submit to cinekink!

CineKink is gearing up for our 2024 season… and we’d love to consider your work for the festivities!

Dedicated to the recognition and encouragement of sex-positive and kink-friendly depictions in film and television, we are seeking projects that explore and celebrate the wide diversity of sexuality for our NYC-based festival and virtual encores, and a national screening series to follow.

We’re looking to blur some boundaries and will consider offerings of any length and genre drawn from both the independent film world and the adult, with works ranging from documentary to drama, camp comedy to artsy experimental, mildly spicy to quite explicit — and everything in between. Basically, as long as it involves consenting adults, just about anything celebrating sex as a right of self-expression is fair game.

(Far be it from us to define “kink” — if you think your work might make sense in this context, do send it along. Nonetheless, please read ALL guidelines before submitting, and make sure your work fits with our sex-focused niche!!)

.There are two ways to submit. Choose just one!

submit via filmfreeway:

submit directly to cinekink:

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festival rules/submission guidelines

eligible works

Please read ALL rules and guidelines before submitting, and make sure your work fits with our sex-focused niche!! If it’s not clear from your synopsis that it does, please include a comment with your submission as to how it might be a match for us. It is your responsibility to determine whether your work might be appropriate for the festival, and your submission fee is not refundable.

All genres will be considered for inclusion in the festival and there is currently no restriction on production completion dates, as long as your submission is a finished work.

We do not require premiere status for your work to be considered, but we do request that you refrain from any public NYC screenings in the month leading up to and including the CineKink festival dates.

  • Feature works are those longer than 40 minutes; shorts are those works 40 minutes and under.
  • We will consider original digital series for inclusion in the festival, with up to three episodes totaling less than 60 minutes counting as a single submission.
  • We also accept 5-20 minute excerpts of longer works, both for general programming and for inclusion in our special “Bring It!” competition showcasing adult entertainment.

what to submit

A completed entry form and an entry fee must accompany each feature, short, excerpt and/or series submitted.

Preview screeners may be submitted through our submission platform (FilmFreeway) or online, via a link to a streaming copy (i.e. VHX, Vimeo, or YouTube). Please note any necessary password and update us if it changes.

Please be sure to include a log-line description of your work, and a brief synopsis if available. A publicity still or two from the project is also welcome. Hold off on sending any additional materials at this time.

To ensure timely selection notification and communications, please keep us updated with your current email address, and add the domain “cinekink.com” to any spam filters.

entry fees and deadlines

  • Early: $20 shorts/excerpts/episodes; $30 features – January 5th
  • Regular: $25 shorts/excerpts/episodes; $35 features – February 9th 23rd
  • Late: $30 shorts/excerpts/episodes; $45 features – March 29th
  • Final: $35 shorts/excerpts/episodes: $55 features – May 3rd
  • Alumni Fee Waiver: February 9th (up to three submissions per filmmaker)
  • Deadlines are for midnight/11:59 pm/Eastern time, meaning that’s the time by which you need to finalize your submission, including payment and screening link.
  • Our email address for Paypal payments is info@cinekink.com. If you choose to pay fees via PayPal, please contact us when you do, so we’re on the look-out for your payment, and include a print-out of your transaction with your submission. To bypass our spam filter, head your email “Submitting to CineKink.”
  • Payment of entry fee is NOT required from alumni directors whose work has previously screened at CineKink; limit of three entries per, submitted by our “regular” deadline of February 9th. If you’re eligible for this, you will receive a waiver code via an email that will be sent to all alumni.
  • We are also happy to consider extending discounts and waivers to works that have been featured at a “like-minded,” sex-focused festival (ie Berlin PFF, SFPFF, SECSfest, etc). Please contact us for further details.

questions & contact

Email us at cinekink2023 (at) cinekink (dot) com. Please use header “Submitting to CineKink” for quicker routing.

selection and notification

Programming decisions are made by the festival director after review by any selection committees/designees. We expect that all film selections will be determined by June 15, 2024, and we will notify all filmmakers, via e-mail, of which films and videos have been selected. A full schedule of the festival, including exact screening times, will be sent out shortly thereafter.

Once a work has been selected, it may not be withdrawn. We will, however, consider exceptions for instances where inclusion in CineKink NYC may adversely effect a work’s premiere status at another festival. If this is or becomes a possibility, please let us know as soon as possible so we can work with you to avert a potential conflict.

exhibition formats

Specs for exhibition files are as follows:
Digital H.264 ; 1920 x 1080 (16:9 or pillar-boxed 4:3)

All exhibition files must incorporate captioning, either as a burn-in (preferred) or as a separate .srt file; or at the very minimum, a transcript of your dialog should be provided. (If you need help w/this, please reach out. There are several ponline latforms that enable you to create such a file quite easily and affordably. You do not need to go to great effort or expense!)

We will send additional formatting and delivery instructions with our selection notifications.

publicity and marketing

All films selected for CineKink NYC may be briefly excerpted for publicity purposes. CineKink reserves the right to promote any work to print, broadcast or internet media as required to market the festival and our organization.

screening fees

While CineKink does not pay screening fees for submitted work programmed during the festival, we do pay royalties for tour appearances where possible. Our primary focus is on producing the best possible vehicle for sex-positive and kink-friendly works and promoting them as widely as possible.

festival awards and touring showcase

In addition to our annual NYC festival run, presently scheduled for August 2024, we also award and showcase CineKink works as follows:

features (over 40 minutes):

All submitted feature works selected for competition at CineKink NYC will be eligible to receive an Audience Choice award, as determined by audience balloting. In deference to market premiere considerations, feature works will be selected for inclusion in the CineKink touring showcase on a case-by-case, invitational basis only.

shorts (40 minutes and under):

CineKink will present awards to short films and videos identified by our jury as “best” in a variety of categories. These shorts may be included in the festival’s touring showcase to represent the “Best of CineKink” for the year following their award. All shorts programmed for CineKink NYC will be considered eligible for inclusion in the touring showcase and will be selected for that on a case-by-case basis, as determined by the festival director.

excerpts (5-20 minutes):

CineKink NYC will present awards to excerpted work identified by our audience as their favorite during a special “Bring It!” adult entertainment competition during the festival. All excerpts programmed for CineKink NYC will be considered eligible for inclusion in the touring showcase and will be selected for that on a case-by-case basis, as determined by the festival director.

original digital series (up to three episodes, totaling less than 30 minutes):

CineKink may present awards to original digital series/episodes identified by our jury as “best” in a variety of categories. All series/episodes programmed for CineKink NYC will be considered eligible for inclusion in the touring showcase and will be selected for that on a case-by-case basis, as determined by the festival director.

By submitting your work to CineKink NYC, you grant CineKink permission to showcase that work in the manner described above, including any applicable tour appearances. 

submission checklist:

  • ___ Link to online, streaming version
  • ___ Complete and signed entry form/agreement
  • ___ Payment made via Film Freeway or Paypal (include print-out of receipt) 
  • ___ A log-line description of your film/video

submission agreement

By entering your film or video for consideration, you attest that you are legally authorized to submit the work to CineKink and that all necessary releases, licenses and records have been obtained with respect thereto. You shall indemnify and hold CineKink harmless from and against any and all claims, liabilities, losses, damages, and expenses (including but not limited to attorney’s fees, and costs of the court) which may be incurred by reason of any claim involving copyright, trademark, credits, publicity, screening rescheduling or cancellation, and loss of or damage to the screening videos entered. CineKink reserves the right to remove a work from festival consideration and/or programming for any reason or for no reason and shall not be liable for any refund or claims of any kind arising out of such removal. If your work is accepted, you expressly grant CineKink the non-exclusive right and license to exhibit and utilize your film/video as described in these festival rules.