All Lincoln area teens in grades 6-12 are invited to enter films in the Lincoln Public Library Teen Film Festival. A jury will review all submitted entries and select films to be screened at the festival. Prizes will be awarded for the best films in various categories. 

Teen Film Festival

The Teen Film Festival will take place in Fall 2023. The exact date, time, and location will be announced in the summer. 

The festival is free and open to the public. 

Awards

A panel of judges, including members of the Teen Advisory Board, will select the winners in various categories on the day of the festival. The audience will choose the People's Choice winner.

Submit to the Teen Film Festival

Submit your film here

Submission and Review Process

  1. All films must be uploaded using the online form above between April 1, 2023 and August 31, 2023. 
  2. Films will be reviewed by a jury of both library staff and community members
  3. Entreats will be notified via e-mail by the end of September as to whether their film has been accepted to the festival.

Official Rules

Eligible Filmmakers

  • Entries may be the work of a group or an individual.
  • All entries must be written, directed, and edited by youth aged 12-19 or enrolled in grades 6-12. Seniors whose senior year overlaps with the submission period are also eligible.
  • The writer, editor, and/or director must be a resident of Placer County, California or attend a school in Placer County, California.
  • Adult guidance and instruction are permissible, but the planning and production must reflect teen effort. Note, however, that adults are permitted to act in and assist with films
  • Each filmmaker may submit up to, and no more than, two films.

Format

  • Films must be at least 3 minutes long, and may be no more than 10 minutes in length including credits.
  • Title pages and credits should be included in your film.
  • Unless relevant to the plot, please do not include bloopers in your submitted film.

Content

  • The Teen Film Festival is open to diverse interpretations of the human experience. Sensitive topics should be handled with maturity and avoid being gratuitous, explicitly violent, obscene, or overtly sexual.
  • As such, films must be what would be considered G or PG rated in language and content. Films will be previewed for content.
  • Any guns used as props in films must be fake and still have the orange tip visible on the barrel.

Copyrighted Materials

  • Use of sound or video clips from other films, television shows, music videos, etc. within your submitted work is not permitted unless those clips are in the public domain or you have received written permission from the copyright holder. This includes the use of trademarked products or characters.
  • The Lincoln Public Library Teen Film Festival requires all filmmakers to obtain permission to use copyrighted music in their films. Filmmakers can also use their own original music. Additionally, copyright-free, public domain, trade-friendly or creative commons copyright music can be used.

Other Rules

  • Due to program limitations, the Lincoln Public Library reserves the right to not show a film at the Teen Film Festival, though it may receive recognition at the event.

Legal Disclaimers

By entering your film into the Lincoln Public Library Teen Film Festival, the applicant agrees to all rules and regulations as defined in the official festival rules.

The applicant also grants a non-exclusive license, throughout the world and in perpetuity, to the Library to:

  • Show their film to a non-paying public at a future Lincoln Public Library Teen Film Festival, other partner festivals and promotional events.
  • Display the film for free, in part or in its entirety, on the City of Lincoln website, video streaming websites, and/or social media websites.
  • Have the film listed in the Library's catalog of entries.
  • Add the film to the Library’s collection.