ALMERIA WESTERN FILM FESTIVAL (14)

Festival start: 10 October 2024      Festival end: 13 October 2024

International Western Film Festival.

AWARDS AND JURY

Among all the feature films, short films and school practices selected for the official competition sections, the prizes will be the following:

OFFICIAL COMPETITIVE FEATURE FILMS SECTION


JURY PRIZE FOR THE BEST WESTERN FEATURE FILM
Awarded by the Jury of the Official Feature Film Section to the best work of fiction or long-length documentary. The organization reserves the option of dividing this award into two: “Award for the best western” and “Special Jury Award for the best new western.”


'CARLO SIMI' AWARD FOR THE TECHNICAL-ARTISTIC CONTRIBUTION TO THE WESTERN GENRE
Awarded by the Jury of the Official Feature Film Section to a professional from either the technical or artistic team who has contributed to the dissemination and renewal of the international western genre.


AWARD FOR THE BEST INTERPRETATION
Awarded by the Jury of the Official Feature Film Section to an actress or actor who plays a leading or supporting character in one of the films in competition.

The organization reserves the option of dividing this award into two: “Award for the best Female Performance” and “Award for the best Male Performance.”


AUDIENCE AWARD FOR THE BEST FEATURE FILM
Awarded by the public at all screenings of the feature films programmed in the Official Section and the Outlaw Section.


OFFICIAL COMPETITIVE SECTION OF SHORT FILMS


JURY PRIZE FOR BEST WESTERN SHORT FILM
Awarded by the Jury of the Official Short Film Section to the best work of fiction or short documentary.


AUDIENCE AWARD FOR THE BEST SHORT FILM
Awarded by the public of all the screenings of the short films programmed in the Official Section and the Outlaw Section.


SPECIAL COMPETITIVE SECTIONS


YOUNG JURY PRIZE FOR THE BEST WORK FROM FILM SCHOOLS OR UNIVERSITIES
Awarded by the Young Jury (18-29 years old) to the best work of fiction or documentary attached to a School or University in which the director has completed audiovisual or film studies.


RCSERVICE AWARD FOR THE BEST PHOTOGRAPHY DIRECTION OF A SPANISH WORK

RCservice for the best cinematography direction in a Spanish work (feature films, short films and documentaries) consisting of a discount of 750 euros on digital film camera material, available at the time of filming, in favor of the production company of the work (except that it expressly grants the award to the Director of Photography). There is no minimum budget set for the application of the discount. The use of the material must be carried out within a maximum period of twelve months from the AWFF closing gala (10/13/2024).


The prizes awarded in all competitive sections will consist of:

- A trophy designed with the official image of the Festival and the award text on the pedestal.

- Special prizes awarded by entities or organizations collaborating with the festival.

Cash prizes are not contemplated.

The jury's decision will be final.

Participation implies full acceptance of these Regulations. In the event of a conflict in the interpretation of any article of these regulations or in those aspects not included therein, the interpretation and judgment of the Festival Management is decisive. The original of this regulation is in Spanish and is available and updated at the following link http://www.almeriawesternfilmfestival.es/es/bases

Personal data will be treated in accordance with the provisions of current legislation (Organic Law 15/1999).

BASES 14 Edition Almería Western Film Festival

Registration period: April 15 to June 30, 2024


1.- OBJECTIVES OF THE FESTIVAL

The 14th edition of ALMERÍA WESTERN FILM FESTIVAL (AWFF), organized by the Hon. Tabernas City Council's objective is the dissemination and promotion of cinematographic works of the western genre, in its broadest sense, that contribute to the knowledge of world cinematography.

On the other hand, the territory in which it is located is valued: the Desert and the municipality of Tabernas, which have been inspirations and protagonists of an important international production of films of different genres over the years, representing a valuable cinematographic heritage.


2.- CELEBRATION DATE

The 14th edition of Almería Western Film Festival will be held from Thursday, October 10 to Sunday, October 13, 2024 in Tabernas and in the towns of Oasys MiniHollywood and Fort Bravo Texas Hollywood.


3.- LOGLINE OF THE 14TH EDITION

Almería Western Film Festival has a double commitment. On the one hand, remember the great milestones of the western genre throughout history; and on the other, to vindicate and put in contact the themes and traditional iconography of the genre with the sociocultural and environmental reality today.

In the 2024 edition, the focus will be on three elements that affect the province of Almería, and the landscape and population of Tabernas in particular:

● The train as a means of transportation and as a symbolic element to communicate territories and cultures. The lack of communication between the province of Almería and other provinces for centuries suggests a solution in the coming years: the arrival of the high-speed train.

● The scarcity of water as a basic necessity. The climate crisis and the characteristics of a territory like the Tabernas Desert demand individual and collective awareness about the use of drinking water.

● Migration. In the face of the climate crisis, the recent wars and the scarcity of resources in other countries, Tabernas has shown its commitment to sociocultural integration by welcoming the immigrant population in recent years.


4.- OFFICIAL SECTION


OFFICIAL SECTION OF WESTERN GENRE FEATURE FILMS:
INTERNATIONAL NATURE.
Fiction, documentary, real-image or animated films of Spanish or foreign nationality of long duration (from 60 minutes), produced after January 1, 2023. The works must be of the Western or New Western genre, this being understood latter as an adaptation of the themes, plots, character archetypes and iconography of the genre to a contemporary setting.

They may have been premiered at other national and international festivals held prior to the date of the AWFF, although the Selection Committee will positively assess the status of the premiere or premiere at the AWFF (worldwide, European, national or regional).

Registration of work in progress works is accepted. This production status must be indicated at the time of registration on the platform, by checking the appropriate box, or by indicating it in parentheses after the title.


OFFICIAL SECTION OF WESTERN GENRE SHORT FILMS:
INTERNATIONAL NATURE.
Short films of Spanish or foreign nationality with Western or New Western themes, fiction or documentary, with a maximum duration of 20 minutes (including credits) and with a release date after January 1, 2023.

They may have premiered at other national and international festivals held prior to the AWFF date, although the Selection Committee will positively evaluate the premiere or exclusive premiere at AWFF.

Among the selection criteria, the suitability of the work to one (or several) of the three themes that will be focused on in the current edition will also be taken into account: the train, migration and water or other problems derived from the climate crisis.

5.- PARALLEL SECTIONS


SECTION OF FILM SCHOOLS AND UNIVERSITIES:
INTERNATIONAL NATURE.
Short films of Spanish or foreign nationality with Western or New Western themes, fiction, documentary or experimental in nature, with a maximum duration of 15 minutes (including credits) and with a release date after January 1, 2022.

The essential rules are that the director of the work has reached the age of 18 on the date of registration, and that the works have been made and produced in the academic context of an audiovisual or cinematographic training center. Therefore, when registering, the director's ID and a certificate issued by the educational center or university must be attached.

Among the selection criteria, the suitability of the work to one (or several) of the three themes that will be focused on in the current edition will also be taken into account: the train, migration and water or other problems derived from the climate crisis.

A Young Jury will be formed, made up of people between 18 and 29 years old, who will evaluate and decide the winning work.


OUTLAW SPECIAL SECTION
Parallel section that collects those national and international works of a more independent nature that navigate the margins of the western. It does not participate in the Jury awards but does participate in the Audience award.

Among the selection criteria, the suitability of the work to one (or several) of the three themes that will be focused on in the current edition will also be taken into account: the train, migration and water or other problems derived from the climate crisis.

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AWFF 2024, as it has been doing in its previous editions, will take special care of the selection of films from both the Feature Film and Short Film Sections and Film Schools, the participation of Spanish, community and Ibero-American films, as well as national and international premieres. international.

A Committee will evaluate all the registered works and select the finalists between July 1 and 14, 2024. The decision of the Selection Committee will be final.

The festival organization team will communicate the selection of the finalist works to their producers and/or representatives as soon as possible. The representatives undertake to maintain confidentiality about the selection until the Festival makes all the official sections public through the website and other media.

If the work is selected, the festival programming will decide the section in which the work will be included (Official, Film Schools, Outlaw).


6.- OTHER REQUIREMENTS FOR THE PARTICIPATION OF THE WORKS

Films registered to participate in AWFF 2024 must meet, in addition to everything stated above, the following conditions:

The media for the copies must adapt to the technical requirements of each section of the festival, preferably in a .mov or .mp4 digital file. Those works that do not have the necessary technical guarantees for public projection may be rejected.

Participants agree not to withdraw the works from the Official Section once they have been selected and notified to their producers and/or representatives.

Once the selection in any of the competitive sections has been notified, participants will have 14 days - from July 17 to 31, 2024 - to send the screening copies through a download link to the following email addresses :

comunicacion@almeriawesternfilmfestival.es

Participants may also send screening copies by regular mail to the following postal address:

Hon. Tabernas Town Hall Calle Mirlo, 1
04200 Tabernas (Almería) Spain

The festival reserves the right to eliminate from the competition those works that do not arrive within the established period.

The copies may be shown in the original version with subtitles in Spanish or English - in the case of Spanish-language films - or exceptionally dubbed into Spanish. Participants must provide subtitling of the works in .srt file format. Failure to comply with this condition may exclude a work from final participation in the Festival.

Likewise, participants will send promotional materials for the selected work as soon as they have confirmation of their selection: film poster, three high-resolution promotional photographs, technical and artistic sheet, synopsis in Spanish and English (maximum 3 lines), age rating, photograph of the director and written biofilmography of the director (maximum 5 lines). This material (in the most convenient way, ZIP, Wetransfer, etc.) will be sent by email to the following address:

comunicacion@almeriawesternfilmfestival.es

The communication of each film selected by the Festival is strictly confidential between the organization (Tabernas City Council), the team assigned to manage the Festival and the producers or representatives of the invited film, until the Festival decides to officially announce it.