TERMS & CONDITIONS

Films must not contain any nudity, excessive violence, or otherwise obscene and offensive material (as termed by BLSFF). All views and opinions expressed in submitted or selected films are not representative of BLSFF.

All films must be made by current students at an accredited college or university in the state of Georgia, or a college aged filmmaker (18-23 years old) that resides in the state of Georgia and is not currently enrolled in and has not graduated from a university or college. Recent alumni may be considered at the discretion of BLSFF. Members of the cast and crew may include non-students, but the entrant must be a student holding a primary creative production role (e.g. Director or Producer).

No copyrighted, trademarked, or reserved material may be used in the production of the film including — but not limited to — music, visuals, and properties without the proper licensing and/or attribution. Proof of licensure or permission must be provided upon request if deemed necessary for the film to be considered.

All films must be submitted by February 14st, 2025 by 11:59 PM to be considered for the Backlight Student Film Festival. Films must be uploaded to FilmFreeway.

Films for the “Short Form” category should not exceed 10 minutes (not including credits), and “Mid-length” submissions should fall between 11 to 30 minutes (not including credits).

By submitting, entrants agree to grant express permission to The Backlight Student Film Festival to display and otherwise use the film and likenesses of those depicted as required to fulfill the competition agreement.

Entrants who serve on the Selection Committee should recuse themselves from judging any film submissions they have worked on. BLSFF reserves the right to dismiss or deny acceptance of any Selection Committee members based on conflicts of interest and involvement with film submissions.

Students who serve in any of the following titles will be excluded from awards considerations: President of BLSFF Athens, Vice President of BLSFF Athens, and Student Programming Assistant. Additionally, the listed titles may not submit a film which they have directed. BLSFF reserves the right to dismiss or deny acceptance of any submissions based on conflicts of interest and involvement with film submissions.

All entrants acknowledge that The Backlight Student Film Festival holds no responsibility to promote or display any submitted films or filmmakers. Any film may be declined at the discretion of BLSFF without any provided reasoning.

Once notified of acceptance in the festival, all accepted films must have high resolution final cuts with any edits requested by the BLSFF board delivered to the festival by the posted final cut deadline for inclusion in the festival and awards consideration.

No plagiarized, pirated, or otherwise fraudulent films will be accepted. Should such a film be detected, all entrants involved will be barred from future submissions.

Entrants may choose, if selected, to submit contact and social media information as well as any promotional material to be displayed during the film festival and alongside Backlight Student Film Festival social media posts. Any such links, materials, and information may be declined or unused without providing a reason at the discretion of BLSFF.

Submissions which are unplayable, inaudible, or otherwise illegible will not be considered. Entrants are solely responsible for the legibility of their respective submission.

The Backlight Student Film Festival is not in any way liable for any incurred costs, injuries, or damages due to the production of a film intended for this competition nor are they responsible to aid production of such a film in any way. All filmmakers retain sole liability for all such resulting costs or damages of their respective productions.

BLSFF reserves the right to alter these terms and conditions of The Backlight Student Film Festival competition at any time.