For Filmmakers: Submission and Festival Details
Call for Entries
CIFF50 (2026) Call for Entries is Now Open!
Festival Details
CIFF supports filmmakers with screening fee or travel assistance for selected feature films. As an Academy Award®-qualifying festival for all short film categories, we accept films of any length and genre worldwide. Alumni are eligible for a submission waiver if their film qualifies for CIFF50. We look forward to showcasing your work!
The CIFF audience mirrors Cleveland's community, welcoming students, families, and seniors. Our Screening Team, comprising 150 passionate film lovers from diverse backgrounds, reviews each film in full, with at least three judges providing detailed feedback. Paid submitters can receive this feedback upon request after the festival, whether or not they are selected.
Films not selected by our Screening Team, usually about a third of submissions, are reviewed by our Features and Shorts Programming Teams. Our CIFF Programmers bring diverse experiences and a deep understanding of what our audience loves. The 2025 CIFF showcased 104 feature films and 200 shorts from 60 countries, offering a rich global variety.
For all questions related to submissions, please see our FAQs and Terms and Conditions below or email submissions@clevelandfilm.org.
We thank you for sharing your films with us!
Important Things to Know
Before you submit your film to CIFF50, please review these key requirements and guidelines so your Cleveland film entries are ready for consideration.
- PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL THEATRICAL SCREENINGS AT CIFF50 WILL BE IN DCP (FEATURE AND SHORT FILMS). All invited films must provide a DCP file for exhibition.
- Films whose productions were completed after June 1, 2024, are eligible for submission to CIFF50.
- Waivers or discount codes will only be accepted prior to the FINAL deadline and will not be accepted during the EXTENDED deadline.
- If your submission is INCOMPLETE (including missing, invalid, or expired uploads, links, or passwords), our submissions team will email you. You will have one week to resolve the issue before your submission is DISQUALIFIED and removed from consideration.
- To be eligible for CIFF50, films must NOT have been exhibited in person within the Greater Cleveland area, as CIFF requires at least a CLEVELAND PREMIERE. Films also must not be available publicly online before CIFF50. Films previously screened online in an official ticketed-festival capacity remain eligible as long as they have not been accessible to audiences in the Greater Cleveland area.
- Requests for CIFF Screening Team written feedback are available only for submissions that pay in full and must be made between May 1 and June 1, 2026, by emailing reviews@clevelandfilm.org. Eligible feedback will be provided between June 1 and August 1, 2026.
- All Festival details (including dates, format, and venues) are subject to change.
Important Things to Know
Before you submit your film to CIFF50, please review these key requirements and guidelines so your Cleveland film entries are ready for consideration.
- PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL THEATRICAL SCREENINGS AT CIFF50 WILL BE IN DCP (FEATURE AND SHORT FILMS). All invited films must provide a DCP file for exhibition.
- Films whose productions were completed after June 1, 2024, are eligible for submission to CIFF50.
- Waivers or discount codes will only be accepted prior to the FINAL deadline and will not be accepted during the EXTENDED deadline.
- If your submission is INCOMPLETE (including missing, invalid, or expired uploads, links, or passwords), our submissions team will email you. You will have one week to resolve the issue before your submission is DISQUALIFIED and removed from consideration.
- To be eligible for CIFF50, films must NOT have been exhibited in person within the Greater Cleveland area, as CIFF requires at least a CLEVELAND PREMIERE. Films also must not be available publicly online before CIFF50. Films previously screened online in an official ticketed-festival capacity remain eligible as long as they have not been accessible to audiences in the Greater Cleveland area.
- Requests for CIFF Screening Team written feedback are available only for submissions that pay in full and must be made between May 1 and June 1, 2026, by emailing reviews@clevelandfilm.org. Eligible feedback will be provided between June 1 and August 1, 2026.
- All Festival details (including dates, format, and venues) are subject to change.