Blog: Film festivals

The 24th Brooklyn Film Festival (BFF) will run at multiple venues in Brooklyn, NY and online from June 4 - 13, 2021.

Brooklyn Film Festival (BFF), is a 10-day International, competitive festival. Discovering and promoting independent filmmakers at their first or second film is at the very center of the festival's year-round efforts. BFF’s mission is to provide a public forum in Brooklyn in order to advance public interest in films and the independent production of films; to draw worldwide attention to Brooklyn as a center for cinema; to encourage the rights of all Brooklyn residents to access and experience the power of independent film-making; and to promote artistic excellence and the creative freedom of artists without censure. BFF, inc. is a 501 (c)(3) not-for-profit organization.

The festival is for and by independent filmmakers. The organizers of BFF bring 23 years of festival experience to this annual event. BFF accepts submissions in six categories: Narrative Features, Documentary Features, Short Narrative, Short Documentary, Experimental, and Animation. Submissions are open from June to March of the following year. The final selection of 150+ films is announced in May, and the festival takes place in June. All the films that make up our final lineup come from submissions only. Each selected film plays twice. They are all eligible for several awards and the smallest film can win the top award: Grand Chameleon. In addition to our film programs, BFF also hosts multiple filmmaker parties and networking events at venues in and around Brooklyn.

Many of the award-winning films from the Brooklyn Film Festival have gone on to have theatrical releases, to have nationwide broadcasts on PBS and HBO, and to be nominated and awarded at both the British and the American Academy Awards. BFF is also proud to be a Canadian Screen Award qualifying festival.