How many films do film festivals accept out of the total number of movies submitted? To answer this question, we sampled 150 Academy Qualified/FIAPF/ BAFTA and 300 other festivals on the Filmfreeway. We found film festivals that shared information about the number of films submitted and the number of selected films. Then we summarized this information. At the end of this article, you will find a list of these festivals with the numbers listed.
From a few thousand to ten thousand or even more movies are submitted to the most prestigious film festivals in the world. Such festivals list from a hundred to several hundred films in their programs. This information can be deduced from our experience and communication with festival organizers and participants, as well as from published information.
For example, 6,876 films were submitted to the Toronto International Film Festival (tiff) last year. And only 94 movies were screened (58 feature films and 36 short films). Thus, the acceptance rate for the TIFF was 1,4 %.
As for the rest of the festivals, the usual number of films submitted ranges from a few hundred to a thousand or more. Submission fees can be a severe limitation on the number of films. Festivals with free entrance can receive up to three thousand movies or more.
In this way, the index of accepted films ranges from 1 % to 10 % usually. Of course, there are exceptions. Some festivals screen a significant percentage of submitted films. There are relatively few such festivals. To find them, you have to read their concept carefully. For example, the Film Festival “Nefiltravanae Kino” offers an out-of-competition section where up to 80% of entrants can participate. But a necessity for participation is to come and be physically present at the festival.
The online format makes it much easier to increase the number of films shown. Virtual festivals are much cheaper and require much less organization and time. Therefore, we can assume that virtual festivals have more opportunities in this regard.
Academy Qualified/FIAPF/ BAFTA Film Festivals
| films accepted | submissions | acceptance rate | festival title |
| 100-145 | 3000 | 3-5 % | Ann Arbor Film Festival |
| 200 | 2900 | 7 % | Annecy |
| 175 | 9400 | 2 % | Atlanta Film Festival |
| 250 | 4000 | 6,3 % | Bengaluru International Short Film Festival |
| 150 | 3000 | 5 % | Calgary International Film Festival |
| 80 | 1200 | 6,7 % | Calgary Underground Film Festival |
| 70 | 1200 | 5,8 % | Carrousel International du film de Rimouski |
| 250 | 1500 | 16,7 % | Chicago International Children’s Film Festival |
| 700 | 6843 | 10,2 % | Flickers’ Rhode Island International Film Festival |
| 80 | 1000 | 8 % | Foyle Film Festival |
| 425 | 6000 | 7 % | HollyShorts |
| 200 | 3000 | 6,7 % | Leuven International Short Film Festival |
| 180 | 3000 | 6 % | New Orleans Film Festival |
| 65 | 650 | 10 % | NorthwestFest International Documentary Festival |
| 50 | 2000 | 2,5 % | Planet in Focus |
| 15 | 195 | 8 % | Superfest Disability Film Festival |
| 94 | 6876 | 1,4 % | Toronto International Film Festival |
The acceptance rate of not qualified film festivals
| films accepted | submissions | acceptance rate | festival title |
| 101 | 621 | 16,3% | Angeles Documentaries |
| 180 | 1000 | 18,0% | Aporia International Village Film Festival |
| 115 | 650 | 17,7% | Ashland Independent Film Festival |
| 35 | 90 | 38,9% | Assurdo Film festival |
| 65 | 1800 | 3,6% | BangkokThai International Film Festival |
| 82 | 800 | 10,3% | BAYAMÓN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL |
| 7 | 140 | 5,0% | Bedford International Film Festival |
| 100 | 2000 | 5,0% | BLACKBIRD FILM FESTIVAL |
| 100 | 500 | 20,0% | Boston SciFi Film Fest |
| 50 | 800 | 6,3% | Boulder International Film Festival |
| 70 | 500 | 14,0% | CAPRICORN FILM FESTIVAL |
| 30 | 100 | 30,0% | CHINH INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL |
| 6 | 200 | 3,0% | Festival del Puerto |
| 300 | 1900 | 15,8% | Garden State Film Festival |
| 250 | 1400 | 17,9% | London Director Awards |
| 80 | 385 | 20,8% | Prague Music Video Awards |
| 53 | 800 | 6,6% | SAN JOSE INTERNATIONAL FILM AWARDS |
| 3 | 100 | 3,0% | Terror High Film Festival |
| 92 | 600 | 15,3% | The Caribbean Sea International Film Festival |
| 45 | 300 | 15,0% | Vancouver Latin American Film Festival |
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