Curator Ariella Ben-Dov organizes the festival’s accepted submissions by subject, as opposed to genre; the result in an eclectic mix that can feature documentaries, experiments and short narratives all in one screening. For those who find experimental films daunting the thematic grouping assists the most mainstream viewer with a point of entry into the films. One can’t help seeing that as strikingly democratic if not just good for the post screening coffee chat.

MadCat Fest runs in September but submission begins March 23 – well, early birds submit by March 23rd. “Late Birds” submit by May 21st.

If you’re interested in submitting, you may submit films made any year, of any subject, length or genre. The submission fee ranges from $10- $30, based on a sliding scale. International entrants are not asked for fee.

So if you’re a “bird” with a film and you want to enter the film for consideration, grab your film (in VHS or DVD format – previews will not be returned without SASE) and visit www.madcatfilmfestival.org or call 415 436-9523 for further details.

By Sara S., contributing