Categories and Submission guidelines

BCPS Film Expo

Category Descriptions and Submission Guidelines

Read through for category descriptions and to get ideas for film submissions. Remember, submissions can be made by individuals, groups, or entire classes. Be sure to review all submission guidelines before submitting your film!

Category Descriptions

Middle School

• Animated GIF’s (under 30 seconds): Any short sequence submitted in the Animated GIF file format. These can be animated or photo sequences, and present best when the action is looping.

• Live Action (45 seconds - 10 minutes): Any live action film in any genre, from narrative to experimental. Consider the many genres of live action films such as montage, music video, drama, horror, and comedy.

• Animation (up to 10 minutes): Films made primarily of animation, but can also include portions of live action. Consider the many forms of animation such as stop-motion, frame-by-frame (drawn on paper or a computer), and rotoscoping…

High School

• Animated GIF’s (under 30 seconds): Any short sequence submitted in the Animated GIF file format. These can be animated or photo sequences, and present best when the action is looping.

• Short-form Video (under 45 seconds): Any video with a duration under 45 seconds. Consider the many types of short films on the internet such as TikTok videos, Facebook and Instagram Stories, and vlogs.

• Live Action Narrative (up to 10 minutes): Any live action film that is story or narrative driven, may include dialogue or not. Consider the many genres of narrative film such as drama, horror, and comedy. Remember, not all narrative films need to fit a traditional story structure.

• Experimental (up to 10 minutes): Any film which does not seem to fit the other categories, this could include music videos (using royalty-free music), abstract films, and montages.

• Documentary (up to 10 minutes): Any film which investigates the world or your experience of it. This could include video diaries, profiles of people, and issue- or history-based documentaries.

• Animation (up to 10 minutes): Films made primarily of animation, but can also include portions of live action. Consider the many forms of animation such as stop-motion, frame-by-frame (drawn on paper or a computer), and rotoscoping…

• Promotional Videos (up to 10 minutes): Any films made for or by a club, honor society, morning announcement team, or class which may have an appeal to a broad audience.

Submission Guidelines

Technical Guidelines:

• Your submission’s total runtime must NOT exceed the specified time limit for the category you are submitting (See categories and time limits above).

• When uploading your submission, use the following file naming conventions:
  FirstNameLastName_Teacher_School_FilmTitle.mp4
  Example:   DylanBrown_Jackson_CatonsvilleHS_MyFilm.mov

• We will only except the file formats listed below:  .MP4 or .MOV

• Please submit your film in 1080 HD resolution, do not submit films in 4K. Any film files that are larger than 2GBs will not be accepted.

• Do not submit using a YouTube link as they cannot be downloaded. Any submissions with a YouTube link will not be considered for selection or screening.

Content Guidelines:

• Films may be on any topic, but must be G or PG-rated in language and subject matter, be appropriate for all audiences, and show cultural sensitivity.  Films which fall outside of this will be disqualified.

• During production, filmmakers may not obstruct the public right-of-way or film on private property without permission from the owner.

• Use of sound or video clips from other films, television shows, music videos, etc. within your submitted work is not permitted unless those clips are in the public domain or you have received written permission from the copyright holder. Use of trademarked products or characters is also not permitted unless permission is received from the trademark owner. Filmmakers are responsible for obtaining permission from copyright and trademark owners.

• All filmmakers are required to obtain permission to use copyrighted music in their films. Filmmakers can also use their own original music. Additionally, copyright-free, public domain, trade-friendly or Creative Commons licensed music can be used with attribution. For access to royalty free content, look for links in the Resources folder of the BPCS Film Expo Schoology group.    

• If your use of copyrighted materials falls under the fair use standard be sure to include attribution in the credits. (more info on fair use here: https://innovationhub.bcps.org/digital-citizenship/copyright-fair-use) 

• The BCPS Film Expo committee reserves the right to switch your submission to a different category as they see fit.

Any submission that does not meet these guidelines will NOT be considered for judging and will NOT be selected to screen.