Alliance of Women Directors collaborates with Sponsors and Partners that believe in and work toward gender parity in the entertainment industry. These partnerships elevate our collective ability to advocate for and support women directors.
AWD Directing Members can check their AWD Member Center or inboxes for the discount and waiver codes, as well as information on how to contact partners.
ONGOING COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS
NEW COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS
Our partners at AFM are offering AWD members $150 off their Industry Badge, $100 off the Four Day + Sessions Badge, or $100 off the Three Day + Sessions Badge now through September 25. Register for your badge and use the applicable promo code found in your Member Center to activate the discount at checkout. Contact registration@ifta-online.org to learn more about attending the Market.
Join Film Fatales during Gotham Week on Monday, September 28th 4:30pm ET in Brooklyn for Audience to Advocate, a free workshop on expanding professional networks through career programs and community engagement. Featuring filmmakers B Monét (Black Girls), Lexie Bean (What Will I Become?), and Zoey Martinson (The Fisherman). This interactive session explores building authentic partnerships, engaging audiences, and navigating resources like labs, grants, and incubators. Panelists share real-world insights on sustaining creative communities and overcoming industry challenges. The event includes breakout discussion circles for connection and collaboration. http://www.filmfatales.org/events/audience-to-advocate
RECENT COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP ANNOUNCEMENTS
PageCraft, a renowned screenwriting education company with more than 17 years experience helping writers unlock their creative potential and elevate their storytelling craft, and The Grey List, the annual curated showcase of screenwriters over 40, have partnered to launch a one-of-a-kind screenwriting fellowship designed to support, inspire, and elevate writers of all ages.
Whether you’re sharpening your voice or refining your structure, this is more than just a contest—it’s a chance to win access to a Screenwriting Lab designed to give you an opportunity to grow, connect, and create alongside instructors, mentors and peers who believe in your potential.
This contest is open to writers over the age of 18 intending to develop features or television pilots. Our final deadline for submissions is September 25, 2026, or when we reach 500 submissions, whichever comes first.
Dr. Rebekah Louisa Smith is an Award Winning Film Festival Strategist & Founder of The Film Festival Doctor. She can create a film festival strategy for you, so you can get your film seen by audiences around the world.
Rebekah is offering all AWD Members 5% off all of her services. Find instructions in your Member Center.
Additionally, Rebekah’s multi-award-winning podcast, The Film Festival Doctor Podcast, is available to listen to on Spotify. In every episode she and her guests unpack and demystify the complex and very precise world of film festival strategy and programming, helping filmmakers learn how festival programmers curate their festivals and what types of films they’re looking for.
CURRENT FESTIVAL PARTNERSHIPS
AWD Directing Members can check their AWD Member Center or inboxes for the discount and waiver codes.
Members of Riverrun Int’l Film Festival‘s Curatorial Filmmaking Fellowship and Community Programmers (listed below) will be watching AWD members’ films for this amazing partnership! Also included is 50% off submission fees. Submit via Film Freeway.
Screeners include Fellow Christalyn Hampton (2026 Oscar Nominee for “The Devil Is Busy”) on Doc Shorts, Liz Sargent (2026 Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award, “Take Me Home”) on Narrative Features, and Avalon Fast (“CAMP”, “Honeycomb”) focusing on Queer cinema. We also have community programmers, Taja Seafus (DOSE Arts Collective), Tiffany Albright (Founder, Queer Fear Film Festival), and arts consultant Brittany K. Giles-Jones.
Important dates:
Regular Deadline: Monday, September 28, 2026
Late Deadline: Monday, November 2, 2026
Final Deadline: Monday, December 7, 2026
From the festival: Named one of Moviemaker Magazine’s “50 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee” in 2026, the RiverRun International Film Festival is a filmmaker and community-first celebration of bold cinematic visions that break the status quo and work for a more equitable and just world. We’re also an Academy Award qualifying festival in the Documentary Short and Animated Short categories!
Is horror your game? Then Ethereal Horror Fest is your game! This fun fest is offering 50% off submissions to their late deadline (Sept. 6th) plus an AWD Block! Submit via Film Freeway.
We are happy to again partner with the Cascadia Int’l Women’s Film Festival to offer 50% off their submission fees! Submit via Film Freeway.
IMPORTANT DATES:
September 15: Short Film Early Bird Deadline
November 9: Short Film Regular Deadline
November 30: Short Film Late Deadline
From the festival: CASCADIA International Women’s Film Festival celebrates its 11th season April 22-25, 2027 to showcase exceptional films by women directors from around the world. To date, CASCADIA has proudly presented the work of more than 330 women directors. Approximately 30-40 films will be screened over the course of the four-day in person festival. An online version of the festival takes place after the in person festival to provide accessibility for those unable to attend an in-person screening and promote our filmmakers with greater audience exposure.
The festival is located in Bellingham, WA, a city of 100,000 in the Pacific Northwest and situated halfway between Seattle, WA. and Vancouver, BC, Canada.
CASCADIA presents programs of short subject films, feature narrative and documentary films. Festival films are followed by Q&As with filmmakers. CASCADIA also hosts networking events, including the Saturday night Directors’ Party, industry panel discussions, a Script Studio and a special reception and program with its Honored Guest. Selected filmmakers are offered complimentary accommodations through our home host program and receive a screening fee and festival laurels.
CASCADIA strongly suggests anyone considering submitting to review the Official Selections from the previous festival found on our website.
Calling all horror filmmakers! Femme Fatal Film Festival is open for submissions and offering AWD members 50% off submission fees! Submit via Film Freeway
MPORTANT DATES:
Late Deadline: September 20, 2026
Femme FATAL is the premier genre festival spotlighting the female-identifying filmmakers redefining horror and sci-fi. Founded by Amelia Joyce and Roberta Sparta, the festival has grown from a single underground screening into a sold-out annual fixture– moving to a new LA venue each year and cementing itself as one of the most vital platforms for fearless, boundary-pushing genre storytelling.
Now in its fourth year, Femme FATAL keeps raising the bar. Submissions for the 2026 edition are open now on FilmFreeway, with the festival returning this October 18 for another night of genre filmmaking at its sharpest, timed to the Halloween season.
This is more than a festival. It’s a movement. And it’s only getting bolder.
The American International Short Film Festival invites AWD Directing Members to submit films to screen out of competition.
On Wednesday, September 16, 2026, at the Los Angeles City Club, AWD will sponsor a day of panels, screenings, and special events.
You can submit your film directly to AWD Board Member Jan Johnson Goldberger.
There will also be a K-Beauty demonstration in the Arbor Room by Sandy Lee – Riman Beauty distributor, with one session in the morning and another in the afternoon. Each demonstration is limited to 12 participants, and members may RSVP for a session by emailing Jan. Please indicate if you would prefer the morning session or the afternoon session.
All events are free. RSVP links will be announced closer to the event.
We are happy to partner with the Worldwide Women’s Film Festival! They will program an AWD BLOCK of films and offer their early bird submission fee for short films ($25) on all deadlines.
Submit via their Film Freeway page.
Regular deadline: Sept. 31
Late deadline: October 31
From the festival: The Worldwide Women’s Film Festival supports women in film by educating and empowering women in the collaborative endeavor of filmmaking while we shine a light on women’s stories and other diverse experiences across all genders.
We are excited to partner with Cinequest Film Festival to offer 50% off submission fees!
Submit through Film Freeway.
From the festival: Cinequest is a legendary empowerment bastion for over 300 films, television projects, and media experiences. As we prepare for the 36th edition of Cinequest in 2027, we invite you to showcase your work at the festival voted “Best Film Festival” by USA Today readers.
Cinequest programs 85 to 90 percent of its festival from paid submissions annually, one of the highest percentages among the world’s most influential film festivals.
Cinequest connects artists, innovators, media, and audiences as people converge to experience a powerful mix of immersive stories from around the globe and breakthrough technologies. Cinequest’s stellar reputation rests not only on its ability to curate a compelling lineup, but also on its success in securing distribution for many of its honored filmmakers. Netflix, IFC Films, Amazon, MSNBC Films, Roadside Attractions, 1091 Pictures, Oscilloscope, Sony Pictures, Magnolia Pictures, Kino Lorber, eOne, Lionsgate, PBS, and HBO are just a few of the many companies that have signed deals with Cinequest success stories.
As an Academy qualifying festival for the short film categories, Cinequest proudly honors the winners of its Best Short Narrative and Best Short Animation awards with a chance at every filmmaker’s dream: Oscar gold.
IMPORTANT DATES:
Regular: October 12, 2026
Late: October 23, 2026
Special Film Freeway Extended November 1, 2026
We are thrilled to again partner with the Latina Independent Film Extravaganza to offer 40% off submission fees!
Submit via Film Freeway.
IMPORTANT DATES:
Regular Deadline: September 15, 2026
Late Deadline : December 1, 2026
The Latina Independent Film Extravaganza (LIFE) is a film festival dedicated to championing Latina directors and expanding opportunities for Latina voices in film. Through screenings, panels, and community-driven programming, LIFE creates space for bold storytelling while connecting filmmakers to industry access and real pathways forward. By elevating voices both on screen and behind the camera, LIFE is helping shape a more inclusive future for cinema.