International Feature Film

BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE – Selection procedure

In Germany, German Films, Service + Marketing GmbH as the responsible national umbrella organization for the annually appointed selection committee, is in charge of the preparation, organization and implementation of the selection procedures for the German Oscar® entry in the category International Feature Film.

German Films is solely responsible for formal and timely compliance with the guidelines established by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) and acts as the executive coordination office.

1. German Films will publish a call for entries for German producers and world distributors to register their film with German Films in good time. A film may only be submitted to the selection committee once.

2. German Films checks the submitted documents for completeness and compliance with the guidelines established by AMPAS. In case of doubt, German Films follows the explanations of the Academy.

3. The selection committee convened by German Films consists of nine members. Eight organizations and institutions from the German film industry each nominate one representative and one alternate for the selection committee. The German Film Academy appoints two representatives from two different departments. The following film industry associations and guilds are represented:

Producers Guilds (2), Distributors Guild, Association of German World Sales Companies, Exhibitors Association, German Film Critics, Directors Guild, German Film Academy.

The nominees do not have to be members of the designating organizations, but should have actively practiced their profession in the last five years. The participation of a committee member who has a direct economic interest in one of the films submitted is inadmissible. The work in the selection committee is voluntary. The names of the members of the Committee shall be published in order to guarantee full transparency. German Films encourages the organizations to follow the rules of diversity and inclusion.

4. German Films forwards the registration documents to the named representatives for information and publishes the submitted films.

5. German Films organizes timely screenings for the selection committee. All committee members view all submitted films in full length in joint film screenings. German Films will moderate the selection discussion. The selection committee elects a spokesperson from among its members, who is entitled to speak for the committee and its decisions. Following the last screening, the committee discusses the films submitted in secret meeting and is supposed to agree on a film.

A film is considered named if a simple majority of the committee members have voted in favor of it. It is not possible to abstain from voting. Voting may be either secret or open. Employees of German Films will attend the meeting as guests. They do not have the right to vote. All participants of the meeting are subject to the duty of confidentiality.

The chairperson of the jury determines the type of vote and the result. German Films announces the result in an official press release, naming the spokesperson and a written explanation for the decision. German Films will immediately forward the results to AMPAS.

Here you can find the current documents for download for the submission to German Films for the 96th Oscar® in the category International Feature Film: