Last November, I published an article about fake festivals. In that post, I differentiated between fake festivals and others that, while sharing some of their characteristics, were not fake in the strictest sense.
This second group possesses characteristics typical of other festivals and adopts their form, but fundamentally, they are not festivals. We cannot consider them fake, as they do exist in some way: they have dates, hold screenings, closing ceremonies, etc.
But, in reality, they are not what they seem.
It is difficult to define this type of festival, but I believe we could start using the prefix pseudo, which refers to imitation or deceptive resemblance; these would be pseudo-festivals. The prefix pseudo is also used in other disciplines, such as pseudo-history or pseudo-medicine.
The Madrid International Film Festival
To properly understand this type of festival, let us look at the case of the Madrid International Film Festival, which is organised by a company called Film Fest International, and which holds festivals in other European cities, such as London, Amsterdam, Nice, Berlin and Milan.
It was held in Madrid from July 21 to 28 at the Novotel Madrid Center. At the end of July, I checked the programming they had published on their website.
All screenings began at 10:00 AM and ended around 1:00 PM; on the website, only the titles were listed, with no photographs or any other information about the films:
Who is going to attend morning screenings in a hotel in Madrid that also lack any advertising? It is clear that the organizers have little intention of reaching the public. On the morning of July 28, I called the hotel to confirm its existence and try to attend some of these screenings.
They assured me it was taking place, but that there were no more screenings. Only the closing ceremony remained, but it was a private event and I could not attend.
Who would attend that closing party? The directors?
It must be noted that nobody knows this festival; I am usually in contact with most festival organizers in Madrid, and I can affirm that no one has any reference of this festival.
The website provides information on transfers from the airport to the hotel, and their Facebook page features photographs of the closing party and an awards ceremony. It appears that all attendees are international.
I wonder if these attendees knew where they were going when they traveled to the “Madrid International Film Festival.”
Submissions are always open and there are 9 deadlines with 19 different categories; all fees range between $60 and $75. This structure is similar to that of fake festivals.
Premios Latino de Marbella
A few months before this festival took place, in mid-April, a blog follower from Argentina wrote to me with the following question:
“Do you know the Premios Latino de Marbella? I’ve been informed that my short film won, but they are requesting an accreditation payment of 695 Euros and I don’t know if this is standard practice. It seems strange to me. Any information you can provide would be very helpful.”
The Premios Latino are organized by the Fundación Mundo Ciudad, with two sections: Latin American film and music. They were held on May 17 in Marbella.
The problem lies in the fact that their name is very similar to the Premios Platino del Cine Iberoamericano, so they may appear important, but they are not, even if they aren’t fake and hold an awards ceremony. They lack industry recognition.
Registration costs €10, the invitation to the Gala is around €50, and they ask for no less than €695 from the winners.
Furthermore, this foundation organizes other events that would fall into the category of pseudo-festivals (and even fake ones), such as the Stars Hollywood Festival, with 22 sections at $10 each. It has an open submission on Filmfreeway, but it really has nothing to do with Hollywood. The Fundación Mundo Ciudad is registered in Spain.
On their website, there is no information about selected films, no photographs of screenings, nothing. As if that weren’t enough, they also created a fake submission platform called festivals.es.
The Keys to Pseudo-Festivals
Just like fake festivals, you should avoid these pseudo-festivals, which maintain many of the same characteristics: they usually use the name of a city or give the impression of being important, their offices are usually not where the events are held, they have long submission periods, and various entry fees with many payment options.
But additionally, pseudo-festivals usually focus on a closing ceremony or an awards event, where typically only the winners attend and are charged for entry. They also share the commonality of being organized by a company that provides coverage and organizes other similar events.
Keep in mind that these festivals have no impact, neither on the public nor at an industry level.
Three Main Groups Based on Festival Credibility
It is very difficult to differentiate between them. However, we could establish three main groups based on their credibility and their true objectives:
- Fake festivals: they do not exist, they are a fraud, and their sole objective is to collect submission fees.
- Pseudo-festivals: they maintain several characteristics of fake festivals, but they are actually held, adopting the forms of a major festival, though they are not; they are a simulation. Their objective is to collect submission fees and charge winners and participants.
- Other festivals: this group includes all other festivals, of any type and size, but with objectives different from the previous ones.
I hope this post helps you differentiate fake festivals and pseudo-festivals from the rest.
One must be increasingly careful.
Have you ever participated in one of these festivals? What is your opinion on these pseudo-festivals?