AFI Awards redefine eligibility criteria
The Australian Film Institute has updated its eligibility criteria, including the definition of ‘Australian’ productions and direct entry/pre-selection requirements.
All categories – Screen Content Innovation, Documentary, Short Fiction Film, Short Animation, Feature Film and Television – are now open.
Productions will be considered Australian, and therefore eligible if they:
- contain “significant Australian content” regardless of whether they satisfy the thresholds for “qualifying Australian production expenditure”; or
- are official co-productions; or
- in relation to a children’s television animation, animated feature film, short animation or documentary, are an “Australian program” as defined by Part 3 of the Broadcasting Services (Australian Content) Standard 2005; or
- otherwise satisfy the AFI that the production is Australian.
Feature films will require a minimum seven-day, five-capital city (including Sydney and Melbourne) release to qualify for direct entry, and at least two capital cities (one being Sydney or Melbourne) to be eligible for pre-selection. They must have been released between October 15, 2009 and October 6, 2010.
Deadlines: May 12 – for two to four capital city releases; June 9 – for five capital city releases.
Entry fees: $1680 for budgets over $2m; $1125 for budgets under $2m. Films entering via pre-selection will only pay 20 percent of the fee at point of entry.
Another change is that films produced as part of a school or tertiary institution or any educational program will be required to enter through pre-selection.
This will be the second year the AFI Award for Screen Content Innovation is presented to mobile and online stand alone projects – or interactive elements of a TV or film project – and this time it will come with a $20,000 prize. The deadline is April 28, and works must have been made available to the audience between July 1, 2009 and April 27, 2010. Entry fee is $400.
More information is available at www.afi.org.au/awards
