Welcome to Slamdance!
Slamdance is a community, an experience and a statement. Established by a wild bunch of filmmakers who wanted to showcase the unfiltered voice of independent artists, Slamdance is an ongoing experiment that has proven, year after year, when it comes to recognizing talent and launching careers, the independent and grassroots film communities can do it themselves.
Slamdance 2025 will take place from February 20th-26th.
Grand Jury Award for Narrative Feature
Grand Jury Award for Documentary Feature
Grand Jury Award for Breakouts
Grand Jury Award for Episodes
Grand Jury Award for Unstoppable
Grand Jury Award for Narrative Short
Grand Jury Award for Documentary Short
Grand Jury Award for Animation Short
Grand Jury Award for Experimental Short
Audience Award for Narrative Feature
Audience Award for Documentary Feature
Audience Award for Unstoppable
The AGBO Fellowship
Slamdance Acting Award
George Starks Spirit of Slamdance Award
Summer Chastant Episodic Award
The AGBO Fellowship, Presented by Joe and Anthony Russo
The annual award established in 2018, consists of a $25,000 prize for a deserving filmmaker selected by Anthony & Joe Russo and gives them the opportunity to have a mentorship with the creative team at AGBO.
Slamdance Unstoppable is a showcase of films made by filmmakers with visible and non-visible disabilities. Programmed exclusively by disabled artists, Slamdance Unstoppable aims to eliminate the prejudices and gate-keeping that have historically kept disabled filmmakers from being represented in the entertainment industry.
Slamdance Unstoppable began with a letter to Slamdance Co-Founder Peter Baxter from filmmaker and disability awareness advocate Juliet Romeo. She said that a program for and by disabled filmmakers at Slamdance was not only important, but necessary.
She was right.
Slamdance Unstoppable is the result of that letter. In a relatively short time, films selected through Slamdance Unstoppable have become an integral part of Slamdance’s festival DNA. Beginning with a showcase of short films at the 2021 Slamdance Film Festival, the program has since grown to include feature films.
And that’s only the beginning. As Newton said, an object in motion stays in motion...and Slamdance Unstoppable isn’t stopping anytime soon.
If you would like to donate in support of Slamdance, here is the link: Donate to Slamdance.
For additional questions, contact our Slamdance Accessibility Coordinator at accessibility@slamdance.com.
Unfortunately due to the high number of films we receive, our programmers are unable to provide written feedback on every submission they judge
Accepted filmmakers will be notified in December 2024.
All submissions that are eligible for consideration for more than one category (for example, an animated documentary) will be shared amongst all compatible programming teams internally. You do not have to pay an entry fee for each category. If you are eligible and would like your film to be considered for Unstoppable, please be sure to indicate that with your submission and answer the required eligibility questions.
The 2023 Slamdance Film Festival received more than 7,800 submissions.
We consider films regardless of their premiere status. Even if your film has already premiered at another festival, whether it screened at a physical venue or online, it’s still eligible for consideration.
Yes. Our programmers watch each submitted film in its entirety.
You can submit works in progress to our competition. If you wish to update your film later on, please do so through uploading a new video file to the same link used to submit. Do not change your password or try to upload a new link.
You can update your screener by uploading a new video file provided your original link url does not change. The link and password must stay the same after you have submitted your entry. If it is replaced, programmers will lose access to your screener and it may not be watched in time for consideration.