Don't Let Your Film Poster become a Jumbled Mess of Festival Laurels

Re: Laurels on Posters. I get asked about this a lot. When deciding how to use their laurels, filmmakers should ask themselves these questions:

•  What do these laurels say about my film?
•  Will screenings at any of these festivals potentially disqualify me from other festivals? (Remember to read all the rules of the festivals you are submitting to - don’t be caught off guard by this!)

Over time, I have generally gotten away from putting laurels on my poster, unless the festival is particularly prestigious. Laurels from a top-tier and/or Oscar-qualifying festival (or, obviously, one of the Big 5) are impressive.  I would limit the laurels to no more than 3, so the poster doesn’t look too cluttered. But, that is just for top-tier festivals; if it’s not a prestigious festival, having the laurels on my poster does nothing to elevate the status of my film, and may detract from it.

Also, while It may be impressive to your Aunt Sally that you got into so many film festivals, many fests don’t like it if you’ve had too many screenings before them - especially if the other festivals are in the same region / state / country (again, this will depend largely on each festival’s premiere requirements - READ THE RULES!).

One way to use the laurels: try only putting one laurel at a time on a still from your film (maybe switching up the stills for different fests), just for social media use when promoting a particular screening, selection or award. Festivals are more likely to repost your graphic, if they are the only festival you are promoting with a post.

That being said, I know it can feel good to put all the laurels on there. It’s like a trophy in itself, signifying your accomplishments.

If that’s the case, I would have 2 versions of your poster - one with laurels for your own pleasure, and one without, for general promotion of the film. For marketing, IMDb, etc., I would stick to a poster without laurels (unless the laurels are from a top-tier festival).