all of my money on producing the film. Can you waive my entry free?
Q: Why should I submit my film to the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival?
A: The Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival is the largest film festival in the Greater Los Angeles and Southern California area dedicated to showcasing films by or about Asian Americans and Asians around the world. If invited, your film will be seen by one of the most sophisticated, enthusiastic and appreciative audiences in the nation, as well as by many festival programmers, and many executives and professionals from the local mainstream entertainment industry.
The Film Festival has presented to its audiences the works of many successful Asian American filmmakers including Wayne Wang, Ang Lee, Ham Tran, Christine Choy, and Justin Lin. It also provides an opportunity for filmmakers to participate in the most exciting gathering for the Asian American film community and to develop relationships that may well turn into fruitful collaborations.
Q: Are work-in-progress submissions accepted?
A: Yes, we accept work-in-progress entries for preview purposes only (not for exhibition). Though we prefer to evaluate entries that are as complete as possible, our screening committee will take into account the unfinished state of a submission as it makes its decision. Be sure to indicate on your preview DVD the status of the film (i.e., rough cut, fine cut, picture lock, etc.) and specify what elements are still incomplete (i.e., temp sound, color correction needed, etc.). That said, it is in your best interest to submit a version that is as close to completion as possible.
IMPORTANT: If your work-in-progress submission is accepted, you must be prepared to deliver a completed version in time for its festival screening.
Q: Can I re-submit a film that was not accepted in a previous year?
A: Yes. Decisions to accept or not accept a film each year are based on programmatic considerations specific to that year, and it is not unheard of for a film that was not accepted one year to be accepted the following year. If your work-in-progress submission was not accepted in a previous year but you feel that you have since improved it significantly, you may very well consider submitting it again.
Q: I’m an Asian / Asian American filmmaker, but my film has no Asian characters / subjects in it. What are the chances of my film being accepted?
A: The Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival is interested in both showcasing Asian American stories, and supporting the works of Asian American filmmakers. Toward these ends, the Festival presents films made by Asian American filmmakers that have no Asian content, as well as works made by non-Asian American makers that document the Asian American experience.
Q: Do you have any premiere status requirements?
A: We generally prefer at least a Los Angeles premiere, especially for feature-length films. Exceptions can be made, but for obvious reasons we endeavor to showcase films that have yet to be seen in the Greater Los Angeles and Southern California area.
The Festival presents many world premieres, North American premieres and U.S. premieres, but these are not required. We are not interested in taking away opportunities for your film to be screened in other cities.
Q: Is running time a consideration in the selection process? (Is it possible for my short film to be too long, for instance?)
A: Yes and no. Many filmmakers, particularly those of shorts films, feel that at 30 or 40 minutes their films are a bit too long in the shorts category but not long enough to qualify as features. At the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival we consider all works 50 minutes and longer to be features. Anything shorter than 50 minutes is a short film, and there are two possibilities for a short film to be showcased at the Film Festival: 1) in a shorts program, or 2) preceding a feature film. Film selection is not done in a vacuum but in the context of finite time per program, so running time is one of many factors that are considered when we compare your work with others.
But at the end of the day, the most important factor is whether the running time is warranted for each film. Your film should be as long as it needs to be, but no longer. We are not as concerned with the actual running time of the film as we are with how effectively that time is used.
Q: I’m a poor student/starving artist and I spent all of my money on producing the film. Can you waive my entry free?
A: Unfortunately, no. We understand the severe financial restrictions among many of our entrants. As a non-profit organization, we also operate under severe limitations on resources, and the entry fees help in allowing us to produce the best possible showcase for the films. We encourage all entrants to submit by the early deadline to save $10.
