Image: Beautiful Funerals (1996) by Stan Brakhage
Every filmmaker who deposits work with CFMDC becomes a member of our organization. CFMDC is a not-for-profit, artist-run distribution centre that offers many different services to support the diverse needs of our membership. Filmmakers can use this page as reference for information about CFMDC distribution.
Membership Benefits
Filmmakers who have work in distribution with CFMDC are lifelong CFMDC members. Distribution benefits include:
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Deposited work listed and searchable in our website catalogue alongside contemporary and historical work (and film print in our physical collection for analogue work).
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Filmmaker page on CFMDC website, with login access to preview the entire CFMDC digitized collection online
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For paid screenings, rentals, or sales, administration is covered and workload is reduced
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15% off on rentals of 1411_D space
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Discount on tech services at CFMDC
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Access Discord server, and option of on-demand listing for your film on https://vucavu.com/
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Connection to a broader community of artists, filmmakers, and programmers, including voting rights in our AGM.
Tech services
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Closed captioning and subtitling
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DCP creation
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Equipment rentals
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Revision services
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Festival support
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DVD/Bluray authoring and duplication for institutional sales
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Members enjoy a discounted rate on all tech services. Please email tech@cfmdc.org for details and rates.
Members discord + newsletter
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Please email membership(at)cfmdc.org with the subject line “Discord” for access to our Members’ Lounge on Discord.
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Keep an eye out for our monthly members’ newsletter for announcements, new films, and job opportunities. If you are a member and not receiving these emails, please reach out to membership(at)cfmdc.org.
Collection access
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Members get access to full-length previews on our film catalogue. Log in to access. If you can’t find your username or password, please reach out to membership(at)cfmdc.org.
Membership Fee
CFMDC has two options for membership fees.
Option 1
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$75 new membership fee ($25 membership fee + $50 film deposit fee). This makes you a lifetime member and gives you one film deposit.
If you are able to afford our full administrative cost, you would be paying it forward by allowing us to offer PWYC membership to filmmakers for whom this fee would be a barrier. Thank you!
Option 2
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PWYC (Pay-What-You-Can) new membership fee. If the membership fee is a barrier for you, mention in our correspondence how much you would like to pay and we will invoice you for that amount instead, no questions asked. Just let us know!
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New Film Deposit Fee
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If you already have work in the CFMDC catalogue you can continue depositing work for distribution. $50 for a batch of 1-2 films, $75 for 3 films, $100 for four, and so on.
FAQ
How do I submit a film?
You can check out our submissions page for all the information on submitting new work.
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What’s the distribution timeline?
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Once new and pre-existing members submit their work through our online form, we watch the film as a staff to determine how we can support the work.
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We will send you an email within the month with next steps.
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What criteria do you use when reviewing new submissions?
We aim to support work that fits with our mandate and vision and use this as the main frame of reference.
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Can I send deliverables through email/WeTransfer/Dropbox?
Please transfer your deliverables through our Filemail (cfmdc.filemail.com) or our MyAirBridge (cfmdc.myairbridge.com). We highly prefer that you use one of these services due to reliability.
Is there a deadline for deliverables?
All dates and deadlines are entirely filmmaker-driven. The sooner you send us your work, the sooner we will be able to put it into distribution. If deliverables are on hold or taking a longer time than anticipated you can let us know.
What is the 30-second clip for?
The 30-second clip is publicly posted on our website under your film page and gives a brief preview of the work. You can use a 30-second clip for films under 20 minutes, and a 60-second clip for films over 20 minutes. This is only a guideline - you are welcome to send us a trailer or clip of a different length instead.
Do I need to send a subtitle file/transcript/dialogue list?
It is ideal to have a subtitle file/transcript/dialogue list for accessibility reasons. It also helps many international clients.
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For a full FAQ including royalty timelines, please consult the Membership Documents section.
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Membership Documents
Our standard contract for new film deposits with filmmakers
What we need in order to distribute the work
Frequently asked questions about depositing work and membership