Before you book your\u00a0flights to Cannes and Park City<\/strong>, let\u2019s explore some new stops on the film festival circuit<\/strong>\u00a0that may actually be more beneficial to your\u00a0career<\/strong>\u00a0in the long run (and hey, maybe more fun, too).<\/p>\n We talked with Leah Meyerhoff<\/a>, an award-winning filmmaker whose films have screened in over two hundred\u00a0film festivals.<\/strong>\u00a0Meyerhoff teaches at emerging artist labs<\/strong> across the country, and the following are\u00a0her recommendations for ten\u00a0up-and-coming film festivals for up-and-coming filmmakers to consider<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Atlanta Film Festival<\/strong>\u00a0knows how to throw a party. Their annual\u00a0Game of Thrones<\/em>\u00a0shindig<\/a> is off the hook with giant wolf puppets, costumed revelers, and a feast fit for royalty. The films themselves screen\u00a0in a beautifully renovated art house cinema, where you just might catch the local cast of the\u00a0Rocky Horror Picture Show<\/em><\/a>\u00a0hanging out in the lobby before the show. Now that’s what I call Southern hospitality!<\/p>\n BendFilm\u00a0Festival<\/strong>\u00a0is a secret oasis for independent film lovers hidden deep\u00a0in the mountains of central Oregon. Filmmakers ride around town\u00a0on bicycles, enthusiastic audiences engage in lengthy discussions after every screening, and outdoor\u00a0adventures are only footsteps away. If that’s not enough,\u00a0their closing night party is in a working brewery full of complimentary\u00a0local ales.<\/p>\n Cinema East Austin<\/strong>\u00a0is a refreshing alternative to the organized\u00a0chaos of SXSW<\/a>. Held late in the summer at an outdoor venue under the stars, it’s like a drive-in movie theater without the cars. The program selection is top notch, with plenty of crowd pleasers and festival favorites to go around. Tickets are sold on $3-$5 sliding scale, and the audience is welcome to bring extra snacks and beverages to share with\u00a0their cinephile friends and friendly strangers.<\/p>\n Citizen Jane Film Festival<\/strong>\u00a0is one of the best regional film festivals around. Located in Columbia, Missouri (home of the equally fantastic\u00a0True\/False Film Festival<\/a>) and staffed by enthusiastic college students, Citizen Jane\u00a0attracts the best women-directed films and filmmakers\u00a0from across\u00a0the globe. In addition to offering a stellar film lineup, they also organize a summit with the best and brightest guest speakers, and they\u00a0run a film camp for teenage girls. The\u00a0Citizen Jane Film Festival\u00a0is a refreshing\u00a0world where female filmmakers are the rule rather than the exception.<\/p>\n The\u00a0Cucalorus Film Festival<\/strong>\u00a0is one of the kookiest fests this side of the Mississippi.\u00a0Filmmaker sing-a-longs, midnight brunch on a boat,\u00a0modern dance performances with video projections, and parties\u00a0in a mansion are just some of what this festival has to offer. The town is so thoroughly steeped in a Blue Velvet<\/em><\/a> vibe that you half expect to see David Lynch drinking a cocktail\u00a0in the filmmaker lounge.<\/p>\n Everything is supersized at the\u00a0Dallas International Film Festival<\/strong>. The main\u00a0venue is like a multiplex version of an art house theater and is always packed with a larger-than-life audience. One year, the opening night party was in a private\u00a0mansion with a secret room full of\u00a0movie memorabilia, including throwing stars, civil-war-era costumes, and an animatronic, life-size replica of Batman. Even the smallest of films feel big in Dallas!<\/p>\n Edinburgh International Film Festival\u00a0<\/strong>is one of the best in the United Kingdom. Filmmaker parties in castles! Choreographed groups dancing to bagpipes! Men in kilts!\u00a0And some of the best independent film\u00a0programming on that side of the pond.<\/p>\n Starz Denver Film Festival<\/strong>\u00a0offers terrific filmmaker hospitality. When\u00a0I arrived in the middle of a blizzard without so much as a winter coat, a volunteer picked me up\u00a0at the airport with a\u00a0hand-knitted scarf and mittens in tow. Indie films screen alongside blockbusters, and festival staff go out of their way to make sure every screening sells out. Plus, now\u00a0that marijuana is legal in Colorado, their nightly filmmaker karaoke will take\u00a0on a whole new level!<\/p>\n The\u00a0Woodstock Film Festival<\/strong>\u00a0is an upscale\u00a0creative retreat for filmmakers and audiences alike. Celebrity film\u00a0guests from Natalie Portman to Darren Aronofsky mingle\u00a0with local activists and musicians. Theater\u00a0venues range from the local art house cinema to a renovated barn. And you might end up in a hot tub or around a bonfire with other filmmakers and musicians on any given night.<\/p>\n The\u00a0Wroclaw American Film Festival<\/strong>\u00a0in Poland highlights a curated program of American indie features for a Polish audience. They treat visiting filmmakers and industry guests like dignitaries, with five-star accommodations, fancy dinners, and a tour of the local castles. Films screen at IMAX proportions while fashionable young crowds mingle in the lobby and the hottest new bands perform every night. The staff\u00a0also hosts a US in Progress<\/em><\/a> program for features in post, complete with cash prizes. One of the best festivals in Poland, if not all of Eastern Europe.<\/p>\n You can find out more about Leah Meyerhoff and her latest feature film\u00a0I Believe in Unicorns<\/a> (available on\u00a0Netflix<\/a>) at\u00a0her website<\/a> or through her female filmmaker organization,\u00a0Film Fatales<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n Have any up-and-coming film festivals you’d like to recommend?<\/strong> Let us know in the comments.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In which we pick the brain of Leah Meyerhoff on the best under-the-radar film festivals to launch film careers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":76,"featured_media":87803,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-class-post-87600","post-class-post","post-class-type-post","post-class-status-publish","post-class-format-standard","post-class-has-post-thumbnail","post-class-hentry","post-class-category-various"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nAtlanta Film Festival<\/a><\/h3>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.premiumbeat.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/Atlanta.jpg\" "\\"The")
\n<\/a>Image via IndieWire<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n
\nBendFilm Festival<\/a><\/h3>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.premiumbeat.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/BendFilm.jpg\" "\\"The")
\n<\/a>Image via OregonLive\/Tina Ellis<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n
\nCinema East Austin<\/a><\/h3>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.premiumbeat.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/Austin-East.jpg\" "\\"The")
\n<\/a>Image via TRIBEZA<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n
\nCitizen Jane Film Festival<\/a><\/h3>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.premiumbeat.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/Citizen-Jane.jpg\" "\\"The")
\n<\/a>Image via Inside Columbia Magazine<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n
\nCucalorus Film Festival<\/a><\/h3>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.premiumbeat.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/CUCALORUS.jpg\" "\\"The")
\n<\/a>Image via AP Photo\/The Star-News, Jeff Janowski<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n
\nDallas International Film Festival<\/a><\/h3>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.premiumbeat.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/DIFF.jpg\" "\\"The")
\n<\/a>Image via Everfest<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n
\nEdinburgh International Film Festival<\/strong><\/a><\/h3>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.premiumbeat.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/Edinburgh.jpg\" "\\"The")
\n<\/a>Image via ASFF<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n
\nDenver Film Festival<\/strong><\/a><\/h3>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.premiumbeat.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/Denver.jpg\" "\\"The")
\n<\/a>Image via\u00a0DU Clarion\/James Dimagiba<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n
\nWoodstock Film Festival<\/a><\/h3>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.premiumbeat.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/Woodstock.jpg\" "\\"The")
\n<\/a>Image via Filmmaker Magazine<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n
\nWroclaw American Film Festival<\/strong><\/a><\/h3>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.premiumbeat.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/American.jpg\" "\\"The")
\n<\/a>Image via MovieMaker<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n
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