RULES & TERMS

1. The Arizona Student Film Festival (AZSFF) is open to students living in Arizona and attending school in Arizona.

2. Films entered into 2025 AZSFF must be made in the calendar year 2024. This equates to the last half of the 2023/2024 school year and the first half of the 2024/2025 school year.

3. Films must be submitted into the category when they were finished. There are 2 categories: Grade School which is open to students from Kindergarten through 8th grade at time of film's finish and High School which is open to students between 9th and 12th grades at time of film's finish.

4. AZSFF accepts short films under 8 minutes in length. Films can be of any genre (ie. narrative, documentary, experimental) and must not contain any adult content or language. Adult content including but not limited to violence, language, drug or alcohol use, or other adult themes may cause my film to be eliminated from consideration.

5. Films must be submitted via Film Freeway (www.filmfreeway.com). If accepted, filmmakers must provide film in format requested by requested deadline (TBD). Failure to deliver finished film for screening may result in disqualification.

6. Film must not be subject to litigation nor is threatened by any litigation. Entrant accepts all licensing responsibility for any copyrighted material contained in my film.

7. Entrant must be authorized to submit this film to the Festival and its Competition and understand that the Festival holds the right to screen my film for Festival screening and promotional purposes and to extract clips from this film for promotional purposes. This includes streaming of films online on sites of Arizona Student Film Festival and/or its sponsors and affiliates.

8. Awards will be awarded to the top films as determined by a panel of judges selected by AZSFF. All decisions by judging panel and AZSFF are final.

Welcome to our Frequently Asked Questions section!

We will be update this page as we get additional relevant questions. Please read through the FAQ.
If you still do not see an answer to your question, feel free to email azsff@phxfilm.com 

1. Can I submit more than one entry?

Yes. You may. In fact, if your entries truly excel, you may have more than one film as a finalist and therefore have more than one film screen at the film festival!

2. I want to submit more than one film. Can I just do one submission?

Nope. One film per submission and entry fee.

3. I made this film last school year when I was in 8th grade but now I’m in High School. Where do I submit it?

Entries should be submitted in the category when they were made. Therefore, you submit it in the grade school category.

4. I made this film last school year when I was in 8th grade but now I’m in High School and I just did some edits and stuff to it. Where do I submit it?

Since the last modifications to the film were done when you were in High School, you would submit this in the High School category.

5. I’m in college. Can’t I enter in the AZSFF?

If you are in college and an Arizona filmmaker, you can enter your film to the Phoenix Film Festival in the Arizona Short Films or College Short Films categories (or both).  Learn about entering PFF by clicking here.

6. I read the rules and it said that the films couldn’t have any adult content or language. Isn’t that censorship?

Nope. It’s not. We know that filmmaking can be a very adult medium, but this is a competition for grade-schoolers and high-schoolers. We are not saying what to make or not to make. We are saying that in this competition, keep it creative, interesting and suitable for everyone.

7. What about one swear word or, like, there’s this killer and there’s no blood except….

Here’s what we will say: you have read the rules, you know your film so you know if it is appropriate to submit. We can’t make that judgement for you. Films should be suitable for all audiences.

8. My movie is 9 minutes and 32 seconds. Is that ok?

No. Please cut 1 minute and 32 seconds out of your film. All films submitted must be 8 minutes or under in length.

9. My film is 5 seconds long. Is that ok.

Yes. Although, it better be a pretty amazing 5 seconds….

10. Can I put popular music in my film?

You must have the rights to everything in your film. That means any clips we see on the television and music we hear. Therefore, you are better off composing your own music or having a friend do it for you. Music clearances are hard to come by and usually expensive.

11. What about brands or logos?

It’s not a good idea to put brands or logos in your film. Sometimes it’s unavoidable (a FedEx truck drove through the background of your shot), but if you can avoid it (wear different clothes, drink out of glass instead of a can, peel the label off of the bottle), you should.

12. Are there restrictions as to where I can shoot?

If you are planning to shoot on a city street or park, permits are usually required. Check with your specific city for permit information. Because of cost and time restrictions, you may not be able to get the correct permits. Part of being an independent filmmaker is ingenuity. So if you can not shoot in a city park, maybe you can find a place on your school’s campus that looks like a park. Similarly, to do a driving scene, you will have to get permits and police to block off the road. But you can also try to “fake” a night time driving shot in a garage with the car off and flashlights. Check out “poor man’s process” on line if you’d like to see an example.

13. My friend and I really did this together. Can we enter with both of us?

Sorry, you can not. You will have to sit down and decide who will enter it. There is a place in the entry to put credits for additional people who were instrumental in the creation of the film.

14. I did the music on a film. Can I submit it under my name?

No. Only the student PRIMARILY responsible for the film (usually the director, but not always) can submit. Teachers who oversee projects may not submit under their name.

15. HOW MUCH HELP CAN I GET FROM MY MOM/DAD/TEACHER?

You the student have to be PRIMARILY responsible for the film. They can offer suggestions, but they can't do things for you. So they can move a light for you or cook lunch for the crew, but they can't tell you how to frame the shot or write any of the script.

15. Why FILMFREEWAY?

FilmFreeway is the way that filmmakers from all over the world submit their films to festivals. We want to encourage you to submit your film all over! By learning how to use FilmFreeway, you will be that much more prepared for your next film!

16. I have another question, but it’s long. Can I ask you?

Sure. Ask away. Send an email to azsff@phxfilm.com with AZSFF Question in the subject line.

We will be adding more questions as we get them!

Thanks!