We are still accepting Bumper submissions for the 2021 Festival!

What is a bumper?

Bumpers are very short (under 60 seconds) and must be horror themed. They’re often darkly humorous films and must end with the Portland Horror Film Festival™ logo. Bumpers are shown before features or before blocks of short films, and are a kind of “station identification” to kick off each block with a bang. They give you a chance to show off your creativity and possibly win a “Best Bumper” award laurel.

Requirements

Bumpers are free to submit, but have very strict rules, and those that don’t follow all of the rules will be disqualified. So, please read carefully:

• Must be under 60 seconds in total runtime
• Must be horror genre-oriented (think spooky, bloody, or suspenseful).
• Should not have a credit roll at the end (credits will be listed in the fest program, though if you must have on-video credits, very minimal credits could appear at the beginning or as unobtrusive overlays during the film).
• Must end with the Portland Horror Film Festival logo available to download here at our logo page and hold it clearly on-screen for 2 seconds before fading out.
• LOGO USAGE:
  • You may animate elements of the logo, if you like, as long as the logo appears in its full provided form for those final two seconds.
  • It’s okay to super-impose the logo over footage, if appropriate, or for it to appear over empty frames at the end.
  • If necessary, you may use the logo in only black or white for black and white films (or where the art demands it), but do not introduce new colors to the logo itself (for example, don’t show a red or purple or blue version of the logo… if it’s in color, you should use the green, and white/black logo colors).
  • If necessary, the logo can change shape (for example, an an on-screen element can “morph” into the logo shape, or it can change for other effects like heat or water waves), but be sure that the logo appears fully in its provided form and holds on screen that way for the final two seconds of the bumper.
• Bumpers must be submitted by May 10th through FilmFreeway at https://filmfreeway.com/festival/PortlandHorrorFilmFestival (you’ll need a free FilmFreeway account).

Prizes

Up to 6 bumpers will be selected to play on the big screen at the festival, and one of those will be awarded as “Best Bumper” after the conclusion of the festival.

Makers of the 6 selected bumpers will receive:

• Portland Horror Film Festival OFFICIAL SELECTION laurel graphic
• A Single festival pass good for all days of the festival, good for one person.

In addition, the creator of the bumper awarded “Best Bumper” will receive (after the festival):

• Portland Horror Film Festival BEST BUMPER laurel graphic
• A FilmFreeway waiver code good for a short or feature-length submission to the Portland Horror Film Festival’s 2022 season.