Submissions will be accepted until September 15, and all films will be judged by fellow drone enthusiasts from various companies and web-communities.
Scheduled for November 19, FRiFF is being called a celebration of low-budget, independent film.
Excited to announce I’ll be a judge on @ekai’s Flying Robot International Film Festival! Submissions due Sept 15: http://t.co/qlGy3kfYva
— Tim Hwang (@timhwang) July 15, 2015
In order to pass the initial selection for the festival, submissions must be no longer than five minutes in length and the movie must contain some sort of narrative.
“Primarily, we’re looking for films shot from the perspective of a flying camera that tell a story. Judges will shine favorably upon films with a good story. Your film does not need to exclusively contain aerial footage…but it should be central to the story you're telling,” the website reads.
“We’re not interested in seeing what your backyard looks like.”
The “Cinematic” category, for instance, says it all with its name – a movie shot as a piece of motion picture art. Drone sport videos, on the other hand – such as First Person View racing or aerial dogfighting – fall under the “Aerial Sports” category.
Films documenting how drones can be used to promote social causes would be screened under the “Drones for Good” category. These could include topics ranging from UAV-use in the agriculture industry to the deployment of remotely piloted aircraft to deliver food and medical supplies to war zones.
On the less serious side, there is a “LOL WTF” category for all the funny submissions.
All drone do-it-yourselfers will have a chance to show pride in their hand-made flying robots by submitting a film under “I Made That,” a kind of autobiographical documentary category.
For students, a “Student Film” category has been reserved.
Wired magazine compares FRiFF to the Slamdance film festival for low-budget filmmakers, while the world’s first ever drone cinematographic festival, the NYC Drone Film Festival, held in March, is seen as being emblematic of the more traditional Sundance Film Festival.
“The NYC drone festival targeted the traditional filmmaking community, even rolling out a red carpet flanked by photographers,” Wired notes.
While combat drones and private UAV threats raise concerns from human rights activists and security experts alike, the positive aspects of flying robots has drawn far less attention. FRiFF is hoping to bridge the gap on the issue.
