1- What is FESTHOME?

FESTHOME is a film (short film and feature film) submission service via Internet. FESTHOME breaks with the classical concept of distribution to film festivals, on DVD, paper and postal envelope, adapting to the newest Internet technologies while offering the highest screening quality out of all online submission platforms.

After creating your account at FESTHOME, you will be able to upload your film, data and video file, which will be stored in our system so you can make as many submissions as you want to film festivals that are in the FESTHOME system, without having to enter the data again.

And even better, without leaving your home or office, all you need is an internet connection! Save time and money, reaching festivals all over the world for the same price. You will also appear in an exclusive catalog for buyers.

2- Who can use FESTHOME?

FESTHOME can be used by Film-makers, students, film schools, producers, distributors and anyone with a film, that complying with the FESTHOME terms and conditions, wants to distribute their films to international film festivals and being a part of the catalog of buyers.

3- How do I send my film?

You should first register an account, once you have entered your personal details and confirmed your account, you can access your film´s data entry. FESTHOME offers you a series of structured forms and sections so that the process of data entry is done quickly and easily. These forms contain all the information that will be required by the Festival for your participation.

Once this data is completed, it's time to upload the screener video and other data (see points 15 to 18). Once the video file uploads successfully, you only have to look for festivals to submit your film to, make a payment (see paragraphs 11 to 14) and the die is cast. Now you just have to wait for the decision from the Festival (see item 23).

4- Where can I send my film?

At FESTHOME you will find a list of festivals who use our system for the receipt of submissions, sorted by deadline. Once you enter with your login and access your account, you can access the list of festivals. Clicking on them, you will find information on dates of celebration, end of registration, awards, bases, country, regulations, etc.. If you meet their requirements (read carefully the bases), you only have to click the submit button, proceed to the payment and the delivery will be made instantly.

5- In what languages can I communicate with FESTHOME?

You will find the FESTHOME page in several languages, but you can only communicate with us in ENGLISH, FRENCH and SPANISH.

6- How can I contact with FESTHOME?

For any technical problem you can contact us at support@festhome.com. For any other information you can contact us at info@festhome.com.

7- Can I modify my personal and film`s data?

Once you have created your account, you can modify both your user data and your film data, which can be updated if you keep getting awards, participations, etc. When you enter the details of your film, you do so gradually, so, if you leave the session, the data entered will be recorded, waiting to complete the registration. Until all your film’s obligatory fields (fields shown with asterisks) is not filled in, your film will be shown as “Uncomplete” and it will not be able to be sent to festivals. When all the obligatory fields are filled in, the status of the film will be changed to “Complete” and it will be able to be submit to festivals.

8- Who will be able to view my film and my info?

Only festivals that you decide to send your film to will have access to your personal and film information. Buyers will also be able to access the films in the catalog, for viewing and selecting potential acquisitions for allowances in the different channels (see point 9). All the festivals FESTHOME has within the system, have access to a films list of all the films in FESTHOME. This list will not display the video file or show data of the film. With this list, the aim is that festivals can filter by subject, by name of the film, by director, etc. to find films that are of interest and contact with users to suggest the submission. At no time will the films or any information or lists be available to the general public, only registered users as buyers and festivals.

9- Does FESTHOME own the rights of my film?

FESTHOME does not have the copyright or the operating rights of the films. FESTHOME only acts as a platform to facilitate the distribution and sale of films.

10- Can FESTHOME sell my film?

No, because at no time will FESTHOME acquire any copyright or exploitation rights of the films. The sale of the films will be solely between the owner of the rights of the film and potential buyers, with FESTHOME acting as a platform for viewing and facilitating the communication between both parties.

11- How much does it cost to submit a film?

All submission to any festival (in the FESTHOME system) of any country in the world, are priced at € 2 (short film) and € 8 (feature films >60min) per submission. (For festivals with fees see item 13). You will only be charged for sending a film to one section of a festival once, any other section you send to of the same festival having a price of 0,00€.

Film-makers will also be able to purchase credit vouchers with which submission prices will become even more economical than they already are with individual purchases.

For short features: 1 credit = 1 submission / For feature films: 4 credits = 1 submission

5 credits voucher - 10€ (2€ per submission)
10 credits voucher - 17€ (1,7€ per submission)
15 credits voucher - 22,5€ (1,5€ per submission)
30 credits voucher - 40€ (1,3€ per submission)
75 credits voucher - 75€ (1€ per submission)


Credits will be automatically discounted as vouchers are used. Once a voucher’s credits are exhausted, film-makers will be able to purchase another voucher or pay individually for submissions.

12- How can I pay in FESTHOME?

FESTOME allows users to pay in various methods of payment, such as secure payment by PayPal, Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, American Express, JCB, etc.

13- How do I submit my film to festivals with entry fees?

Many festivals charge a submission fee. FESTHOME will facilitate the payment of both the entry fee and the festival's submission fee at festhome.com. Film-makers will pay for both fees in one single payment at Festhome.com when they want to submit a film of theirs to a festival that collects its submission fees via FESTHOME.

(practical example: Festhome's entry fee 2€, would be added to a festival's submission fee -i.e. 10€- so that film-makers would have to make a total payment of 12€).

Festivals whose submission fees are not collected at Festhome will require film-makers to pay Festhome's entry fee (2€) at festhome.com and then pay for the festival's submission's fee according to the directions given by the festival itself in its regulations and submission documents. FESTHOME will be responsible for providing festivals with the possibility of viewing all films submitted to each one of them. Under no circumstances will FESTHOME be held accountable for any given film's not acceptance for not having paid a festival's submission fee.

14- Can I submit my film to more than one festival in a single payment?

FESTHOME gives its users the opportunity to select as many festivals as wanted, to send your films to and to pay in a single transaction all submissions.

15- What video formats can I upload to FESTHOME?

At FESTHOME we care very much that the videos that you upload look the best possible quality within current technological limits, so we ask for specific files to ensure the highest possible quality. FESTHOME supports MP4 format files in any of its variants, although we recommend a video compression with the H.264 codec. FESTHOME offers two options to upload your video file:

- Automatic Conversion: You may also upload your file and have the festhome servers convert it automatically online (see point 16). This conversion is fully FREE of charge for short films and has a 3€ or $4 cost for feature films (video files longer than 60 minutes).

- Manual Conversion: If you do not have the file available in this format, we offer an easy, free and simple way to convert your files to MP4 video (see item 16).

Video resolution should be maximum 720 height (720p, 1280x720).

You can upload files of up to 20GB with a system that allows you to pause the upload and even saves the state of the upload if you disconnect. You can also upload your file directly from Dropbox.

16- What technical requirements do I need to use FESTHOME?

To use FESTHOME it is essential to have an Internet connection.

17- What size must be video files be?

You may upload files of up to 20GB with the automatic transcoding/conversion.

Video files shown to festivals are compressed to a bitrate of 1750 kbp/s (13,125megabytes per minute of transcoding), with a maximum length of 60 minutes (for short films) or 200 minutes (for feature films).

If you choose the Automatic Conversion option (fully FREE of charge for short films and 3€ or $4 per feature film- longer than 60 minutes,), FESTHOME's servers will handle all this process (see point 16).

In order to fulfill this requirement, FESTHOME offers a video tutorial along with a free program, HANDBRAKE, but you can obtain the same results with Final Cut or AVID. The recommended vertical resolution is 720 pixels, which means that your file will have 720 pixels from top to bottom, whereas the width, left to right, depends on the Aspect Ratio. We strongly recommend using the H.264 codec, which maintains an exceptional quality with the bitrate we ask for and allows for the streaming of the content at good speed. In this link you can see an example of the quality of the videos that meet these requirements.

18- What other files can I upload to FESTHOME?

You can upload additional information for your film such as the poster, still pictures, photo of the director, in JPG, PNG or GIF format.

You can also upload your resume, screenplay, dialogues, etc. in formatted text files (TXT, PDF, DOCX, DOC). You will be able to introduce links to places where you keep your trailer or other audiovisual promotional material.

Finally, you may also upload your subtitles in SRT format so that festival selectors may choose the language in which to view the subtitles.

19- How many films can I upload to FESTHOME?

You can have an unlimited number of films submitted in FESTHOME plus 2 unsent films stored. All films both sent and unsent will have an expiration date (see item 20).

20- How long can my film stay on FESTHOME?

If you have submit your film, it can stay 6 months counting from the last delivery.

21- How do I know my film has been succesfully uploaded?

When your video file has been uploaded into FESTHOME, an alert appears on the screen of your browser, and you will also receive a confirmation e-mail in your inbox.

22- How do I know that my film has been sent succesfully?

Once you make the payment, you will see the confirmation screen and receive a confirmation e-mail. You can check at any time within the user menu 'My Submissions', the list of festivals where you sent your film to and it’s status.

23- How do I know that my film was selected or rejected by a festival?

Through FESTHOME the user will receive the confirmations of acceptance or rejection for participation in the festival where you have sent your film to.

The festival may also communicate with their own methods the acceptance or rejection of your film. You may also check the status of your films on the menu list ‘Selection Status’, and even check if the festival already saw your film or not.

If the festival removes it’s account from Festhome, the information relating to that festival will disappear.

24- What happens if my film is selected by a festival?

You will receive the notification of selection through Festhome or directly from the Festival. If your film has been selected, direct communication from Festival to User will begin, to agree on details for projection and others.

FESTHOME allows festival to ask for a projection copy of up to 20GB. Once a film has been selected the festival has the option to send instructions to the Film-maker on what kind of file and format they wish you to upload or let you choose whatever you think is best for projection.

The submission of the projection copy through FESTHOME is completely free and the duration of the hosting at FESTHOME is 30 days.

25- If my film is selected, can the festival use the video stored online at Festhome to project?

This will depend on the Festival, and where it will make the projection of films. The most usual is that after the selection, the festival will get in touch with the Film-maker to agree on the shipment of a projection copy or they may choose to use the free system FESTHOME offers to receive digital projection copies of up to 20GB.

26- How can I remove a film from the Festhome website?

In your account, on the menu ‘My films’, you will find your list of films stored at Festhome. In this list you will find the option ‘Delete’. With just a click, the film will disappear from the system.

27- I cannot convert my film to the video specifications of Festhome, what can I do?

For both manual and automatic conversion, do not worry. Send an email to support@festhome.com, and our technical support team will help you find a solution to your problem.

28- I want to delete my account at Festhome, how can I do it?

You will have to write an email with the subject ‘Delete Account’, from the email registered with the account, to support@festhome.com, along with your username and the reasons for deleting the account.

29- When does the Festival submission time (deadline) end?

The deadline ends at midnight (00:00) Central European Time, CET (UTC+1), Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2), on the first day after the deadline date. At this time, the festival will disappear from the festival list.

30- Subtitling Service

Festhome offers translation and / or subtitling services: a translation service would mean translating into the target language a text file with properly synched dialogues written in the source language; a subtitling service would mean creating a text file with properly synched dialogues in the target language from the soundtrack. These services are currently available in the following languages:

English into Spanish
Spanish into English
French into Spanish
Spanish into French
English into French
French into English

Translation service: 3€ per minute.
Subtitling service: 4€ per minute.

The cost of the service is worked out by the minute in which dialogue appears. An agreement must be reached before payment between film-makers and Festhome regarding the amount of dialogue minutes which a film contains. Payment must be made in advance once the length of the film’s dialogues is determined.

For further information: info@festhome.com

31- Can I mail a DVD to Festhome so that Festhome may convert it to an .mp4 file and upload it to my account?

Yes, a DVD can be mailed to Festhome. Sometimes it is not possible to upload a video file because it is too complicated, or maybe the size is too big for an unstable internet connection, or maybe there is another perfectly valid reason.

Because of that, we offer a DVD mailing service that allows film-makers to send us a DVD by regular mail, and we will take care of converting it and uploading it to our server, so that they only have to fill in their film's information and then submit it to festivals. Once payment has been completed, film-makers must write, on the back side of the envelope, the information that will appear next to the shipping address.

Because of the work this generates, this service costs 5€, although we will gift film-makers with one credit so that they may submit their film to any festival once it is uploaded to our server.