A no-risk formula specifically designed to make independent films more successful and marketable!
What MIFF offers is a new concept for international film events - a hybrid of the conventional film festival and the traditional awards ceremony format dedicated to new independent films in the new era of distribution networks.
If your are a filmmaker or a distributor and would like to have your film promoted and enhanced through a well-developed industry buzz while keeping your premiere status, submit your film to MIFF Awards. If your film is selected as one of five nominees in your specific category, it will be exhibited only if it wins! Otherwise, you keep the prestige of your Leonardo's Horse nomination and you also mantain premiere status of your film so that you may pursue premier billing at other festival and/or markets.
Winner films of each specific category will be exhibited to the public* and will automatically be eligible to compete for most sought-after award, the Audience's Choice Award, defining Best Film category at the festival. All of this will take place in the most stylish backdrop, the city of Expo 2015 and the International Fashion Capital of the world, Milan, Italy.
HOW THE NEW MIFF AWARDS WORK...
1. As in conventional film festivals, only new films not yet released in Italy are qualified for submission. Films are selected and chosen by a programming committee, just like every film festival programmer team.
2. The submitted films are selected for "Nominee" status, awarded to five filmmakers in each eligible award category (Best Directing, Best Cinematography, Best Editing, etc.).
3. The Nominee films are then viewed by the official MIFF Awards Jury who votes for the winner in each category. Nominee films are not screened publicly and will not lose premiere status.
4. Only the Winners in each category will receive a Leonardo's Horse Award at MIFF Awards Opening Ceremony.
5. *Following the Award Opening Ceremony, only the winning films will be screened to the public and will be eligible for the Audience's Choice Award, defining the Best Film of the festival.
OVERVIEW
MIFF (from English acronym for Milan International Film Festival), nicknamed by the press as the "Milanese Sundance", has been recognized and distinguished as the official International Cinema exhibition festival of Milan. MIFF existed as a conventional film festival for 8 years, until 2009, when with the ninth edition MIFF reinvented itself as MIFF Awards, a brand new genre in the sphere of film events that featured an avant-garde format developed through an unwavering commitment to support independent films.
Organized by the non-profit Italian cultural association, MADE IN MILAN, MIFF Awards merge traditional film festival and award ceremony formats initiated by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences in Hollywood. Each year, Made in Milan select an eclectic pool of exceptional Independent films from all over the world and exhibits the winner films during its showcases in Milan and in other major film centers of the world.
Cultural Non-profit Association Made in Milan recognizes the Art of Filmmaking as the outcome of a synergic collaboration of talented individuals active in those disciplines, contributing their vision into the final picture. The Leonardo’s Horse (trophy designed after Da Vinci's Horse Statue) is presented as an award of merit to honor outstanding achievements of those artist-filmmakers in their respective fields.
PROCEDURE
1. New films not released in Italy are eligible for submission to MIFF Awards.
2. The initial selection process is conducted by MIFF programming committee.
3. Selected Films are then notified of their "nominated for awards" status and published in the catalogue.
4. Nominee films are exhibited privately to the jury – Nominees maintain their premiere status – and the winner in each category is highlighted.
5. Subsequently, the winning films are notified and the representative of each film awarded is invited to Milan to receive Leonardo’s Horse at MIFF Awards Ceremony and to participate at the screenings.
6. *Following the award ceremony, a full program of multiple public screenings for awarded films ends with the Audience's Choice Award, announced as the Best Film of the festival.
* For movie accepted in Cannes, MIFF Awards screening schedule will be arranged based on Cannes Premiere screening priority.
To download a visual diagram of Timing & Concept of MIFF Awards follow this link MIFF AWARDS TIMING & CONCEPT
To submit your film to MIFF Awards for a Leonardo's Horse Nomination go to the following application link.
To know more about MIFF and MIFF Awards history, please consult MIFF History page .
To download previous edition MIFF Awards 2009 Press Kit, follow this link MIFF Awards 2009 Press Kit. The presentation is about 14mb and includes PDF format (.ZIP compression).
To download MIFF Awards Rules and Regulations please go to Rules and Regulations page.
Click on this link to know more about contributors and supporters of MIFF.
