Pacific Whale Foundation (PWF), a nonprofit organization with a mission to protect the ocean through science and advocacy and inspire environmental stewardship, is inviting visual storytellers with a passion for ocean and marine wildlife conservation to submit their films for consideration in PWF’s 7th Annual World Whale Film Festival (WWFF). The hybrid in-person and online festival kicks off the week of June 8, 2023 — World Ocean Day.
Founded in 2017 by award-winning PWF Documentary Filmmaker Selket Kaufman, WWFF reflects the organization’s unwavering commitment to foster awareness of ongoing threats facing the world’s oceans and marine wildlife while engaging in ongoing research to help mitigate these dangers and conducting campaigns to educate the public on how they can be part of the solution.
Each year, WWFF showcases films about the ocean, marine wildlife conservation, Indigenous ecological knowledge and environmental stewardship submitted by storytellers from around the globe. The festival’s primary purpose is to raise awareness of major threats to ocean wildlife, from climate change and unsustainable tourism to marine plastic pollution, vessel collisions with marine animals and bycatch (fisheries interactions), while raising vital funds for PWF’s Research, Education and Conservation programs.
Filmmakers are encouraged to submit films of any length for possible inclusion in the 2023 WWFF. Entries will be selected based on the following criteria: originality, storytelling and technical excellence, message, overall impact and artistic merit. PWF only recognizes ethical visual storytelling that accurately represents cultures, ecosystems and wildlife. Filmmakers must guarantee the welfare of all marine wildlife and that any/all involved marine environments were respected and remained undisturbed during filming while abiding by all federal, state and regional regulations during location shoots.
By entering WWFF 2023, each filmmaker acknowledges the visual content submitted is an original creative work that does not infringe on the rights of any other person or business to their knowledge. Information regarding venue location, film schedule and filmmaker panels will be available upon acceptance of submitted works.
For more information about WWFF, submitting films for consideration and full submission guidelines, visit https://filmfreeway.com/WorldWhaleFilmFestival. The initial deadline for submissions is March 1, 2023.
