Mill Valley Film Festival

About Mill Valley Film Festival

Mill Valley Film Festival is based in the heart of the San Francisco Bay Area, and its audience of film lovers, filmmakers, Academy Members and film professionals reflects the vibrant, diverse and culturally engaged communities of the area. The festival program includes international, art house and independent cinema that annually introduces audiences to compelling new works by a broad spectrum of filmmakers, many of whom attend the festival. We select films via two portals: our Call for Entries, administered through FilmFreeway; and research by programmers who attend and/or track new work at current festivals and film markets. We seek out stories that represent multiple cultures and regions, that address issues and ideas of note, and that represent the voices of both established and emerging artists. As well as our overall sections: World, US, Documentaries, Family and Shorts, we have three ongoing initiatives: Active Cinema, highlighting impact documentaries; Mind the Gap, our equity initiative, highlighting women and non binary filmmakers; and ¡Viva el cine!, highlighting Ibero-American films. In our preview process, we have at least two or more sets of eyes on each film under consideration, whether they have come to us via the general call or from research. For Call for Entries, we have a team of preview screeners who watch, give feedback and submit evaluations. The programming team reviews and discusses pre-screener evaluations weekly, then identifies which title

Mill Valley Film Festival submission FAQ