Because submission of a film constitutes acceptance of these terms and conditions by filmmakers and their agents, please review the following carefully.

ACFF considers submitted films from all over the world and in all genres, provided they have a conservation theme. All films being submitted to ACFF shall have completed production after May 15, 2022 and may be duplicated for internal use by the selection committee and board of directors.

ACFF’s preferred method of submission is by secure online screener via ACFF’s FilmFreeway account. Films with non-English soundtracks must be submitted with embedded subtitles.

All officially selected films and materials solicited by ACFF will be programmed into the Festival for screening at public venues and/or through a secure, online platform.

If your submission is a student production, be sure to submit it as such. A student is defined as one who is enrolled at an accredited high school, undergraduate, or graduate school. A student is not required to be a film or video major, but must include their school, year of study, advisor’s name and email. No student production will be considered if produced as a work for hire.

ACFF is not responsible for notifying any parties other than the entrant, through its listed contact person, of entry status or of any questions or determinations regarding the entry.

It is the sole responsibility of the entity submitting the project to secure permission from the copyright holders of the material contained in the film.

Multiple entries will be accepted provided they are submitted individually.

Entrants may re-submit a film submitted in the past that was not accepted as long as the film has been completed in the past 2 years.

If your film is officially selected, you may be asked to provide:
• A high resolution film file downloadable via Dropbox, Google Drive, We Transfer or Vimeo that is 1920×1080 pixels, 23.97 fps, 48 kHz Audio, progressive scan in mp4 format
• An English language closed caption file in .scc, .srt or .vtt format
• A digital press kit including promotional film stills in high resolution jpg format, a short synopsis, filmmaker bio and headshot
• A link to a publicly-accessible streamable trailer, preferably on Vimeo
• A 1920x1080p downloadable trailer file in mp4 format

Note: If materials are not submitted by the applicable deadline, we reserve the right to secure substitute materials from other sources.

Films that are selected by ACFF are chosen by a committee of media and conservation professionals. The quality of storytelling,editing, production value and relevance of the topic are principal factors in the selection of films for ACFF. One of the elements selection committee members look for is careful editing. While fully respecting artistic license, if given the choice between a long cut and shorter cut, the team usually opts for the version that conveys the message in a concise manner.

All entries must include the following:
(1) A secure, online screener completed within the past two years
(2) Contact information for the filmmaker or person handling the submission, including name, mailing address and email
(3) A short synopsis of the film
(4) Student filmmakers must provide school affiliation, year of project completion, as well as contact info for the academic advisor on the project.