2013 Film Tech Info

Feature Films

SXSW ONLY accepts 35mm Sony HDCAM or DCP as exhibition formats for feature films. For information about shorts can be found after the feature film specs.

35mm FILM

  • We show films that are 24fps with aspect ratios of 1.33, 1.85, and 2.35.
  • Acceptable sound formats for 35mm are mono, stereo, DolbySR, and DolbySRD.
  • We do not show any other film formats - no 16mm, Super-16mm or 70mm.
  • Please check your print before you send it as we will not be able to do a full run-thru. Additionally, a majority of our 35mm films will be plattered, so there will be no chance to do any quick one reel checks before your screening.

HDCAM

  • HDCAM at 1080i/59.94 or 1080p/23.98 pst, NO PAL.
  • Acceptable sound formats for HDCAM are Mono, Stereo, and Lt/Rt on channels 1 and 2, with the option of Dolby E on 3 and 4.
  • While a majority of festival venues will be Dolby E equipped, we cannot guarantee Dolby E at all screenings.
  • All HDCAM must be formatted to show at 16x9 (1.78). If your film was shot at 4x3, then it must be pillarboxed (black bars on the sides) within the 16x9 frame. Also, NO ANAMORPHIC SQUEEZES in the 16x9.
  • We will not screen DVD or Blu-ray, as they are unreliable formats for exhibition.
  • HDCAM tapes have a maximum length of 124 minutes, please contact us if your film exceeds that length.
  • We make it a policy to complete a thorough quality check of each and every film we receive, however we cannot do so in our venues, or on a large projected screen.
  • We recommend viewing your film in an adequate venue prior to sending it off, so that you may catch any issues that will show up during exhibition. Note: If for some reason your film arrives well after the shipping deadline, we may not have time to do an adequate check. So PLEASE BE ON TIME.
  • Additionally, the only variable we will be able to adjust in our venues is the volume (projectors are set and calibrated for the entire fest), so you must be confident in the image quality of your tape.
  • Download a copy of our HD Video Spec Sheet to give to your editor or post house here, or at the bottom of this page.

Short Films

The format for short films is a High Quality Quicktime file encoded in the following:

  • HD Submissions:

    • Codec - Apple ProRes 422 (HQ) or Animation
    • Dimensions - 1920 x 1080 or 1280 x 720 Square Pixel Aspect
    • Frame Rate - 29.97 or 23.976
    • Audio - 2 Track Stereo or LT RT, 48K, 24 or 16bit not exceeding -3dBFS

  • SD Submissions:

    • Codec - Apple ProRes 422 (HQ) or Animation
    • Dimensions - 720 x 486 D1 Pixel Aspect
    • Frame Rate - 29.97 or 23.976
    • Audio - 2 Track Stereo or LT RT, 48K or 16bit not exceeding -3dBFS

    You may send this on a hard drive, or if it is small enough, upload it to your own FTP for us to download. Email any questions about encoding to: gabe@sxsw.com

  • NO PAL formats will be accepted.

  • Short films in Shorts Programs will be compiled onto a master HDCAM.
  • Short films playing before features MUST submit on HDCAM 1080i/59.94 or 1080p/23.98 since they will not be compiled.
  • Our video projection is full frame 1.78 aspect ratio (16x9). If your video is 4x3, 1.85, 1.66, or 2.35/2.39/Scope you must have it pillarboxed or letterboxed during the lab transfer to allow it to be screened at 16x9 without any image distortion
  • Please send us your short film by the date given, as we need enough time to compile our 12 programs.
  • Since we are compiling the shorts program, replacement copies will only be allowed if they are received before our shipping deadline.

Please read over carefully and contact Gabe Van Amburgh with any questions or other technical inquiries.

Gabe Van Amburgh
Film Technical Coordinator
gabe@sxsw.com
512-467-7979 x 177

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SXSW Video Information Sheet.pdf63.41 KB