How to Get Your Film on the Festival Circuit

Home > Creative Content > Movies How to Get Your Film on the Festival Circuit Pro Available to WrapPRO members Trade Secrets: We asked programmers from 11 film festivals what filmmakers can do to help their projects get accepted Casey Loving April 28, 2026 @ 6:15 AM Share on Social Media Share on Facebook Share on X (formerly Twitter) Share on LinkedIn Share on Email Credit: Christopher Smith/TheWrap Welcome to Trade Secrets, TheWrap’s insider guide to making it in Hollywood. In previous installments, we’ve shared industry knowledge of how to get movies made and what stars bring the automatic green light. But let’s say you’ve already made your film, one that’s a bit scrappier and smaller than a big-budget studio blockbuster. How do you get it playing at a film festival? Getting your project shown at a film festival is a tried-and-true method for budding filmmakers looking to find a broader audience. The festival circuit helped launch a slew of acclaimed auteurs including Quentin Tarantino, Gina Prince-Bythewood, Steven Soderbergh, Richard Linklater and Ava DuVernay. This method remains a viable launchpad to this day. In fact, all five of the 2026 nominees for Best Director at the Academy Awards premiered their debut features through festivals: Josh Safdie at South by Southwest, Joachim Trier at the Czech Republic’s Karlovy Vary International Film Festival and Paul Thomas Anderson, Chloé Zhao and Ryan Coogler at Sundance. “Once you do sort of get your foot in the door, oftentimes word of mouth will spread from the audiences, from the curators from the programmers … You might get a review and suddenly the process, I wouldn’t say gets easy, but it gets easier,” said Ilya Tovbis, Artistic Director of the Virginia Film Festival. “I would say the hardest thing is getting your foot in the door the first time out.” Tovbis noted that this snowball effect can come from festivals large or small. At any size, it’s proof that you’re able to deliver a finished feature that’s been granted legitimacy by the big screen. Cara Cusumano, festival director of Tribeca Film Festival, added that festivals can provide value beyond simply what’s shown on the screen, offering crucial networking opportunities for filmmakers in the process of getting their start. Ryan Coogler’s feature directorial debut “Fruitvale Station” premiered at Sundance in 2013. (The Weinstein Company) “I hope that people think of festivals as a partner and as a real audience for a film,” Cusumano told TheWrap. “It’s so inspiring to me that 13,000 people are sending us their work every year, and I hate that often the result of that is often they’re getting a form letter at the end saying they’re not invited.” So how do you stand out among the 13,000? What steps can you take to ensure you’re giving your film the best shot at being selected? Where do you even begin? TheWrap spoke to programmers behind 11 U.S. film festivals to give you the inside scoop. Here are some key insights: Do your homework. Know what festivals are looking for (and which ones take submissions in the first place) and your budget to submit applications It’s OK to be picky. If you’re dead set on screening at a certain festival, take note of how often they screen U.S. or world premieres. If your heart is set on a festival that gives priority to films that have never been screened, apply to that one first before you accept anywhere else. Keep smaller festivals in mind. Boutique fests exist across the U.S. searching for…

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