Guidelines for Submissions to the “Golden Coconut Award” of the 6th Hainan Island International Film Festival in 2024

Guidelines for Submissions to the “Golden Coconut Award” of the 6th Hainan Island International Film Festival in 2024

Ⅰ. Introduction to the Film Festival

HAINAN ISLAND INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (HIIFF) is co-hosted by China Media Group and the People’s Government of Hainan Province.

It is held annually in the city of Sanya, China.

HIIFF aims to promote international culture exchanges and collaborations, enhancing innovative development in the film industry, and fostering creativity in film-making.

HIIFF is divided into the following sections and a flexible number of special presentations: Competition, Film Panorama, Forum, etc.

The previous editions of the Festival have been a huge success and HIIFF has become a point of reference for Asian film festivals.

Ⅱ. Related Schedule

(Ⅰ) The 6th Hainan Island International Film Festival will be held in December 2024, in Sanya, Hainan.

(Ⅱ) The deadline for submission is 24:00(UTC+8) on September 20, 2024.

(Ⅲ) The shortlist will be published in November, and the list of winners will be published at the closing ceremony of the Hainan Island International Film Festival.

Ⅲ. Qualification for Participation in the Competition

(Ⅰ) The films that meet the following standards can participate in the selection of the Golden Coconut Award Feature Film section of the 6th Hainan Island International Film Festival.

1. The films made after Oct 1st, 2023 that have not been entered in any version of this competition.

2. The duration of the films must be more than 70 minutes.

3. The films must be available in DCP (Digital Cinema Package), the standard for commercial cinema screenings, if selected.

(Ⅱ) The films that meet the following standards can participate in the selection of the Golden Coconut Award Feature Documentary section of the 6th Hainan Island International Film Festival.

1. The films made after Oct 1st, 2023 that have not been entered in any version of this competition.

2. The duration of the films must be more than 70 minutes.

3. The films must be available in DCP (Digital Cinema Package), the standard for commercial cinema screenings, if selected.

(Ⅲ) The films that meet the following standards can participate in the selection of the Golden Coconut Award Short Film unit of the 6th Hainan Island International Film Festival.

1. The films made after Oct 1st, 2023 that have not been entered in any version of this competition.

2. The duration of the films must be 10-40 minutes;

3. The films are recommended to be available in DCP (Digital Cinema Package), the standard for commercial cinema screenings, if selected.

Ⅳ. Qualification for Participation in the Panorama

(Ⅰ) Panorama section of Hainan Island International Film Festival is devoted to screening excellent films from all over the world. It aims to provide a platform for filmmakers worldwide to showcase and exchange cinematic art and to connect the global film industry. Furthermore, adhering to the concept of ‘Year-round Screening, Island-wide Screening, Films for Everyone’, we will keep on the simultaneous screening both in cinema and outdoors which showcases the distinctive Hainan Island characteristics.

(Ⅱ) The submission of the Panorama section this year will also open to all applicants online via the HIIFF official website. The final line-ups for the Panorama section will be determined by the committee and will be confirmed in writing with the applicants before the release of the official announcement.

(Ⅲ) The films that meet the following standards can participate in the selection of the Panorama section of the 6th Hainan Island International Film Festival.

1. Feature films, documentaries, animated films, etc.

2. The films must not have been publicly released in the Chinese Mainland. Preference will be given to the films completed after January 1, 2023.

3. The duration of the films must be more than 70 minutes (except for VR, XR, and AIGC films);

4. The films must be available in DCP (except for VR, XR, and AIGC films), the standard for commercial cinema screenings, if selected.

Ⅴ. Application Method

(Ⅰ) Films submitting to the competition must register on the Festival's official website (http://www.hiiff.net) or FilmFreeway (https://filmfreeway.com/HIIFF) within the specified opening time of the registration window, fill in the mandatory information of the films submitted to the competition one by one, and upload the preview version of the film.

(Ⅱ)Please complete the entry form in its entirety; the entrant shall bear the responsibility in relation to any errors or omissions in the entry form. The Festival reserves the right to disqualify any film that does not fill out the form completely and accurately.

(Ⅲ) Only preview film download link is accepted in the application, which shall meet the following standards:

1. The file shall be in MOV or MP4 format with a minimum resolution of 1920*1080;

2. Maximum file size: 4GB;

3. Watermarks can be added;

4. English subtitles are required for films with non-English dialogues. For films in non-Mandarin Chinese dialects, both Chinese and English subtitles must be provided.

5. The submitted version shall be the same as the actual film. Otherwise, the committee has the right to cancel the qualification of the selected films.

(Ⅳ) The films submitted after the closure of the application period cannot participate in the competition, and the films submitted before the closure of the application period cannot withdraw the application.

(Ⅴ) By submitting a film to the competition, the entrant certifies that he/she has obtained the consent of the copyright owner, creator, or other authorized representative of the film and has read, understood, and agreed to the terms and conditions. Hainan Island International Film Festival will not be responsible for any disputes arising from any violation of these terms and conditions.

(Ⅵ) The Festival has the right to reject any film that does not meet all or part of the above requirements, as well as any film that does not meet China’s laws or related cultural policies.

(Ⅶ)The Festival reserves the right to final interpretation of the terms and conditions in this announcement and any matters not covered herein.

Ⅵ. Jury and Awards Setting

(Ⅰ) Juries will be invited by HIIFF. Persons associated with the production or distribution of films in competition may not serve as jurors.

(Ⅱ) Selected and awarded films shall receive one certificate per film. The Festival will award the following prizes in accordance with the decision of the International Jury:

1. The Best Picture, with the cash prize of 150,000 RMB;

2. The Grand Jury Prize, with the cash prize of 100,000 RMB;

3. The Best Director, with the cash prize of 100,000 RMB;

4. The Best Actor, with the cash prize of 80,000 RMB;

5. The Best Actress, with the cash prize of 80,000 RMB;

6. The Best Scriptwriter, with the cash prize of 50,000 RMB;

7. The Best Visual Effect, with the cash prize of 50,000 RMB;

8. The Best Chinese Contribution of the Year, with the cash prize of 50,000 RMB;

9. The Best Documentary Film, with the cash prize of 50,000 RMB;

10. The Best Short Film, with the cash prize of 20,000 RMB;

(Ⅲ) If more than one winner is awarded in a single category, the cash prize will be divided equally.

(Ⅳ)The cash prize is subject to the tax regulations of the People’s Republic of China.

(Ⅴ) The cash prize of the awarded persons will be given to the personal accounts of the winners, and the cash prize of the awarded films will be given to the accounts designated by the applicants of related films. The channels for cash prize distribution do not involve in the ownership of the cash prize, which shall be decided by the awarded persons or the awarded units.

Ⅶ. Selected Films

(Ⅰ) The shortlist will be published in November, and related notification will be sent to the shortlisted applicants by email. The related applicants shall reply to the committee in 7 working days. It is not allowed to withdraw the film without authorization for any reason after it has been officially confirmed by the related applicants.

(Ⅱ) Related applicants of the selected films shall maintain the confidentiality of the shortlist result until it is published officially by the 6th Hainan Island International Film Festival.

(Ⅲ) The applicants of the selected films shall submit related materials (including DCP, trailers, posters, film stills, etc.) in time as required by the Festival.

(Ⅳ) Selected films shall authorize the Festival to use the entry form information and promotional materials for the Festival’s promotion purpose, including, but not limited to the brochure, website, closing ceremony, and press.

(Ⅴ) Upon the  films are selected, the Festival shall gain the authorization  to screen the films, until the end of all the works related to awards decision and film screening. Applicants for the shortlisted film must ensure that the copy is delivered to the designated address of the committee on time and bear the cost of shipping the copy. After the end of the film Festival, the copy will be returned to the designated address provided by the applicant within two weeks, and the cost will be borne by the film festival.

(Ⅵ) With the written consent from the Festival, the Golden Coconut Award laurels images can be used for promotion materials such as printing materials or websites by selected or prize-awarded films. It is required to apply for the standard specification document before using the Golden Coconut Award laurels images. It is forbidden to cut the Golden Coconut Award laurels images or make any change to the original pattern when using it.

Ⅷ. Supplementary Articles

The 6th Hainan Island International Film Festival reserves the right of interpretation of the Regulations.