An Annual Showcase of Avant-Garde and Experimental Cinema; Bold in Form, Radical in Vision.
Festival Title: The Experimental Film Fest
Organizer: Bank of the Arts
Venue: New Bern, North Carolina, USA
Date: November 13, 2027
Edition: 8th Annual Festival
About the Festival: The Experimental Film Fest serves as a platform dedicated to celebrating avant-garde and experimental works across all sub-genres. We seek films that are unconventional, macabre, offbeat, and boundary-pushing; works that, while maintaining a commitment to experimental praxis, engage the audience and resonate with their sensory and emotional depth. Our aim is to explore the medium of cinema beyond the constraints of narrative conventions.
Awards & Prizes: Festival Winner: $100 / Critic’s Choice: $75 / Audience Favorite: $75 / Best Student Film: $50 / Best Animation: $50
Accepted Genres: Avant-Garde and Experimental (all sub-genres accepted).
Duration: Maximum 15 minutes.
Production Date: No restriction (open to films of any completion date, provided it is the submitter’s original work).
Language & Subtitles: English subtitles are mandatory.
Submission Deadline: December 1, 2026.
Submission Fees:
Student Films: $10 USD ($9 for Gold members).
Note: This festival does not offer fee waivers under any circumstances.
Additional Information: Films must be accessible via a downloadable link. If the film is password-protected, the password must be included at the time of submission / If selected for screening, filmmakers are required to provide a short (1-2 minute) introductory video presenting themselves and their work to the audience/ Screening is contingent upon the receipt of this video / Filmmakers are encouraged to follow The Experimental Film Podcast and are invited to coordinate a guest appearance.
