Aug 31

Aug 31 On Reviewing Film Festival Submissions in the Time of the Pandemic

Film Production, Alexandria Film Festival, Motion Pictures, Volunteer, Media

I sat in on the Alexandria Film Festival Program Committee meeting via Zoom on August 29. I wanted to hear how decisions are being made about which films to select for screening at our next annual film festival scheduled for November 11-14 of this year (save the dates!)

As a film festival volunteer I’ve participated in such a decision-making in the past plus I’m an amateur film critic. This year I’ve been active in other festival activities instead and I’ve not seen any of the works submitted by filmmakers this year.

The discussion I attended reviewed about two dozen films. This was a subset of all the films being considered for this year’s festival. Most of the discussion I heard at the August 29 meeting was devoted to films that were being “re-watched.” At least one member of the committee had thought a film was worth considering after an initial screening. (These screenings are based on viewing a submitted film streamed online, usually with password control.)

There were only a few unanimous decisions (thumbs up or thumbs down). Most discussions focused on teasing out both positive as well as negative aspects of each submitted film which may range in length from a few minutes to over two hours.

Discussion topics included the following examples:

Too short (or too long)
Ease or difficulty of grouping with other films
Good script and acting — but poor production values
Good production values — but poor script or acting
Overwhelmingly depressing
Made by a local filmmaker
Funny
Could be the focus of an interesting Q&A session with the filmmaker
Relevant to current events
Confusing
Seems like two completely separate films mashed together
Unusual point of view
Filmmaker can bring an entourage to the screening
Highlights the struggle of the film making process
International submission
We also have another film from that country
Hard to follow but it’s a fun ride

I left the meeting before the discussion turned to grouping films into “showcases.” I know from past experience how difficult that process can be.

Some of the films we show every year are “curated” based on their being sought out by the festival; sometimes getting curated films submitted means competing with other festivals. For other films being reviewed, a significant portion of every year’s festival showings is made up of unknown or little known films submitted by independents, first timers, students, or amateurs.

The bottom line is that we don’t have complete control over what’s submitted. That makes the selection process both challenging and fun. We ideally want individual showcases and screening sessions to have topical similarity. Sometimes that’s easy to accomplish. Sometimes it’s difficult.

An added challenge this year (or opportunity, depending on your point of view) is related to the pandemic. We don’t yet know which screenings can (or should) be done in person versus those that will be screened online. In person post-screening Q&A sessions are always a high point of festivals for filmmakers; they can see their films on big screens (sometimes for the first time) and they can interact directly with audience members.

On the other hand, filmmakers who might not be able to travel to the festival can participate remotely in online Q&A sessions which can be recorded or conducted in real time. (We recorded many Q&A sessions last year due to the pandemic and in most cases the results were positive.)

It always helps to have multiple viewpoints on reviewing films or, as I like to say, “lots of eyeballs.”

Listening to the various viewpoints of Program Committee members was a lot of fun as they consider how best to display a good subset of this art form. The ultimate judge, of course, will be this year’s audience.