Got Into A Film Festival

The phone rang in the middle of the night as I was asleep. It was a friend...
"Hullo?"
"Oh shit, man, you asleep?"
"Nah. It's cool. What's up?"
"There was a deadline for a film festival I got into last year that I submitted "Nick's Van" to."
"Wha--?"
"Yeah, they judges are looking at it now. Last minute thing. Nominations go out today. Will let you know. Talk to you later."
He hung up.
An hour later. The phone rang again.
"Hey, the judges watched it and it's accepted. Just need a logline and a few photos and a poster. Oh...they need it tonight?"
"Wha--?"
"Yeah, the deadline is on September 3rd. Today was the last day before nominations. They like to nominate movies before they announce screening. Get more interest and shit."
"Oh, cool..."
"You know what?...I'll just pick from your Flickr page."
"Ah...cool" still groggy from what was happening.

And just like that, the first entry into a festival. Ever. I mean, not even my film school movies got into festivals (not that I ever tried). Take it as it is. I still hold onto my core belief that film festivals are good for actors and other talent, not really all that big a deal for directors. Because most of the people there are also trying to meet people to help them out.

Short film festivals are near impossible to draw out people who can help you make your next movie. But...it's a good place to rub skulls together and trade war stories. If you ever get into a festival, congratulations...but take it with a grain of salt. It's fun to watch your movie play for strangers. Don't expect to be the next Paul Thomas Anderson.