Less than 2 days left for film entry—submit your film by July 2, 2024, Midnight PST.

The Portland Film Festival established itself as one of Portland’s first indie film non-profits, founded in 2013 with Portland’s first movie meetup, the Portland Film Club. Its hundreds of screenings, events, education programs, and community partnerships provide a remarkable experience for our diverse audience to connect with filmmakers working across genres and forms.

Post-Covid Disclosures and Safety Notifications
Together with neighboring cities like Hillsboro, Beaverton, Tigard, and Vancouver, Washington, Portland forms the 25th most populous market in the United States. Our city boasts many independent movie theaters, second only to Paris.

While we don’t utilize every theater, our festival is headquartered at the McMenamin’s Kennedy School, a beautifully converted former elementary school now serving as a hotel, bar, restaurant, and theater. It’s a fantastic place to meet and engage with people passionate about independent film. We look forward to seeing you there.

Daily Events and Filmmaker Activities
Portland features rich amounts of things to do every day of the year. Our festival will fill most of your time, but the city, with its bountiful restaurants, activities, and shopping, is open too. Our films focus on the Fiction, Non-Fiction, World Cinema, Transmedia, VR,  Short, and Student Filmmaking categories, as well as a program dedicated to the work of filmmakers from around the world, focusing on independent stories, as well as local tales from Portland; the Portland Festival offers emerging and established artists to present their films in supportive screening environment, with curated competitions, Audience Awards, and opportunities to reach attending members of the press

Past Attendees & Alumni
Aisha Tyler, Mario Van Peebles, Joe Dante, Sam Hamm, Mark Boone Junior, Eli Roth, Justin Long, Haley Joel Osment, Abby Elliott, Chris Williams, Chuck Palahniuk, Jason Mamoa, Doug Benson, Josh McDermott, Jim O’Heir, Vanna White, Leslie Dixon and more.

Portland Film Festival Location
Hosted in one centralized location in Portland, its public transportation and accessibility are matched by very few cities. Portland offers a relaxed community and quirky environment with sophisticated audiences deeply engaged in the art of film. This year’s location is the McMenamin’s Kennedy School.

Statistics on Last Year’s Festival
Last year, over 99.6% of our programmed films were selected from our pool of submissions. Submit your film today and join us for the annual Portland Film Festival in October 2024!

Submission Platforms

Deadlines

  • Late Deadline – July 1, 2024
  • Extended Deadline – July 2, 2024

Notification date

  • July 31, 2024 (Approximately)

Questions? Check out our Submission FAQs.



Less than 2 days left for film entry—submit your film by July 2, 2024, Midnight PST.

The Portland Film Festival established itself as one of Portland’s first indie film non-profits, founded in 2013 with Portland’s first movie meetup, the Portland Film Club. Its hundreds of screenings, events, education programs, and community partnerships provide a remarkable experience for our diverse audience to connect with filmmakers working across genres and forms.