question about festivals - which to say no to?

[Patryk_Rebisz]

A major film fest in US said 'yes' to my documentary feature.
We are still waiting for another major fest in Europe to answer.

The film is artsy and the European crowd will get it while i have doubts that it will be really understood in the US.
I have learned (from an insider at the fest) that everything re the US festival is about internal politics - so much so that they have picked all the award winners. Their past winners are somehow reality-based tv-show like documentary films. Films that quote frankly i wouldn't be embarrassed to be seen next to BUT definitely not the caliber that tries to push the boundaries... So when awards come into place i really wouldn't want my film to be seen as lesser then some mediocre reality-show like film. So i'm thinking of holding out until we hear from the European film fest.

Am i foolish to do so?
Is any exposure good exposure?

 

[Rainer]

Not just film festivals, and not just the USA - it's a safe bet that any competition anywhere based on the subjective views of judges is going to have a whole set of unwritten rules if not blatant bias. Sometimes not even subjective - "the race is not always to the swiftest". It helps if you know all the rules, and you might get an idea from what inspired previous winners, then see if your entry fits. There's ways to influence judges, some of them respectable, publicity helps, preparation is important and you'll generally do better than just entering out of the blue. You might get some idea from talking to previous winners "my entry was particularly inspirational and unique, nothing at all to do with my dad being the judge" (actual quote, gender of judge changed to protect anonymity). I don't think there's any point in entering where you know you're not going to get some kudos, but some people use a shotgun approach, random events do happen, and all it costs is the postage, copying and entry fee, up to you.

 

[arniepix]

To quote a friend of mine from when we were riding the NYC subway some years back, "2 feet on the train beats a seat on the platform". IOW, a known place in one festival beats an application to a better one. Of course, you can always reach out the the European festival to try to hurry up their answer to you. And you don't say why you can't go to both festivals...