Florence 12th - 19th November 2011

International documentary film festival

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Rules and Regulations

Download the regulations

  1. The 52nd Festival dei Popoli – International Documentary Film Festival – will take place in Florence from the 12th to the 19th of November 2011.

  2. The aim of the Festival dei Popoli is to promote and circulate documentary cinema and cutting-edge

    films, foster discussion between various branches of learning, and provide a space for the cinematic arts and other disciplines to engage with each other and grow.

  3. The festival is organized by the Festival dei Popoli – ONLUS, the Italian Institute for Social Documentary Film, with the support of the Italian Ministry for Arts and Culture (Bureau of Cinema), the Tuscan Region, the Province of Florence, the City of Florence (Department of Culture) as well as the support of the MEDIA Programme of the European Union. The festival also has private sponsors.

  4. The Promotional Division of the Committee for Cinematography, part of the Italian Ministry for Arts and Culture, has recognized the national relevance of the Festival dei Popoli.

  5. The Festival includes the following sections: Official Selection, Tributes/Retrospectives, Seminars, Panel Discussions, Special Events.

  6. The decisions of the Director and the Selection Committee are based on the artistic and linguistic merit of the work.

  7. OFFICIAL SELECTION

    Documentaries from all nations will be considered only if completed after October 1st 2010. They must be World, International, European or Italian Premiere. If the film is selected, it will be screened in one of the following formats: 35mm, Betacam SP PAL, Digibeta. Other formats must be approved by the Festival Office. No rental fees will be paid for this section.
    The film must be submitted online through our website http://www.festivaldeipopoli.org/ (see point 12, Regulations). Films selected may be included in the following sections:

    FEATURE LENGTH DOCUMENTARY COMPETITION

    Film length must be 40 minutes or longer.
    An International Jury composed of leading figures in Cinema or Culture will judge the following awards:

    • Best Documentary: € 8,000.00 (divided equally between the director and the production).
    • Best Directing: € 3,500.00.
    • Best Anthropological Film: “Gian Paolo Paoli” Award.

    Special Mentions may also be granted.
    The awards will be paid within twelve months of the Award Ceremony.

    DOCUMENTARY SHORT COMPETITION

    Film length must be shorter than 40 minutes.
    The International Jury will judge the following award:

    • Best Documentary Short: €2,500.00 (divided equally between the director and production team).

    A jury of students will judge the following award:

    • Premio Lorenzo De’ Medici/Università di Firenze: € 1,000.00 (awarded to the director). Special Mentions may also be granted.

    The award will be paid within twelve months of the Award Ceremony.

    NON-COMPETING FILMS

    Cutting-edge documentaries of any duration can participate in this section.

  8. OTHER SECTIONS

    1. PANORAMA ITALIANO

      Italian documentaries of any duration completed after October 2010. Films already released in Italy may be shown.

    2. OTHER SECTIONS

      For the other sections (Retrospective, Tributes, Special Events), the festival management will invite films they deem appropriate for the Festival programme. These sections are noncompetitive and there are no restrictions based on production date. Films already released in Italy may be shown.

  9. AUDIENCE AWARD

    All films included in the Feature Length Documentary Competition and Panorama Italiano will compete for the Audience Award.

  10. Filmmakers and/or Producers of the selected films will be notified by October 14th 2011. The selection, the programme and the film schedule are decided upon by Festival Management.

  11. If a film is released in Italy as a result of being shown at the festival, all advertising and promotional materials must carry the festival's logo and must make explicit mention of the film’s participation in the 52nd Festival dei Popoli and of the awards assigned, if any.

  12. FILM REGISTRATION

    1. Submission of films for pre-selection is free.

    2. One or more films may be submitted through the online registration form on our website http://www.festivaldeipopoli.org/

    3. Films must be submitted no later than June 20th 2011 for films produced before April 30th 2011; no later than August 1st 2011 for films either produced after April 30th 2011 or still in production.

    4. Materials required for submission:

      • DVD

      • European zone “2” or zone “0”. Each copy must contain only one film and must be a high quality reproduction.

      • CD

      • Film synopsis in English.

      • Director biography in English (max 500 characters, spaces included).

      • Director filmography (list of titles and years of production).

      • Director statement.

      • Photographic documentation with publishing authorization (not more than 3 pictures JPG format 300 dpi, 7 cm wide). Each photo should be labelled with the film title and numbered (e.g. film_title1.jpg; film_title2.jpg). The photos will be published in colour on the Festival website and in black and white on the Festival catalogue. It's possible to send both colour and black and white versions of the photos.

      • Complete and final list of dialogues, including any voice off (post-production script) and list of subtitles (if any), in one of the following languages: English, French, Italian.

      • Any other information that may be useful for selection purposes.

      • Paper Printed

      • E-mail confirmation of successful registration, printed and signed.

      Filmmakers of selected films will be asked to provide 3 additional exact copies on DVD of the version to be screened. The DVDs will be used:

      1. to prepare Italian subtitles
      2. for press purposes
      3. for the Festival Videolibrary
    5. Participants are responsible for shipping costs, as well as any customs fees. For customs purposes, we recommend you label your package: “Without commercial value, for cultural purposes only”. The Festival will not return materials or DVD. All materials should be sent to:

      6. Festival dei Popoli
      Borgo Pinti 82r
      50121 Florence - Italy

    6. Filmmakers and/or producers are solely responsible for the content of their film and must declare, upon registration in the Festival, to have fully complied with copyright laws.
    7. Registration is subject to acceptance that all materials received – including DVDs – remain in the Festival Archives and permission granted to the Festival to use them for educational, research, or promotional ends, including places and contexts other than the Festival, excluding commercial use. Finally, the Festival will act as a mediator between authors/producers and distributors.

  13. SELECTED FILMS AND SHIPPING TO THE FESTIVAL

    1. Film and video copies for screening must arrive in Florence no later than October 28th 2011 and must be mailed to the address provided upon selection.

    2. Shipments made from outside the European Union must include a customs invoice, a list of items, travel documents (indicating the number of reels, length of film in meters, titles and quantity of video supports for each film). At the same time, the sender must notify the Festival Office of shipping by sending an e-mail or fax with the following information: title of the film, number of reels, date and references of the shipment (AWB number).

    3. Shipping expenses and customs clearance for screening copies of the selected films must be covered by the sender. Shipping expenses and customs clearance for the return of the items will be covered by the Festival. Should a copy of the film be requested for another festival after the screening of the film or anytime during the Festival dei Popoli, shipping expenses and customs clearance must be covered by the interested party. In any case, the Festival dei Popoli will cover the costs of only one shipment.

    4. The Festival dei Popoli provides a “nail to nail” insurance clause for copies of the film included in the programme. In case of loss or damage of a copy, the Festival's liability will be limited to the costs of reprinting copies, based on Italian prices.

    5. Should a filmmaker or producer decide to withdraw his film from the Festival once the acceptance of the Official Invitation, he/she must pay a compensation fee of €1,000.00.

  14. DONATIONS TO THE FESTIVAL DEI POPOLI ARCHIVES

    Donations of the screening copy (film or tape) to the Festival dei Popoli Archives are greatly appreciated. The donated copy will be used for research purposes only, and for preservation and promotion of documentary film, not for commercial use.

  15. Participation in the selection implies the complete acceptance of the above Rules and Regulations. In case of conflicting interpretations, only the Italian version of the Rules and Regulations is considered valid.

  16. Any litigation will be judged by the Court of Florence, Italy.

Done in Firenze on April 15th, 2011.

Download the regulations