On the eve of our second edition, Barlinale is pleased to announce an open call for rejection letters! We are looking for rejection letters from film festivals that charge submission fees, to be used in an upcoming exhibition at Cinema Nova in Brussels, Belgium. With this exhibition, we look to highlight what festivals take from filmmakers.

We believe there are two key questions we need to ask when determining if a festival is parasitic to cine-scenes: do they pay screening fees; and do they charge submission fees? This practice, which asks filmmakers to gamble their wages in competing for the few remaining crumbs of the programming pie, has become a fixture in the bottom line of festivals of all sizes.

As a counter festival, we believe that screening a film is work and that no one should pay to apply for a job. If you share our frustration, forward us a rejection letter with a note of what it cost you (the amount you paid to submit, or something you denied yourself in order to afford doing so) to barlinale@proton.me and let's put an end to this extractive practice!