Film Festival 101 Course - International Children's Media Center

So…how do films get into festivals? Who picks the films and how do they choose?

We’re excited to announce our its first collaboration with One Summer Chicago starting on June 23rd. Nine talented youth in the OSC program will get the inside story on how professional film juries are conducted, and how they make decisions. They’ll discover why some films are rejected and others are accepted in this hands-on jurying course developed by ICMC Founder Nicole Dreiske.

Course Length: June 23-August 1

Time: Monday/Wednesday/Friday, 11:00am-5:30

Instructors: Nicole Dreiske, Michelle Zaladonis, Lomai, Sarah Falkiner

Whether you’re a filmmaker, a film critic, or an aspiring festival founder you won’t want to miss this!

Youth will learn best practices in jurying and curating top tier film festivals. They’ll take a deep dive into festival “selection criteria” before jurying, rating and discussing hundreds of films. As professional film festival jury members, they’ll deliberate to reject or program each entry, then move on to creating mastheads and other curating materials.

Requirements: Students will participate in the course via Zoom using a computer or laptop. Prior experience in film production, screenwriting or criticism is required.

Class Materials: All class materials are included and will be emailed to registered students.

Praise for Film Festival 101

I was able to improve my film writing and criticism skills by jurying the film submissions and creating mastheads and curriculum by the end of the course. I also gained a greater perspective of film’s significant cultural impact by discussing the films with the other course members.

I've been able to refine my critical thinking and film analysis skills during the Festival 101 course. I was able to rate films objectively without personal bias, I developed an eye for films that would be good for other people even if they aren't for me, and I was able to express clearly and thoughtfully my opinions on films we've watched.

This course offered a lot of valuable skills and allowed me to see both excellent and less than excellent examples of what good filmmaking looks like. I learned what to be aware of within my scripts that will connect with, or alienate, audiences and how exactly to get my point across effectively in my work.

Start the registration process by sending your name, email and resume for 2026.