Launch of film invitation for the 5th Beijing International Film Festival

Article 1

These regulations cover the participation of the Competition Section (Tiantan Award), Out-of-Competition Section (Beijing Film Panorama), Forward Future Section and Documentary Section of the 5th Beijing International Film Festival.

Article 2

Beijing International Film Festival (BJIFF) is ratified by the Chinese Government and hosted by the General Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television of People’s Republic of China and People’s Government of Beijing Municipality. Under the principle of “Share the Screen, Shape the Future”, the festival gathers film resources from all over the world to enhance the international exchange and cooperation of the film industry.

Article 3

The 5th Beijing International Film Festival will be held in Beijing, China from April 16th to 23rd, 2015, a total of 8 days.

Article 4

The Organizing Committee of BJIFF invites renowned filmmakers to form the International Jury of “Tiantan Award”. The jury is responsible for the selection of “Tiantan Award”.

No person having taken part in the production or exploitation of a film in competition may be on the Jury.

Article 5

The “Tiantan Award” Jury is obliged to present the following awards: Best Feature Film, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Music, and Best Visual Effects.

The Competition Section (Tiantan Award) comprises a maximum of 17 full-length feature films. Films chosen to the Official Selection are agreed to use the “Official Selection” logotype of BJIFF on all publicity. When publicizing awards, the award winners are agreed to use the exact wording of the awards as set out in the logo guidelines of BJIFF. BJIFF’s logo guidelines are available on the official website: www.bjiff.com.

Article 6

Beijing Film Panorama comprises several units, such as The Premiere, Homage to Master, Film of Opera and Tech-Spectacles. The films involved in these units are screened in over 30 theaters and film academic institutions in Beijing to the public and filmmakers during the festival

Article 7

Forward Future Section is established with the objectives to discover fresh filmmakers, hunt for the future trends of global film industry, encourage the spirits of innovation in filmmaking and display a culture diversity of film art. The section will finally present three awards, which are “The Most Popular Film”, “The Most Popular Director” and “The Most Popular Screenwriter”. The results will be announced on the Closing Ceremony of Forward Future Section.

Article 8

By inviting multi-national documentaries with diverse genres and artistic styles, Documentary Section dedicates to expand its artistic horizon and build communication platforms for factual and non-fiction film makers and organizations. Documentary Section announces thirty works as “The Short List of Final Round”, eight works as “The Jury Recommended Works”, and two works as “The Jury Highly Recommended Works”. The Section promotes and screens documentaries in cinemas and salons as well as Beijing Documentary Channel and new media platform. 

Article 9

The Organizing Committee of BJIFF is responsible for the invitation and selection of the Competition and Out-of-Competition Sections.

1. Films submitted to the Competition Section should meet the following conditions:

lOnly fiction film of no less than 70 minutes.

lFilm produced after January 1st, 2014.

lFormat should be 35 mm or DCP (Digital Cinema Package).

World premieres, and films that have not been presented at any other international film festivals are given priority.

Films submitted to the Competition section may be considered for the Out-of-Competition Section unless specifically stated otherwise.

2. Films submitted to the Out-of-Competition Section should meet the following conditions:

lFiction films of no less than 70 minutes and animation films of no less than 30 minutes.

lFilms produced after January 1st, 2013 except for the thematic screenings.

lFormat should be 35 mm or DCP (Digital Cinema Package).

lFilms submitted to Tech-Spectacles Unit (includes dome, IMAX, attraction, and ride films) refer to the“Invitation of the 5th Beijing International Film Festival Out-of-Competition Section & CSTM Popular Science Film Panorama”.

3. Films submitted to the Forward Future Section should meet the following conditions:

lOnly fiction film of no less than 70 minutes.

lFilm produced after January 1st, 2014.

lFormat should be 35 mm or DCP (Digital Cinema Package).

lOnly director’s first or second film.

4. Films submitted to the Documentary Section should meet the following conditions:

lOnly documentary film of no less than 30 minutes.

lFilm produced after January 1st, 2014.

lFormat should be 35 mm or DCP (Digital Cinema Package).

Article 10

As a core event of Beijing International Film Festival, Beijing Film Market focuses on exhibition, promotion, exchange and communication, and will hold various professional events including Exhibition, Project Pitches, Industry Conversations, Events & Activities, Contract Signing Ceremony, Market Screenings.

Article 11

Beijing International Film Festival hosts “Film Magic ? Beijing Forum” every year. Film Forum of the 5th Beijing International Film Festival is based on the height of global film industry development, and aims to improve the international communication of film concept, art and technology, enhance Sino-foreign film understanding, promote the mutual cooperation, as well as explore the latest development of film technology and art. The 5th Beijing International Film Festival will host three forums on Sino-foreign film co-production, film technology and art, and industry group.

Article 12

1. The deadline for film submission is January 31st, 2015.

2. Entry Form must be submitted through the BJIFF’s official website: www.bjiff.com.

3. After online registration and submission, entry form must be printed, signed and sent with two DVD screeners (having identical content to the film print or DCP) to the Organizing Committee Office of BJIFF before the deadline, which means the arrival date should be on or before January 31st, 2015.

4. The Organizing Committee designates DHL as the official delivery carrier (DHL account No.950586809). The Organizing Committee Office shall be notified by email of the film’s title, delivery date and number when its screeners and entry form are sent. The screener shall only be used in the Competition Section, Out-of-Competition Section, Forward Future Section and Documentary Section.

Article 13

After the submitted films are nominated by the Competition Section or selected by the Out-of-Competition Section, Forward Future Section and Documentary Section, entrants shall provide official confirmation via email or fax to the Organizing Committee Office of BJIFF. After the confirmation, no film may be withdrawn by a film’s entrant.

Article 14

1. All posters, brochures, stills and trailers of the nominated and selected films should be delivered or emailed to and arrive at the festival office on or before February 28th, 2015.

2. Films in languages other than English must be subtitled in English. The English subtitles, as well as the complete English screenplay should be provided to the Competition Section: competition@bjiff.com, Out-of-Competition Section: panorama@bjiff.com, Forward Future Section: forwardfuture@bjiff.com and Documentary Section: documentary@bjiff.com on or before February 28th, 2015.

3. The nominated films for the Competition Section should provide DVD samples in consistent with standard theater DCP format of 24 frames/second, and be delivered via DHL and arrive at the festival office on or before February 28th, 2015, and the festival office shall be notified by email of film title, delivery date and number.

4. The nominated films for the Competition Section and the selected films for the Out-of-Competition Section, Forward Future Section and Documentary Section should sent film print or DCP to the Organizing Committee Office of BJIFF on or before March 20th, 2015. The Organizing Committee Office shall be notified by email of the film’s title, delivery date and number.

5. Entrants must provide completed contact information and a delivery address. The Festival’s office will return the prints one month after the closing of the festival.

Article 15

1. The Festival pays for the following costs: the transport, customs and insurance fees for nominated and selected prints for the Competition Section, Out-of-Competition Section, Forward Future Section and Documentary Section; The Festival returns the prints at its own expense, including insurance fee, and pays for the insurance and storage during the period from the receipt of the prints to the return of the prints.

The Organizing Committee of BJIFF is not responsible for the costs of storage and customs of prints when they are shipped to the airport or destination port after the Festival.

2. In case of damage or loss of prints during the period of Beijing International Film Festival, the festival is only responsible for the costs involved in making a new print according to the current laboratory rates for ordering a standard print.

3. Entrants should send prints by the Festival’s designated delivery service DHL. If prints are sent by other carriers, the Organizing Committee of BJIFF shall not pay for the delivery costs, and shall not take any responsibility for loss, delay or damage.

Article 16

For the Competition Section, the Organizing Committee of BJIFF will invite the nominated films’ contributors to attend the festival’s award ceremony. For the Out-of-Competition Section, Forward Future Section and Documentary Section selected, films’ contributors will be invited to take part in the festival’s activities.

Article 17

The Organizing Committee of BJIFF undertakes that all the participating films shall only be presented in the designated theaters during the festival.

Article 18

Participation in Beijing International Film Festival implies adherence to the regulations as here set out. The entrants (including, but not limited to, producer, distributor, or related organization) should ensure that the participating film does not have any rights defects, and the entrants are liable for the consequences of any related disputes.

Article 19

Beijing International Film Festival is responsible for the interpretation of these regulations.

Should there be any inconsistencies between Chinese and English versions, the Chinese version shall prevail. The Organizing Committee of BJIFF reserves the right to deal with all matters not covered in these regulations.

Article 20

All the submitted film prints, entry forms, screeners, posters, brochures, stills and trailers must be addressed as follows:

Organizing Committee Office

BEIJING INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL