Special Features: OFFICIAL SELECTION | Film Festival Strategies & Campaigns

Looking to learn more insight and practical knowledge on our larger art industries, and how to prepare for an art-life post-graduation? Special Features is an artist talk and workshop series that is meant to provide filmmakers and artists with practical and insightful advice and skills as they navigate a variety of film industries.

Film festivals, no matter how small or large, can be such an important moment for an emerging artist. The feeling of watching your film on screen in a theatre amongst an audience, when the lights dim and the first few seconds begin, is like no other. But the road to festivals can feel like a mystical experience and one defined by luck or chance, often making the goal of screening feel out of reach. At Special Features, we’re interested in pulling you behind the curtain to make film festivals feel more attainable. From submission strategies to festival research to competitions, rejections, fees and waivers, we’re going to dive deep into how to navigate film festivals for emerging filmmakers.

This workshop also will examine film festival programming as a possible career model within the film industry for those interested in more curatorial roles and positions. Our guest, Nick Leffel, will lead us into a bit of his career journey and offer his expertise on how to get your film seen.

Nick Leffel (UWM Film Alum) is a Chicago-based filmmaker and producer whose work explores themes of cultural upbringing, adoption, and personal narrative. His films have earned awards at the Hollywood Screenings Film Festival in Los Angeles, the Liverpool Underground Film Festival, and the Milwaukee Film Festival. He also serves as a coordinator for the Black Harvest Film Festival and as an assistant programmer at the Gene Siskel Film Center at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.