I read Bruno’s comment about being a film distributor at Fox in France, which is hilarious. Unless he’s using some code name, I know for a fact that he has never worked in the professional industry. Look up his name on imdbpro.com and no one comes up under that name. If he worked for any major company in the industry, he would have had his name in the database.

I love how this guy tries to bullshit to look important. What bull.

Anyways, I got scammed too. Won’t happen again.

The thing that I uncovered at the Hoboken fest was that the programmer and chair of the fest puts his own films front and center… meaning the opening night gala, the closing night gala, a regular slot, etc. We’re not talking that it’s playing in a sidebar to soothe his ego… you’d think his are the ONLY films in the fest, the way that it is run. To me, this is wrong, just as it is to a number of other people. A news website ran a side-by-side of the trailer for my film and the trailer for his film, and the only reason I allowed that is that his was so laughably bad that I thought it was a no-brainer that the festival is a scam. Now, if he were just joe schmoe who entered his film, there’s no argument from my end. I just have to look at what gets into that festival, see that it’s crap, and realize that it must be down to nepotism. But it’s THE PROGRAMMER’S FILMS. To me, that’s just not right when you’re taking filmmaker’s hard earned money and it’s a red flag that it’s a waste of time to enter your film there.

But no… I got a lot of people telling me, “Oh you’re a whiner, you’re pathetic, it’s all subjective, etc.” Just like the ‘whiners’ on that Film Threat board, I find that the argument with these people can go in endless circles where they ultimately wear you out and make it APPEAR as though they’ve torn down your arguments but what’s really happened is you’re just tired and realize it’s getting you and indie filmmaking nowhere. Like I said, I’ve found that most sources for this stuff don’t seem to have any interest in helping out indie filmmakers by making a comprehensive list of scam festivals or festivals where certain things raise red flags. To be honest, I believe the entire festival atmosphere has gone bad with the advent of HD and micro budget cinema, because there is a high likelihood that the sheer volume of films now being made is the reason most festival exist, yet it’s also the reason most of them aren’t the up-and-up.

There really is no way for filmmakers to know what happens when you send your DVD to XYZ film festival and how much of a festival is programmed through connections and nepotism versus merit of the work. I myself have even defended the nepotism in this post, because both myself and friends have gotten our films to play fests simply because we worked with one of the organizers or moved in the same circles, but really, is that right? Not that our films were horrendous, but might there have been far more deserving work among the pile of rejects? It goes both ways… and it’s one of the reasons I’m plan on almost avoiding them entirely in the future.

Besides this, any investigative article or piece that is critical of the selection process at major festivals is often met with vociferous protests. There are the reasonable minded people who see what’s going on and are willing to call a spade a spade, and then there are those who have a million and one excuses as to why this is the way it MUST be. Sorry, but I’m suspicious of anything that’s ABOVE criticism, and that’s the way that festivals have been portrayed by the festival elite (if there is such a thing.)

Thank you very much and have a nice christmas days,
Best,
Olatz

I just wanted to tell you, that I have the same problem! I just received an “award” and now I am totally annoyed of these APWF -Stuff.

I also had phoned with “Cindy” some months ago. but somehow I had a bad feeling about the NY Festival and 300$ is quite much so I did not send in my short film.

Let me tell you about my experience:
I have send my film to 3 Festivals this year. San Francisco/ Cine Barcelona/ L.A. Short Film Festival
Because I haven’t heard anything About it I just thought that (like so regular festivals do) my film wasn’t selected and the festival just does not send out “not accepted”-Emails. But now -very late I got an award and they say there is no public screening.

I searched around a bit because I wanted to see what kind of reputation the festival has and luckily found your page.

Now I know that I will never send a film to a Festival that is just fake!!
Thank you guys for your work!

I hope many, many filmmakers will read your investigation-story!

All the best,
Firebird
(from Germany)

I didn’t personally contact Interpol, and the only reference I’ve found to that investigation was the article in Variety from 2003. I did email the writer, but never heard back. Now may be a good time to contact Variety and other media again — you may want to do the same. Aside from Variety and the Hollywood Reporter, we could write to the Independent, Film Threat, Filmmaker Magazine, and others.

If you’re looking for more reputable festivals, I recommend consulting withoutabox.com and their message boards. I never got anything but animosity from the head of filmfestivals.com, so I advise against using that site.

Best of luck with your endeavors!

-M

It seems pretty clear it’s a scam and I’m very angry that it should be so easy to prey on the myriad of impoverished new filmmakers who are willing to go the extra mile to get noticed.
I confess that I not only submitted to the Festival International de Cine de Barcelona (APWF) but also the the NYIV Film Fest – which I learned too late, has itself got a pretty ropey reputation amongst filmmakers. So, having been selected, I declined their request to send a screener and be listed in their programme – So in the end, I lost that money too. I’d rather decline such dubious accolades and have my film screened only in reputable festivals: I’m not that desperate!
In the meantime, what are the results of Interpol investigation? I’m fine to add my own testimonial to their evidence. Bogus organisations, and websites complicit with promoting them should be banned and fined.
I shall now write to Martinez and ask for explanations and a refund.

Interesting to find this whole article… I’ve been wondering for a while what I had signed into by submitting my short film to several festivals represented by APWF…
I actually WON a Screenplay award, but I found this out one day on Google by complete coincidence… They had not notified me of such award on my name, and I never received anything at all. I tried sending e-mails to ask a little more about it… No replies ever…

I suspect the awards to be randomly given, i wish not, but if they are legit, they really have to work on they’re communication and graphic website design…

The only thing that really works is the Credit Card money sucking page…

I wish one day to know the truth about these guys and about my “award”…

If you have a look at the Mar del Plata International Film Festival site you can actually find a section for the Annual Program Without Frontiers. http://www.mardelplatafilmfest.com/22/programacion_secciones_la_mirada_interior_anual_sin_fronteras_intro_e.php?id=6
And they do screen a selection of six films. So this surly means that the Mar del Plata fest knows about APWF. And it does give some credit to Mr Martinez.

So I repeat that if Mr Martinez wants to rid himself from suspicions like those raised here he should really be more generous with information about himself and the inner workings of the APWF. How about maintaining a blog that keeps people up to date on the progress of the single festivals. Also a more informative web site that can actually be navigated without using Google would help.

This would really be in everybody’s interest. Filmmakers would be happy to live without the suspicion to have some bogus awards on their CV and being able to use those credits on ImDB. And it would help the APWF to gain reputation and momentum.

My thoughts exactly. If they’re on the up and up, they should explain fully how the festivals work.

Thanks for the comments. I’m glad I could help.

Here is another proud award winner. I can very much share the suspicions raised here in this blog. The way the “Annual Program Without Frontiers” is being operated is very obscure. There is no information what so ever to be found anywhere on how the festival works. As an award winner I would be very interested in knowing who actually gave me this award, who was the jury, how many films were selected etc.
If this is not a scam I would urgently advise Mr Carlos Martinez to make this event more transparent.
As far as the first comment by GMW is concerned: I am sure that far more than 100 people paid their 20$, I would estimate at least a 100 a year per event (especially shorts, there are millions of them). That would be 100x8x20=16.000 $ (there is also the FESTIVAL DE CINE INTERNACIONAL DE BARCELONA now). If it is a scam it would certainly help paying the festival director’s rent.

I also love your warning about the NYIIFV. They tried to urge me once on the phone to hand out my credit card details within 24 hours so they can book 300$ admission fee from it. Luckily your site saved me from being ripped off. Thanks :-)

*There is a lot of people out there trying to rip off desperate filmmakers. Take care.*

I’m glad you’re taking an interest in my research.

My purpose in reproducing our correspondence is to expose the possible fraud of Annual Program Without Frontiers. If you have anything to say in their defense or in defense of your website, I’d gladly repost that here.

It’s interesting that your letter of complaint focuses on my supposed insult to your nationality and my degree of politeness, while ignoring the other issues I have with your attitude and website.

For the record, I was not laughing at your French. I was making the point that my problem interpreting the tone of your emails may have been because of a language barrier.

Maybe I should ask you straight out:

1) When you referred to a “phony subject,” were you dismissing Dave’s concerns as phony?

2) When you said “It feels like we needed that,” did you mean “thanks for pointing out a possible scam” or were you being sarcastic?

3) When you told Dave “Nothing I can do more,” why did you not express concern at supporting a possible scam?

Did I jump the gun posting this blog? I don’t think so. The facts as I understand them are as follows.

A) Interpol investigated Annual Program Without Frontiers for fraud.

B) Filmfestivals.com supports APWF by carrying their listings and promoting them on its bulletin page.

I am eager to hear from other filmmakers and festival reps on this subject. I’d like to get to the truth and share it with the community.

1) Did the APWF inform you by email or phone that you had won something?

2) When they emailed you certificates to print out, what did they say?

3) Did information about you and your film(s) appear on their website?

4) I’ve noticed that IMDB does have some listings for APWF events. Too bad those listings are “good” while your references to them are “bad”!

Official selection: New York short film f.
LA short Film.F.(winner)
Strasbourg F.F.(winner) I’ve got a diploma written in french. if this fest doesn’t exist then who wrote it? SOme “french guy”?.
Philadelphia Docu and fiction fest.(winner)

The awards(the official selction and the strasbourg f.f.) were just diplomas that I printed off my computer, nothing fancy.

I’m still waiting on my other “diplomas or certificates” It’s been almost a year since i’ve won the festivals and only got two diplomas out of 4.

I’ve written several emails to them and never got a single answer.

My movie is now on IMDB.com, I tried to update the awards I’ve won from the APWF but the administrators from IMDB told me that the festivals can’t be loaded into my page because they’re not legit although very similar to other festivals.

IMDB is going to fix this and maybe delete all the fake festivals that have something to do with APWF. Sorry folks!

I personally wont be submmiting more videos to this website.I will spread the news to my fellow filmmakers. Thanks to IMDB and to the honest people behind this “scam” study.

What makes you think you can reproduce my correspondance (to you or to Dave) without asking my permission.
Have you seen this anywhere on the web on a decent website?

You are giving a biased trashy version of facts truncatting correspondance, bragging about your politeness or Dave’s polite tone…

So elegant from you to criticise my usage of english? just try writing to me in french and make me laugh . ooops please don’t; no time for that.

When I was a film distributor (managing director for Fox and Columbia TriStar theatrical in France) my Los Angeles execs never complained or laughed at my french maybe your standards are different.

My english was bad and not “spell checked” because I have been agressed and felt insulted by Dave’s tone in his first line to me: WHY DID’NT YOU PUBLISH HIS EMAIL TO ME (editor) IT STARTED LIKE THAT

“My last email to you bounced back and I am wondering if your whole
site is in question.

I believe you may be supporting scam film festivals site…” Not even hello, or whatever…Still in search of a response from filmfestivals.com to see if you
should be included in the Blog Worlds’ search for film festival
scammers and their supportive festival sites.”
THIS IS WHAT YOU DESCRIBE AS POLITE I quote you (may I?)
“He wrote politely, as a concerned filmmaker.”
So our site is fake and we support scam! thank you

If Dave wants my attention then tell him to start by beeing polite enough.

He complained, and you did too, that emails did not reach the festival: I took some time to check that, and got the festival director to answer directly with you.

What kills me is that this guy would put so much energy into a bogus film festival. I mean the entry fee was $20, right? How many people do you think he’s scammed? Even at 100, we are talking a couple grand. Seems to me it would make more sense to actually run a legitimate festival.

Has he even offered to refund the entry fee yet?