Film Categories
Dramatic Short Films
A four to fifteen minute story presented using any traditional dramatic film techniques, including animation. The short film should be a complete story, rather than a prelude to or excerpt of a longer work.
Commercial Advertisements
A 15, 30, or 60 second broadcast commercial advertising a product or service. The commercial does not need to have been broadcast, but it does need to accurately represent an existing product or service. All formats of television advertising are permitted, including broadcast promotions and political ads. Filmmaker must either own the rights to the product or service, or have the copyright holders permission. As with all other categories, judges will consider the relevance and coherence of the submission in the context of a distinctively biblical worldview, and its ability to advance a Christ-honoring message through excellent production values and content which is biblically sound.
Documentaries
REVISED A ten to one hundred-twenty minute documentation of political, cultural, theological, social, scientific, historical, or other subject matter presented in a factual and informative manner. Partial reenactments are permitted, but no more than 25% of the documentary may be purchased stock footage.
Promotional Media
REVISED Five to sixty minutes of any industrial or promotional video. The entered media can be an excerpt or the entire product. This category includes political media, infomercials, educational and training films, seminar videos, making-of and behind-the-scenes videos, and television pilots. As with all other categories, judges will consider the relevance and coherence of the submission in the context of a distinctively biblical worldview, and its ability to advance a Christ-honoring message through excellent production values and content which is biblically sound.
Feature Films
REVISED A dramatic film of any genre, created either for theatrical release or direct video distribution. It must not be an anthology collection, but contain a single primary story. Minimum of 80 minutes.
Special Non-Jubilee Award Categories
Treatment
A three page written condensation of a proposed film, documentary, or TV dramatic production, covering the basic ideas and issues of the production as well as the main characters, locations, and story angles. Treatments must be original concepts, not adaptations of existing works, unless all necessary rights are fully owned by the writer.
Original Score
A musical score composed and recorded specifically for the production of any short, feature, documentary, or promotional media entry. Both digital and real instruments are permitted, but soundtracks created using prerecorded loops are not considered original. *
* Please note: The SAICFF will only accept original score submissions in the context of a formal qualifying film submission. If you would like the score of your film to be eligible for the “Best Original Score” award, a separate copy of the score must be submitted on an audio CD for judging purposes.
SAICFF Trailer
REVISED A 30, 60, or 90 second promotional trailer advertising the San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival. Submissions can be animated shorts, live-action, spoofs, or any other appropriate approach. Trailers must be exactly 30, 60, or 90 seconds (For example, a commercial filmed at 30 frames per second would need to be exactly 900, 1800, or 2700 frames respectively). SAICFF Trailers may be produced in any standard format (NTSC, PAL, etc.). A Copy of the official SAICFF logo is available for optional use in your trailer competition entry.
Click here to submit an entry.