The 34^th International Film Festival for Children and Youth

The International Film Festival for Children and Youth (ICFF) is organized annually by the Iranian Organization of Cinema and Audiovisual Affairs, Farabi Cinema Foundation and the Municipality of Isfahan. The 34^th edition of this prestigious event will be held from October 8^th to 13^th, 2021.The festival aims to promote ethical values such as family unity, appropriate lifestyle, respect for humanity, self-esteem, social responsibility, environmental protection and it also seeks to create awareness of the uprising future challenges.

In order to promote cultural justice in the country and to comply with the health regulations of the National Anti-Corona Headquarters, the secretariat of ICFF will screen the selected films of this cultural event based on the request of the general offices of culture and Islamic Guidance of each province. Considering the continuation of the global outbreak of COVID-19, with the support of the National Anti-Corona Headquarters, this edition of the festival will be held in a hybrid format in the historic cities of Tehran and Isfahan in a competitive format in both national and international sections.

MAIN OBJECTIVES:

A) Showcasing quality national and international films and works for children and young adults

B) Creating a platform for the presence of professionals and cineastes active in the cinema industry for children and young adults

C) Boosting collaboration and production of films for children and young adults by creating interaction among creators, experts and the audience

A) Promoting knowledge transfer and exchange of products of high artistic value, capable of contributing to cultural and social growth

OFFICIAL SECTIONS OF THE FESTIVAL

International Competition Section:

* In this section, international works that have high artistic qualities and are in line with the Iranian Islamic culture will be selected based on the opinion of professional cineastes. It is noteworthy to mention that three prominent Iranian films will also compete in this section.

A) Feature Films

i. Best Script Award
ii. Best Director Award
iii. Best Film Award
iv. Best Animation Award
v. Special Jury Award

B) Short Films

i. Best Fictional Film Award
ii. Best Animation Award

C) CIFEJ Award (International Center of Films for Children and Young People)

An international jury consisting of two Iranian and one International member appointed in coordination with the rules & regulations of CIFEJ, will award the Best Feature Film and offer an Honorary Diploma to a short film (fiction or animation).

D) Special Award – International Section

A group of international children and young jurors selected by the Festival’s Administration office will award the Golden Butterfly to the Best Feature Length Film.

Iranian Cinema Competition:

* For this section, films that have the ability to attract children and youth in terms of content and narrative style are of higher priority.

A) Feature Films

i. Best Actor Award
ii. Best Script Award
iii. Best Director Award
iv. Best Film Award
v. Best Animation Award
vi. Special Jury Award
i. Short Films
i. Best Fictional Film Award
ii. Best Animation Award

B) Fiction Films

i. Best Script Award
ii. Best Director Award
iii. Best Feature Film Award

C) Behnam Mohammadi Award (Cinema of Resistance)

In this section, the golden trophy of the first young martyr of the imposed war on Iran (Holy Defense) is dedicated to a producer or director of a film focusing on themes such as sacrifice, resistance and Islamic values.

D) Special Award- Iranian Jurors

A group of Iranian children and young jurors selected by the Festival’s Administration office will award the Golden Butterfly to the Best Feature Length Film.

E) Zaven Ghokasian Special Award

In this section, a panel of jurors consisting of film critics, cultural and cinematic activists and cineastes from Isfahan (selected by the festival office), will offer the Best Film Award in the Iranian cinema section.

Festival Rules & Regulations:

1. Films will be selected by independent selection committees with the supervision of the Festival Director
2. All films submitted should be suitable for children and young adults
3. Films should not have been screened in the previous editions of the ICFF. (Films not accepted in previous editions will not be able to participate in this edition.)
4. The films will be screened in two different age groups: (6 to 9) and (10 to 15)
5. Short films should not be longer than 15 minutes and feature length films should not be less than 75 minutes- Long animated film (at least 70 minutes)
6. The date of production for Iranian films should be January 2019 onwards and international films January 2020 onwards.
7. It is necessary to submit a copy and the original license for Iranian films.
8. Once the film has been selected and confirmed, the film cannot be withdrawn from the festival program
9. Taking into account the conditions and requirements of the time, the necessary decisions regarding the details of the festival will be announced by the Secretariat.

Sending Films to the Festival:

1) To submit the original version, applicants must first register through the official festival website at www.portal.icff.ir and submit the link of the film; Or  they may send a hard copy of the film in a DVD, USB Flash, Blu-ray or on an external hard drive  to the festival secretariat. It should be noted that if the producers have problems registering in the festival system, they can contact us at +98 9386502824.

2) The submission of the director’s statement, biography, filmography, director’s photo, film poster, brochure, film trailer and at least 3 film stills are mandatory.

3) Iranian films accepted in the international section should have English Subtitles.

4) The deadline for registration and presentation of the film (whether Iranian or international) will be 22 August 2021.

5) The deadline for delivery of the original version of the accepted film is September 21, 2021.

6) If the final version is not submitted in time, the festival secretariat will exclude the film from all announced programs.

7) Planning the screenings of accepted films is the responsibility of the festival secretariat.

8) Participating in any section of the festival entails unconditional acceptance of the festival rules & regulations and the screening codes of Iran. Only the producer, distributor or any authorized party of the film is entitled to submit the film.

9) Information is provided only through the public relations office of the festival.

10) The board of management of the ICFF is entitled to take decisions that are not foreseen in the above regulations and to modify them under special circumstances.

 The abovementioned regulations have been drawn up in three languages:  Persian, Arabic and English languages. If problems of interpretation shall arise, the Persian version of the regulation will prevail.

For more information you  can refer to the secretariat system at https://portal.icff.ir or call +98(21) 66708155 - 66739514 in Tehran and +98 (31) 32225535 in Isfahan.

Secretariat address in Tehran:  No. 59,  Jomhory St., after Hafez St., Sitir St., Postal Code: 1135817113

Secretariat address in Isfahan: No. 107, Amadgah St., in front of Abbasi Hotel, Abbasi Complex, Postal Code: 8144917886