Amnesty International Film Festival Expose

By Amnesty International

The festival office is now closed. We will check email only occasionally during this time. Until further notice, film submissions will only be considered for our On Campus Film Festival, our educational outreach program of free screenings in High Schools and University campuses. Please see submissions information on this page.

MISSION
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Few artistic media have the power to reach across cultures, languages, and even time itself to influence millions of people in the language of our daily lives. Film has such power. Each year dozens of talented filmmakers work against long odds, short finances, and threatening politics to bring to the screen powerful stories of human struggle, sacrifice, and triumph. Some documentary filmmakers have risked their very lives so that we may be moved by far-off stories that, once told, seem very much closer to home. The Amnesty International Film Festival is dedicated to bringing these stories to our communities so that our colleagues, neighbors, and friends can see for themselves the full-range of challenges facing people in every part of the world.

And while public education is at the center of the festival's mission, our goals do not stop there. As a program of the world's largest human rights organization, the Film Festival also draws heavily on Amnesty International's experience as a worldwide campaigning movement. We strive to offer concrete opportunities to create positive change for those who are moved by what they have seen.

From Urgent Actions® on individual cases of human rights abuses, to regional action networks focusing on specific areas of the world, to topical programs like OUTFront for LGBT human rights issues and the USA Domestic Human Rights Program, all festival goers will have an opportunity to become meaningfully involved. Whether on behalf of issues they have long cared about, or on behalf of causes they may just have learned about in the documentary screening, Amnesty International stands ready to help them channel their energy.

PROGRAMMING
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The Amnesty International Film Festival was launched in the United States in Seattle in 1992 with the purpose of showcasing the best in documentary and fiction filmmaking related to human rights. Both because of the tremendous global reach of Amnesty International, and because we have focused on building relationships directly with filmmakers, production companies, television stations, and other film festivals around the world, we are able to offer programming that in many cases will simply never be seen anywhere else in the U.S. These include dozens of documentary films—some feature length and others shorter—some fiction films, animated pieces, and occasionally foreign broadcasts that are otherwise inaccessible to U.S. audiences. In addition, we are also proud to screen some of the most noteworthy and celebrated documentary films made here in the U.S. each year, including many that will go on to air on PBS, HBO, or other networks. The festival also takes pains to include archive presentations of classic feature films from major studios with strong human rights content that help us to place today’s issues in an important historical context (Universal Pictures(c) "Missing" (2002 West Hollywood Festival) or Warner Bros.(c) "The Killing Fields" (2003 West Hollywood Festival).


SUBMISSIONS
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The Amnesty International Film Festival On Campus accepts submissions on a rolling basis throughout the year. The festival accepts documentary, feature, animated, and music video works for its annual programs. Submissions must be on VHS (PAL or NTSC) or DVD, and should be accompanied by a signed submission form. Please send all submissions to: Amnesty International Film Festival, 350 Sansome Street, Suite 630, San Francisco, CA 94104. There are no submission fees and the festival is not competitive.

We invite your submissions, comments, and appreciate your support!


Featured Film
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From the bustling streets of Rangoon and the tranquility of Buddhist monasteries, Irene Marty takes us on a dangerous journey into Burma's jungle, where hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people flee from forced labor, murder, and torture at the hands of the ruling military junta. Defying the most potent weapon of the genocide - silence - Marty gives voice to Burma's ethnic minorities and political opposition, as they struggle for freedom and democratic rule.

VHS Tapes Of In The Shadow Of The Pagodas For Sale
We have copies of "In the Shadow of the Pagodas" for sale at $20 apiece plus postage. If you want to purchase a copy, please send an e-mail to filmfest@aiusa.org


OTHER HUMAN RIGHTS FILM FESTIVALS
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3 Continents Film Festival (Asia, Africa, Americas)
Derhumalc (Argentina)
One World (Czech Republic)
(A)lliance Cine' (France):
Perspective (Germany)
Human Rights Nights (Italy)
Amnesty International Film Festival (Netherlands)
Human Rights in Film (Poland)
Stalker (Russia)
Seoul Human Rights Film Festival (South Korea)
International Film Festival of Human Rights (Spain)
International Film Festival on Human Rights (Switzerland)
Human Rights Watch International Film Festival (UK/USA)
Vermont International Film Festival (USA)