Produce Iowa administers the Iowa Certified Film Festivals program, intended to encourage the growth of Iowa’s film tourism and film industry through identifying and supporting quality homegrown film festivals.
A film festival registered and headquartered in Iowa may apply for certification by the IEDA as a Certified Film Festival (CFF) through the program. The goals of the Program are to distinguish those Iowa film festivals which have created unique film events in their communities and prioritized filmmaker and film enthusiast experiences; promote the CFFs and their supported activities; and provide assistance and encourage collaboration between CFFs.
Certification by the IEDA is an achievement, intended to formally recognize that a particular Iowa film festival is acknowledged to have reached a certain level of significance and professionalism in their community. Certification is organized into different tiers in order to recognize the different types and sizes of film festivals in the state, which will also benefit filmmakers and film audiences when deciding which CFFs to attend. To be certified, a CFF should exemplify the following traits:
An existing and recurring film festival in the state of Iowa that is run with professional, unbiased enthusiasm.
An established film festival that knows its own identity and can be set apart from other film festivals.
An anticipated event year-after-year that benefits the community of film enthusiasts who come to participate in the screenings, workshops, and panels.
A hub for filmmakers who want to further their careers by distributing their films, meeting other film crew, and networking with industry professionals.
