American West Film Fest
Celebrating the best in independent film made in the 21st century. Submit your feature or short film for consideration in our monthly awards!
Categories - Features
Best Feature Documentary
Best Feature Drama / Thriller
Best Feature Western
Best Feature Comedy
Best Feature Horror
Best Feature Sci-Fi
Best Feature Animation
Best Feature AI Generated Film
Best Feature Music or Dance Film
Best Feature Low Budget Film (under $20k)
Categories - Shorts
Best Short Documentary
Best Short Drama / Thriller
Best Short Western
Best Short Comedy
Best Short Horror
Best Short Sci-Fi
Best Short Animated Film
Best Short AI Generated Film
Best Music or Dance Short Film
Best Low Budget Short Film (under $5k)
Festival Rules
| Title | Regulation |
|---|---|
| Eligibility | We consider ourselves a 21st Century Film Festival. Any films created from January 1, 2000 on are eligible to submit. |
| Submission Limits & Categories | Filmmakers may only submit one film per category each month, but may submit multiple films in different categories. |
| Screening Format | Currently, the festival does not hold in-person events. However, our format is subject to change and may evolve to include live, public screenings in the future. |
| Premiere Status | Because we are a monthly festival designed to celebrate the best in independent film, we do not require a World, National, or Regional Premiere status for submission. Films that are currently available publicly online (YouTube, Vimeo, etc.) remain eligible for all monthly awards. |
| Prior Submissions | Projects submitted to the festival in previous months or years are eligible for re-submission only if the film has been significantly recut or altered. |
| Runtime Definition - Feature Films | Any narrative, documentary, or experimental work with a total running time of 40 minutes or longer (including credits). |
| Runtime Definition - Short Films | Any project with a total running time of 39 minutes and 59 seconds or shorter (including credits). |
| Language & Subtitles | All non-English language films must include embedded, legible English subtitles. |
| Closed Captions | English-language films are strongly encouraged to include English Closed Captions (CC) or subtitles for accessibility, though it is not strictly required for submission. |
| Secure Screeners | All submissions must be provided via a secure online screener (a password-protected Vimeo or YouTube link, or a direct FilmFreeway screener upload). We do not accept physical media (DVDs, Blu-rays, or flash drives). |
| Updated Links | If your screener link or password changes during the judging period, you must notify the festival immediately. Dead links may result in disqualification without a refund. |
| Clearances & Intellectual Property Rights Ownership | By submitting to the American West Film Fest, the applicant represents and warrants that they hold all necessary rights, licenses, and clearances to exhibit the film. No films with be exhibited without prior filmmaker acknowledgement. |
| Music & Archival | All music, trademarked imagery, and archival footage must be fully cleared for public exhibition if accepted to be screened. |
| Indemnification | The submitting filmmaker agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the American West Film Fest, its staff, and its venue partners from any claims, liabilities, losses, damages, and expenses (including attorney's fees) arising from any copyright or trademark infringement within the submitted work. |
| The Monthly Awards | Our jury reviews all submissions to select up to 20 monthly Gold Award Winners across our feature and short categories as well as up to 40 Silver Award Winners. Films are judged purely on a standardized matrix of Creativity, Story Originality, and Overall Production Value. |
| General Hold Harmless | By submitting to the American West Film Fest, the applicant agrees to hold the festival, its directors, staff, volunteers, and venue partners harmless from any and all claims, liabilities, losses, damages, and expenses (including attorney's fees) arising from physical injury, property damage, or loss sustained during participation in the festival or attendance at any live events. |
| Technical Failures | We strive to provide the highest quality exhibition for our filmmakers. However, the American West Film Fest is not liable for any technical issues, projector or audio failures, or file formatting glitches that may occur during screenings. |
| Force Majeure & Event Cancellation | The American West Film Fest reserves the right to alter festival dates, venues, or formats at its sole discretion. The festival is not liable for any costs incurred by filmmakers (such as travel or lodging) in the event of a cancellation or date change due to extreme weather, public health emergencies, venue closure, acts of God, or other unforeseen circumstances. Submission fees are strictly non-refundable under any circumstances, including festival cancellation. |
| Final Authority | The festival reserves the right to update or amend these rules at any time. All programming decisions, including monthly awards and annual live showcase selections, are final and at the sole discretion of the festival organizers. |
Last Updated July 8, 2026
Our Mission
At American West Film Fest, we believe in the power of storytelling to inspire, challenge, and connect us. Founded in 2026, our mission is to celebrate independent cinema made by both emerging and established filmmakers from around the world. We are dedicated to showcasing innovative, diverse, and thought-provoking films that push boundaries and spark meaningful conversations.
What We Look For
Whether it’s a feature film, documentary, or short, American West Film Fest champions creative voices and unique visions. We curate our awards across a wide range of genres, and most of all, we celebrate the independent filmmaker's ingenuity.
What We Offer Filmmakers
We hate entering a festival to never hear back or see your film on the website when the submission status on FilmFreeway says "accepted". That's why we promise to update our winners on the 1st of the month on our website and socials! We also provide our winners with laurels and certificates as a token for all the hard work they put into their projects.
Our Story
Our founder, Elizabeth Holloway, has been an independent filmmaker in Colorado for over twenty years. She has co-produced film events including Open Screen Night at the Oriental Theater in Denver, Colorado and the Spaghetti and Westerns Film Festival in Colorado and New Mexico. Her love of independent film festivals and connections to other film afficados spurred the idea to begin the American West Film Festival. The idea being to start online for the first year, then taking the festival live in a venue in the second year, after which we would begin rotating the festival to different American West towns as the festival progresses.We thank you for being here for our first year!
September 2026 Gold Award Winners
| Award | Film Name | By |
|---|---|---|
| Best Documentary Feature | Film Name | Creator |
| Best Comedy Feature | Film Name | Creator |
| Best Music / Dance Feature | Film Name | Creator |
| Best Music / Dance Short | Film Name | Creator |
| Best Animation Short | Film Name | Creator |
| Best Horror Short | Film Name | Creator |