Submissions
The submission window for our 10th Anniversary Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival closed on May 29. Many of you may recall that last year we jumped to a record number of entries, a robust 508. This struck us as a very high total, one that we would have a hard time eclipsing. Apparently our prognostication skills were somewhat lacking. On the morning of May 30, just a few hours after the window closed, our submissions total stood at 584, a massive 15% increase from 2023 and nearly 60% greater than our average over the past nine years. My, we have grown!
Filmmakers from 44 countries sent us their work for consideration, suggesting the breadth of MNFF’s global reach. Nearly 48% were narrative shorts; 15% were narrative features; 15% were documentary features; and 13% were documentary shorts. The remaining films were equally spread between animation and experimental.
As we work our way through this large volume of films, we want to thank all the filmmakers who are seeking a place in our upcoming 10th Anniversary program. We genuinely appreciate your interest in the Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival. There won’t be room for all of you, of course, but we are delighted to be on your radar.
Lodging
The Festival takes place August 21-25. We have received numerous inquiries about where to stay from prospective attendees. The first thing we will emphasize is this: if you are thinking about coming to the 10th Anniversary, please don’t wait any longer to book your accommodations. Here’s the very latest information:
- The Middlebury Inn has only 6 rooms left for a Wednesday [8/21]-Monday [8/26] booking, which means there are only 6 rooms left for any configuration of days that includes the weekend.
- Swift House Inn has informed us that it has no rooms left at all for the Friday and Saturday nights of MNFF10. Rooms are still available for Wednesday, 8/21 [7], Thursday, 8/22 [5] and Sunday, 8/25 [9].
- Middlebury’s Courtyard by Marriott has 10 rooms available at a special MNFF rate of $199/nt. [plus tax] through July 20. All rooms are either a King bed + pull out sofa or 2 Queen Beds.
- The Stone Mill, in the heart of the village, has 4 rooms available on Wednesday, 8/21, 3 rooms on Thursday, 8/22, 1 room on Friday, 8/23 and 2 rooms on Saturday, 8/24.
- Additional lodging can be tracked down by visiting the MNFF Plan Your Visit page