This festival is designed to showcase the best of LGBTQ+ stories from around the world today! We accept screenplays (short, TV Pilot, feature) and short & feature films.
Submit via FilmFreeway:
Film Festivals:
Festivals occur every single month. We accept an assortment of shorts & feature films from around the world today monthly. We are proud to announce that we will be using the audience feedback format where all accepted films receive a video of people talking about their film at the festival. Excellent video to use for promotional purposes too. NOTE: To enhance the feedback video for the filmmakers, all festivals are held for a private selected audience only.
Screenplay Festivals:
We are proud to showcase 2-5 winning LGBTQ+ screenplays at our festival every single month!! Go to the site and watch the winning readings each month.
All entries receive full feedback from the industry. Accepted screenplays get their screenplays performed by professional actors.
One of North America’s leading gay destinations, Toronto has been holding Pride observances since the ’70s. The Pride parade draws more than 1.2 million spectators and participants annually, making it one of the top such draws in the world. The cinema is located in the Church & Wellesley area, where all of the Pride Events take place.
LGBTQ+ festivals occur 12 times a year. Go to the website for information on the next events.
All submissions receive feedback on their film no matter what.
9/10: Love Before the Fall, 58min., USA
Directed by Daron Hagen
The myths of Orpheus and Charon are interwoven with the entirely sung magical-realist story of four friends dining in an Italian bistro who are fated to perish the next morning in the attack on the Twin Towers. At meal’s end, through magical realism, the restaurant’s mysterious strolling violinist is revealed to be Charon, hand extended, awaiting payment. Complying, each reconciles with death, and departs to the sounds of the next morning’s busy signals and the calls of first responders.
MY ROCKSTAR, 13min,. USA
Directed by Stephanie Williams, Graham Nothrup
“My Rockstar” is a compelling and emotional short film that follows the journey of Amanda (aka “Eva” of the band Eva Under Fire”), a determined young Latina woman who dreams of becoming a rockstar while navigating the challenges of her father’s opiate addiction.
WILDsound Podcaster Hannah Ehman interviews Amanda Lyberg. They talk about her role in the award winning film MY ROCKSTAR, plus working as an artist, musician, and actor in the Detroit, Michigan area.
FANTASY and SCI-FI Stories used to be a fringe market. Now they are in the mainstream and forever as movies, television shows, and stories in this genre are a multi-billion dollar market.
Submit via FilmFreeway:
This is a HYBRID film festival (NOT an online festival) with live screenings for the audience feedback video you will receive, plus an optional virtual 2nd showcase to enhance the film’s exposure. Festival also conducts blog and podcast interviews with the filmmaker. We have also started a filmmaker’s WhatsApp group with over 100 joined to date to chat about next project and make contacts etc….
Get your script and story performed by professional actors at the Fantasy/Sci-Fi Festival. WINNING reading every single month!
Get your short or feature film showcased at the FEEDBACK Film Festival and get an audience video. Now a monthly festival taking place in either Chicago, Los Angeles, or Toronto
All festival dates have been updated to private screenings with the same Audience FEEDBACK videos made for the short & feature films, and recorded script readings performed by professional actors for the screenplays. This is our way of showing community over distance so everyone around the world can experience our Audience Feedback videos.
We specialize in showcasing Fantasy/Sci-Fi stories and making sure that when the work is ready, the writer will benefit by at least obtaining a solid agent.
Awards & Prizes
Accepted Films get their films showcased at the FEEDBACK Film Festival. Then you’ll garner an Audience Video on your film which is a great promotional vehicle, which will set you up to get submitted to future festivals.
Accepted Screenplays get their work performed by professional actors at the writing festival. 3-5 weeks after submitting, you will be sent an email with your full feedback and told if your script is ready to be performed at our festival. We do not have finalists etc.. It is either a winner or a rewrite is suggested and you have a chance to re-submit at a discount rate.
Go to the Daily Film Festival Platform http://www.wildsound.ca and sign up for the free 7 day trial to watch a new and original festival every single day.
THE FINAL CURTAIN CALL, 16min,. USA Directed by Jessica Orcsik, Robbie Ryde As Ella embarks on a musical journey, she meets 4 other teenagers, each with a new song. Taking place in a mysterious theater, the musical numbers reveal heart wrenching stories of child trafficking sung in new and creative ways. The Final Curtain Call combines a serious matter with the power of music to convey an impactful message and tell a devastating story.
PUNK SINATRA, 11min,. USA Directed Sebastian Macchia ‘Punk Sinatra’ is not only a whimsical mockumentary but also a groundbreaking first in cinema—it’s the first AI-created mockumentary. The film unfurls the fictitious tale of Punk Sinatra, an imagined long-lost cousin of Frank Sinatra, humorously credited with sparking the punk rock revolution. This entirely fabricated character pioneers the raw, straightforward lyricism and ‘Do It Yourself’ ethos of punk music.
I SPEAK THE NIGHT, 19min., Germany Directed by Doris Schmid A reflection on perception, imagination and on artistic expression of the collective real, external world, in relation to the subjective inner life of each individual.
SO I, 3min., China Directed by Charlotte Sun This film is a hand-drawn animation exploring the concept of animation through dance movements. In the meanwhile, it gives a perspective about loneliness, the invevitable isolation of physical body as well as ging a introspective approach, thourgh self-exploration. Sometimes the thing I’ve been longing for isn’t really exsist in places I can see, So I decided to I dance.
Reyna, a struggling DJ in Silicon Valley, has to pivot her career in order to survive. Having the worst year ever, she is forced to join the “gig economy” so she can pay rent while living with her pushy mother. While dating women for the first time, she finds herself in comical situations. Through determination, self-discovery, and the power of faith, Reyna learns to overcome adversity and finds her true calling and love.
This feature, Echoes of Dreams, was a moving exploration of how hard work, persistence and the support of a loved one can allow for dreams to become a reality. Across the board, the performances of the cast were true to life. The awkwardness of the lead’s initial failures both professionally and socially was believably painful. The added frustration of constant parental pressure to succeed made the lead’s desperation even more dire. Another hardship was the lead’s exposure to a lover whose family’s homophobia would demand their lesbian relationship be a secret forever. In contrast, the depiction of the joy and freedom between the lovers Reyna and Tiya was heartwarming.
The pulsing soundtrack and stirring vocals below textless scenes of either frustration or sensual passion (enriched with erotic slo-mo camera shots) worked seamlessly. Various dating locations were well-selected, such as a bike path, a bowling alley, restaurants, an inviting couch and a comfortable bedroom. The screenplay was sensitive and thoughtful, as the central relationship was rich in caring, trust and support, which allowed for Reyna’s character arc – moving from failure to success in both work and love. Reyna’s dreams were no longer just distant echoes, but now were tangible and real.
Conversation with writer/producer Ken Barrett about the Opera Film “BRAINLAND”
In 1935 Egas Moniz, renowned Portuguese neurologist, visit psychiatrist Sobral Cid in order to persuade him allow his patients to be act as subjects for Moniz’s experiemntal treatment – frontal leucotomy. After some resistance Cid agrees. The first such operation is staged, but Moniz’s exhaltation is cut short by an attempt on his life. This self-contained chamber opera is actually scene 7 from a longer opera of the same name that tells three stories from the history of 20th century brain science (rather than a screenplay we worked with a libretto). it was filmed very quickly with little resources and involved professional and non-professional cast & crew. The music is by Stephen Brown. Directed by Chiara D’Anna
Go to the Daily Film Festival Platform http://www.wildsound.ca and sign up for the free 7 day trial to watch a new and original festival every single day.
BRAINLAND, 13min., UK Directed by Chiara D’Anna In 1935 Egas Moniz, renowned Portuguese neurologist, visit psychiatrist Sobral Cid in order to persuade him allow his patients to be act as subjects for Moniz’s experiemntal treatment – frontal leucotomy. After some resistance Cid agrees. The first such operation is staged, but Moniz’s exhaltation is cut short by an attempt on his life. This self-contained chamber opera is actually scene 7 from a longer opera of the same name that tells three stories from the history of 20th century brain science (rather than a screenplay we worked with a libretto). it was filmed very quickly with little resources and involved professional and non-professional cast & crew.The music is by Stephen Brown.
COLORS OF THE AMAZON, 7min,. Belgium Directed by Francisco Barboza Some time after performing “Amazonas,” a composition for piano and orchestra, at the beautiful Teatro Amazonas in Manaus, I returned to visit the indigenous people of the Brazilian Amazon forest where I had the exceptional opportunity to make a recording of a traditional song. In “Colors Of The Amazon,” I use that song in its original and unfiltered form as a framework. The result is a composition that allowed me to explore a fascinating sound world where world music and orchestral tradition embrace each other ????????.
DAYLIGHT, 12min., USA Directed by Yaa Asantewaa Faraji A ballet dancer struggles to cope with the realities of her new life after one night goes terribly wrong.
SLOWLY, 4min,. France Directed by Christophe Dachy Paris, Place de la République, July 2022. Alone, facing the trampling crowd, the march of time, the freezing rain, she dances.
OUT OF THE DARK, 3min,. USA Directed by Alexa Ruggiero, Ashley Carrizo A screendance film that portrays how certain relationships in ones life can cause turmoil. The process of letting someone go can be freeing while also being an emotional rollercoaster full of sadness, anger, and relief.
POET, 5min,. China Directed by Mofei Wei, Yang Sun “Poet” is a dance film inspired by Chinese poet Yu Xiuhua, a rural woman with cerebral palsy, who recently became famous in China. Many started to know her works from her audacious Poem “Crossing Half of China to Sleep with You”. Living in a conservative rural village in southern China where prejudice against women, disability, and divorce are high, she managed to break free from an unwanted marriage and live her life as a writer despite the satirical voices around.
MORNING INTERLUDE, 7min., France Directed by Sirius At daybreak on a country road, a young couple returns from a restless night visibly exhausted. Angry with each other the couple will in a magnetic danse try to reconcile.
KINGDOM, 8min., Poland Directed by Jagoda Turlik Past, Present, Future – Three orders determining the space of life. Distant, but without each other they do not constitute truth. They coexist as a sum, a stream of experience. The past stores memories, evokes sentiments, but also hides demons. There is no future, it may be dangerous. The present forces you to decide in what direction to go “here and now”
MITOTE – SMOKEY MIRROR, 9min,. South Korea Directed by Jana Sturmheit In today’s world us humans have developed a complex social system of rules and expectations. Children are taught from the day they are born on how they are expected to behave. They are told what is right and wrong, what is possible and what not. That is, by the standards of the children’s parents and other people in their surroundings, in other words the society they grow up in.
Your Everyday Heroes traveled to Costa Rica and searched for inspirational everyday people who are changing the world. Jeremy, Tracey, Vernon and Che are clearly all examples of what it takes to be a Hero, and we’re proud to share their stories with you.
The film, EVERYDAY HEROES OF COSTA RICA, is a remarkable tribute to three amazing people that are working on conversation and restoration of the vanishing wildlife in the region. The storytelling is captivating, physically showing the work of Vernon, Tracey and Jeremy through Wild Sun rather than just telling the audience what they are doing to restore the populations of the red macaws, turtles and howler monkeys.
Most conversation films focus on the facts surrounding the species needing to be saved, coming off as preaching activism, whereas this documentary established who the people were and why others thought they were heroes. It made the film more about the people and the wildlife in a way that everyone would agree with the filmmaker. Vernon, Tracey and Jeremy are individuals with a deep passion for their conservation efforts. They are people who clearly care about the culture of Costa Rica while at the same time wanting to preserve the native wildlife.
The volunteers are people who care, inspired by the passion of the everyday heroes. These are the type of people that the world should hear more about as they bring a light to the dark world. They are leaving an amazing legacy behind by working directly with the animals and helping them adapt so that they can survive in the wild.
This documentary makes it clear what a hero is, a role model that someone wants to learn from and follow in their footsteps. Vernon, Tracey and Jeremey deserved this inspiring tribute. They truly are heroes as they work to preserve and restore the Costa Rican wildlife populations. It’s a call to action film that actually makes people want to volunteer in conservation efforts.
Festival Reviews 