Rules And Regulations

Times

To The World (TTW) will occur at different institutions around the country on different weekends throughout the year.

  • The 48-hour film festival will occur between a Friday at 6 pm local time and the following Sunday at 6 pm local time. This is the Official Time Period.

  • The participating group/team must complete its film/video work in time to submit it on Sunday by 6 pm.

  • Only works that meet the deadline will be officially part of the competition. 

Preparation
The only work to begin prior to the Official Time Period is:

  1. Organizing Crew

  2. Organizing Cast

  3. Securing Equipment

  4. Scouting/Securing Locations

Festival Launch
Each participating team must have a representative at the official Festival Launch Event of the To The World film festival.

  1. Prior to the Festival Launch event, each group must submit a completed Team Leader's Agreement, signed by its team leader. A team may not participate without submitting this agreement.

  2. Each group will receive the genre of its film in a random drawing.

Required Elements
Each participating group will be assigned required elements that must appear in its film, such as a genre, a character, a prop and/or a line of dialogue.

  1. The required Character must be seen on-screen and it must be clear--either directly shown or by context--who the required character is. The Character's name does not have to be said out loud or written on-screen.

  2. The required Prop must be seen on-screen. A picture of the required prop is also allowed.

  3. The required Line of Dialogue must be used verbatim. It may be spoken, sung, and/or written. It may be in any language, though if it is unclear that it is the required Line, there must be a translation.

  4. To qualify as an Official Entry, each group's film must be in the genre it selects and must contain all required elements within the official time limit and prior to the credits.

Music Rights
Participating groups are encouraged to work with a composer and/or musicians to write and record music for the films. It is permissible for a participating group to use pre-recorded music; however, the participating group must have the rights to any music used in its film and must provide releases for all music used. As with music, pre-recorded sound effects are allowed, but you must have right to use them.

  • Note: Song parodies (i.e., use of identifiable pre-existing compositions with new or altered lyrics or music) may not be included in the film without a signed release from the composition's rights holder. This rule applies without regard to whether the song parody arguably constitutes fair use under US or international copyright law.

No Pre-Screening Distribution
The Entrant should not distribute their entry/video in any way prior to it receiving its official premiere screening. This includes uploading the video to any website or screening the film for groups of anyone other than the team. The Entrant is encouraged to make a trailer of their film and distribute that instead. This trailer should be no longer than 48 seconds.

Using AI (Artificial Intelligence) in Your Entry
You may use AI (Artificial Intelligence) in the creation of your film, subject to the following guidelines:

  1. You may only use AI in ways that are legal in your jurisdiction.

  2. You may not use AI to create any part of your entry prior to the Official Time Period.

  3. You must have the rights to all work including work created with AI. In other words, any AI-generated material that uses copyrighted material for which the filmmaker does not have a release is not permitted. (As an example, using a screenshot from the movie Pulp Fiction to create a new image is prohibited.)

  4. Not only must the filmmaker have rights to the footage, but any footage shot prior to the competition weekend

Certification Statement
The Entrant must submit a Certification Statement with his/her completed Entry, certifying adherence to all Official Rules.

Disqualification
To The World and Festival Parties may, in their sole discretion, disqualify Entries deemed to be inappropriate or otherwise non-compliant.

Creative Process
All creativity must take place during the Official Time Period.  Any creative work in advance of the competition weekend is prohibited. Creative work includes, but is not limited to:

  1. Writing the script

  2. Casting (of roles)

  3. Rehearsing

  4. Costume/Set Design

  5. Shooting

  6. Editing

  7. Sound Design

  8. Rendering

  9. Outputting to USB drive or other media

Footage
Every frame of your film MUST contain footage shot or created in the Official Time Period. This is "core footage."

  • "Supporting footage," or footage shot or created BEFORE the Official Time Period (including stock footage that is part of a special effect) may be placed over or under the core footage, as long as every frame of your film contains some amount of core footage and the assembling of the core footage with the supporting footage occurs during the Official Time Period.

  • Animation, titles, and special effects can be considered core footage if it is created during the Official Time Period.

  • Supporting footage MAY NOT include people or other performers unless the supporting footage was shot during a previous festival Time Period for a previously submitted film.

  • Still photos are permitted as core footage. The still photos do not need to be created during the Official Time Period. Note: Still photos created outside of the Official Time Period being used in a sequence to create the illusion of motion are not acceptable as core footage, but are acceptable as supporting footage.


    You must have rights to any footage or photos used in your film.

Volunteers
All cast and crew must be volunteers.

Animal Safety
Animal safety, like cast and crew safety, is an important part of this festival. Films that result in the death or mutilation of an animal may be disqualified.

Cameras
Any type of video or film camera may be used, including a cellular device. There is no limit to the number of cameras.

Total Running Time
The finished film must be a minimum of 3 minutes in duration, and a maximum of 5 minutes in duration—not including end credits. In other words, the official running time begins after the required TTW slates and ends prior to the end credits. The required slates and the end credits do not count toward the minimum time of 3 minutes. The film story may not be longer than 5 minutes. TTW reserves the right to shorten any film that exceeds the maximum length for screening purposes.

Credits
Pre-film Required Slates
Before the finished film begins, the media should have...

  1. 5 seconds of black

  2. 5 seconds title card with: team name, title, genre, city, and date

  3. 5 seconds title card with: This film was made for the To The World Film Festival.
    www.somelikeitstudios.com OR the animated bumper provided to you (6 seconds).

  4. 2 seconds of black


Opening Credits
After the 2 seconds of black, some films start with opening credits. These are not encouraged, but if you use them, opening credits are considered to be part of the film, and therefore count against the seven-minute maximum. Additionally, if your film has opening credits other than simply the film's title (for example, the names of directors, actors, etc.), you must include one of the following:

  1. the text YOUR TEAM NAME presents immediately followed by a To The World Film Project

  2. the text a Some Like It Studios Production immediately following the title of your film

Note: a Some Like It Studios Production may be entirely lowercase (i.e., a some like it studios production).


End Credits


Credits at the end of each film are limited to a maximum of 60 seconds. The 60 seconds is considered additional to the length of the film, as stated above. (That is, a film may be 7 minutes long, with an additional 60 seconds of credits, for a total running time of 8 minutes.) To The World reserves the right to shorten any end credits that exceed the maximum length for screening purposes.


Bloopers and/or behind-the-scenes are permitted during or after the end credits adhering to the 60-second maximum length and within the time frame.


The end credits must include the words: This film was made for the To The World Film Festival www.somelikeitstudios.com/To-The-World