1. The 44th Cinéma du réel International Film Festival will be held in Paris at the Centre Pompidou and other venues from March 11th to 20th 2022. The festival is organized by the Bibliothèque publique d’information (Public Information Library), The Association Les Amis du Cinéma du réel, the Centre Pompidou, with the support of the French Ministry of Culture (Service of Book and Reading and Heritage Directorate), the Centre national du cinéma et de l’image animée (National Film Centre-CNC), the Ile-de-France Regional Council, the City of Paris, the Procirep Television Commission and the Société civile des auteurs multimédia (La Scam Authors’ Society).
2. Cinéma du réel gives priority to filmmaking approaches coinciding with a broad understanding of documentary that can challenge the traditional borders of the genre, whatever the subject, length, format or form. Nonetheless we strongly insist that the festival is not seeking news reports, current affairs programmes, promotional or corporate films. We invite you to learn about the festival’s editorial line by browsing through the previous years’ selections on the website.
3. The festival’s artistic direction determines the selection of films and the sections in which they will be programmed:
– in competition, an International Selection and a French Selection, both including short films, feature films and first films,
– out of competition, special screenings and thematic programmes.
4. The films submitted must have been completed after January 15th 2021.
5. Projection: Each film in competition will be screened twice during the festival, at least one of these screenings will be followed by a Q&A session. The filmmakers’ presence is requested. The festival contributes to their travelling and accommodation expenses. The film may also be part of a Cinéma du réel programme in other French regions or abroad, during or after the festival, with the rights holders’ agreement. A rerun of the awarded films may also be organized in Paris after the festival.
6. Circulation: The artistic direction will offer some of the rights holders of the films in competition to participate in the circulation programme organized in collaboration with Images en Bibliothèque and the Cinémathèque du documentaire GIE, which cover the costs inherent in this circulation.
7. Only films never screened in France (French premieres) are eligible for the International Selection, i.e. films never screened publicly in France, broadcast on French television or broadcast on the internet on websites accessible from France. Films that do not fit this description will not be taken into consideration. Priority will be given to films never screened anywhere (World premieres) and to films never screened outside of their production country/countries (International premieres). French minority coproductions will compete in the International Selection.
8. Only French films never screened anywhere (World premieres) are eligible for the French Selection, i.e. films never screened publicly, broadcast on television or broadcast on the internet anywhere in the world. Films that do not fit this description will not be taken into consideration. French majority coproductions will compete in the French Selection.
9. Registration and Viewing Material
9.1. All films sent to the festival must be submitted by completing the online submission form available on the website. The festival entry fee is 10€. No waivers will be granted. Registrations are considered complete only once the fee has been received by the festival.
The information given in this form will be used to publish the technical details of the films on our website, press kit and catalogue. If the film is selected, this information will not be accessible or updatable later than mid-February.
9.2 Deadlines
9.2.1 – Films completed between January 15th and August 1st 2021: Online submission duly completed and viewing material to be sent by September 30th 2021.
9.2.2 – Films completed after August 1st 2021: Online submission duly completed and viewing material to be sent by November 1st 2021.
9.2.3 – Films still under completion on November 1st 2021: Online submission duly completed by November 1st 2021 and viewing material to be sent by November 15th 2021.
9.3. There is no guarantee that films registered or sent after the above-mentioned deadlines will be taken into consideration.
9.4. To watch the films submitted for selection, the festival team will need a password-protected, downloadable preview link (preferably uploaded on Vimeo). If submitters are not able to upload the film on the Internet, we accept DVDs (-R if possible) to be sent to the address given at the end of the submission form.
9.5. Films sent for consideration must be in their original version and subtitled in English or French (if spoken in another language).
9.6. The sender assumes mailing costs for the DVDs, as well as any related duties, charges and fees, notably shipping and customs charges. For DVDs sent from abroad, we advise you to include the following on the envelope: “No commercial value. For cultural purposes only”.
9.7. The festival keeps the viewing material for the sole purposes of documentation, promotion and viewing by professionals on its premises for a maximum period of 6 months, except for films included in the festival’s video library, and will only return the viewing material upon formal request by the sender.
10. Selection
10.1. Filmmakers whose films have been selected for the festival will be contacted personally. Informing the producer(s) will be their responsibility.
10.2 By mid-February 2022, the official selection will be published on the festival website.
10.3. The filmmakers and rights holders of the selected films agree not to withdraw the films from the festival programme after it has been announced mid-February 2022. The filmmakers and rights holders also agree not to screen or broadcast the film in France or abroad without the agreement of the festival direction, and this until after the end of the festival.
10.4. The blurbs on the films in competition are written by the festival programming team, at its discretion.
11. Awards
11.1.1 The films in the International selection and in the French selection compete for:
– the Cinéma du réel Grand Prix (Grand Prix Cinéma du réel), funded by the Bpi with the support of Procirep
– the Scam International Award (Prix International de la Scam), funded by LaScam
– the Institut français – Louis Marcorelles Award (Prix de l’Institut français – Louis Marcorelles), funded by the Institut français
– the Loridan Ivens – CNAP Award (Prix Loridan Ivens – CNAP), funded CAPI Films and the CNAP
– the Short Film Award (Prix du Court Métrage), funded by the Bpi
– the Tënk Award, funded by Tënk
– the Clarens Prize for Humanist Documentary Filmmaking (Prix Clarens du documentaire humaniste), endowed by the Clarens Foundation for Humanism
– the Youth Jury Award (Prix des Jeunes), funded by Ciné+
– the Library Award (Prix des Bibliothèques), funded by the Direction générale des médias et des industries culturelles, Ministry of Culture and Communication
– the Cultural Intangible Heritage Award (Prix du Patrimoine culturel immatériel), awarded and funded by the Heritage Directorate of the Ministry of Culture and Communication
– the Bois d’Arcy Prisoners’ Award, funded by the Monique Desfosse Foundation
11.1.2 The films in the “A First Window” section compete for:
– the “A First Window” Audience Award (Prix du public « Première fenêtre »), funded by the CNC.
11.2. The attribution of mentions is entirely left to the discretion of the individual juries.
11.3. The award amounts are paid to the filmmakers, with the exception of the Youth Jury Award and Tënk Award. The festival cannot be held responsible for, or be involved in any further financial agreement resulting from the filmmakers’ contractual obligations.
11.4. The rights holders of the awarded films must agree for their films to be shown as part of a rerun of the award list, when it is organized by the festival, either online or as part of screenings in France or abroad.
11.5. Films awarded at Cinéma du réel are obliged to prominently include the laurel-wreath logo provided corresponding to the award received on all promotional documents (posters, flyers, postcards, etc.) and press kits published after the festival, in the context of a theatrical release or a presentation at a festival in France and abroad. This laurel-wreath logo will also have to appear on DVDs and in the film’s credits.
11.6. Films selected are invited to use the logo provided by the festival indicating their selection at Cinéma du réel 2021 on promotional documents, DVDs and in the credits of the film.
12. Prints and format
12.1 The festival has facilities to screen 16 and 35mm prints, DCP, digital files (for further information, please contact the festival staff). Blu-rays will only be accepted as back-ups. The festival prefers the original exhibition format of the completed work. Only quality prints or digital copies will be accepted.
12.2. The screening material of the films must reach the festival mid-February 2022 at the latest. No modified versions of the films will be accepted after this date.
12.3. The submitter is responsible for shipping costs and import fees to the festival. We will only assume the return expenses of the selected films, as well as storage and insurance expenses of the films from the time they are received until they are sent back. In case of loss or damage during this period, the festival will assume responsibility only for the replacement value of the print at the current rate.
12.4. The films in the competitive sections (International Selection and French Selection) and the films presented as Special Screenings and in the section “A First Window” are provided to the festival free of charge.
13. Subtitles and versions
All films of the different competitive sections must be accessible to French- and English-speaking audiences.
13.1. Films in the International Selection
– If the language of the film is French, the production company will be asked to provide the festival with an English-subtitled print.
– If the language of the film is English, the production company will be asked to provide the festival with a French-subtitled print or with an .srt or .stl French subtitle file.
– If the language of the film is neither French nor English, the production company will be asked to provide the festival with a print subtitled in one of these languages and an .srt or .stl subtitle file in the other language.
13.2. Films in the French Selection
– If the language of the film is French, the production company will be asked to provide the festival with an English-subtitled print.
– If the language of the film is English, the production company will be asked to provide the festival with a French-subtitled print.
– If the language of the film is neither French nor English, the production company will be asked to provide the festival with a print subtitled in one of these languages and an .srt or .stl subtitle file in the other language.
13.3. All subtitle material must be sent in its final version, corresponding to the screening version of the film. The elements necessary to the electronic subtitling of the films must reach the festival on February 15th 2022 at the latest.
14. If the festival cannot take place physically, the festival reserves the right, upon the rights holders’ agreement, to programme the films online on its dedicated channel, CanalREEL, or on a partner platform.
15. Video library and VoD
15.1. Films selected as part of the International Selection and French Selection will be included in the festival’s secured online video library, accessible to professional accreditation holders, and only during the event. After the festival, the films in the video library will be accessible to researchers and programming professionals, at the festival office only.
15.2. The festival also has VoD partners. Film rights holders will be offered the possibility for their films to be part of these VoD programmes.
16. film-documentaire.fr
Every film submitted to the festival will be registered on the documentary film referencing website www.film-documentaire.fr. This database for professionals and the general public is a not-for-profit tool that gathers over 39,000 films. Data access only.
17. Registrations involve the full acceptance of the terms and provisions of the present Rules and Regulations. Should any litigation arise, only the French version of the Rules and Regulations shall prevail.
August 2021