Here’s last week’s B-Side Call for Entries Newsletter, highlighting some really cool B-Side partner festivals!

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Royal Flush Festival

The team that brought you the EVIL CITY FILM FEST and ROYAL FLUSH MAGAZINE proudly present, ROYAL FLUSH FESTIVAL, a fresh force in the independent film, art and music scene. Evil City Film Fest last screened over 100 indie films (including NYC premieres for 13 features) and now prepares to ignite the landscape with this new incarnation, Royal Flush Festival.

Royal Flush Festival continues Evil City’s original dedication to alternative art as we enter our 5th year. Royal Flush Magazine is a nationally distributed art rag that packs in the best of underground media & music, video games and pop-culture. Clearly, Royal Flush Magazine is a natural partner.

This year’s festival will hit this fall, from October 15th thru 18th, 2009.
We’ll feature full-length narratives & documentaries, short films, music videos, animation, horror and student films as part of our usual eclectic & exclusive program. In addition, we’ll be welcoming several major elements to our festivities in the form of nightly live music shows, art openings, and our closing night awards blow-out. This event is certain to give all participants the very most bang for their buck.
We’re pleased to officially open up our CALL FOR ENTRIES for the 2009 film season. We exist to give you, the earnest filmmaker, an opportunity to showcase your work with NYC’s excellent new independent festival.
Get to http://royalflushfestival.com/ for details, including general info, festival history, submission forms & more…
And, Withoutabox users will enjoy an additional $5 discount!

May 22, 2009 – Regular Deadline.
June 19, 2009 – Late Deadline.

Whether it is a dramatic or comedic piece, ASLAFF welcomes screenwriters and filmmakers to share their great stories in regards to the world of sports. This festival will give the many sports fanatics an outlet for their love of competition in the medium of cinema.

ASLAFF will include any subject matter that deals with mental and physical competition for the sake of winning.  The stories will include anything from auto racing and badminton to spelling bees and chess.

Our jury and judges already include 1984 Gold Medalist Ambrose “Rowdy” Gaines and ESPN Sideline Reporter Holly Rowe.  Also on the panel are established producers, screenwriters, and television staff writers.  More are soon to be added.

For more information and updates, please check the festival website at www.AllSportsLAFilmFest.com or write info@AllSportsLAFilmFest.com.

We are currently accepting submissions and our next deadline is April 15th.

indieWIRE posted this article about the Cinereach awards, about which I hadn’t heard before. The Reach Film Fellowship looks like an intense program for nascent filmmakers, and Cinereach supports filmmakers in a variety of other ways, including “up to $400,000 in grants and awards to documentary and narrative films.”

“Last night’s event was the conclusion of the intensive six-month Reach Film Fellowship program in which McQueen, Russell and two other filmmakers – Jules Monteyne and Dena Greenbaum – were paired with mentors and advisors who helped them take their short films from script or treatment through completion. In addition to Kim and Bishop, this year’s mentors were Producer Jeremy Kipp Walker (“Half Nelson”) and Writer/Director Nicole Kassell (“The Woodsman”). All four fellows received a grant of $5,000 at the start of the program, in addition to donated materials and services from sponsors like Kodak, Postworks and Showbiz Software.”

There are a lot of filmmakers out there struggling in isolation (away from film-active cities like New York, Los Angeles, and Austin, where film programs abound) who probably don’t think to explore their options when it comes to such aid. There’s a lot of money — not to mention services and expertise — to be had just for the asking. Get googling and see what you can find.

Excerpted from Chris Holland’s Film Festival Secrets blog. Read more festival advice in Film Festival Secrets: A Handbook for Independent Filmmakers.