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About HFF2025
Submissions
Submissions FAQs
Film Genres
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Hertfordshire Film Festival
About HFF2025
Submissions
Submissions FAQs
Film Genres
Contact us
Hertfordshire Film Festival
About HFF2025
Submissions
Submissions FAQs
Film Genres
Contact us

Explore the Exciting World of Film Genres for the
Hertfordshire Film Festival 2025!

Are you ready to create something amazing for the big screen? Whether you're into action-packed adventures, spooky stories, or heartfelt dramas, there’s a genre out for you to choose.

Here’s a quick guide to some popular film genres you can choose from when making your movie for the festival.
Remember, these are just a few ideas to get you started—you have the freedom to explore and get creative or even mix genres together!

🎬 Action

  • What is it?: Fast-paced films filled with excitement, stunts, and physical challenges.

  • What to Expect: Running, jumping, battles, and daring escapes. The characters that you create are always on the move!

  • Why Choose This?: If you love creating tension and keeping your audience on the edge of their seats then action is for you.

👻 Horror

  • What is it?: Films designed to scare and thrill your audience with suspense. Exploring mysteries and the supernatural.

  • What to Expect: Creepy settings, jump scares, and eerie soundtracks. Your goal is to keep viewers hiding behind their popcorn!

  • Why Choose This?: If you enjoy building suspense and playing with fear, horror lets you explore the darker side of storytelling.

😂 Comedy

  • What is it?: Light-hearted films that aim to make people laugh and feel good.

  • What to Expect: Funny characters, humorous situations, and clever dialogue. Comedies often have happy or upbeat endings.

  • Why Choose This?: If you have a great sense of humour and love to see people smile.

💔 Drama

  • What is it?: Emotional films that focus on realistic characters and situations, often dealing with serious themes.

  • What to Expect: Deep storylines, powerful performances, and heartfelt moments. Dramas often explore relationships and personal growth.

  • Why Choose This?: If you like telling stories that connect with people on an emotional level, drama allows you to explore complex characters and situations.

🌍 Documentary

  • What is it?: Films that tell true stories about real-life events, people, or places.

  • What to Expect: Interviews, real footage, and factual storytelling. Documentaries often aim to inform, inspire or educate.

  • Why Choose This?: If you’re passionate about real-world issues and love exploring the truth, documentaries let you share important stories with others.

🚀 Science Fiction (Sci-Fi)

  • What is it?: Films that explore futuristic or imaginative concepts, such as space travel, time travel, and advanced technology.

  • What to Expect: Robots, aliens, and futuristic worlds. Sci-fi often tackles big ideas about society, humanity, and the universe.

  • Why Choose This?: If you love imagining what the future could look like or creating new worlds, sci-fi gives you the chance to push the boundaries of what’s possible.

💞 Romance

  • What is it?: Films that focus on love and relationships, often with an emotional journey for the characters.

  • What to Expect: Romantic gestures, heartfelt moments, and love stories with ups and downs.

  • Why Choose This?: If you enjoy exploring the complexities of love and relationships, romance lets you dive into the feelings that connect us all.

🕵️ Mystery

  • What is it?: Films that revolve around solving a puzzle or uncovering secrets, often with twists and turns.

  • What to Expect: Clues, suspects, and surprise endings. Mysteries keep the audience guessing until the very end.

  • Why Choose This?: If you enjoy keeping people on their toes and crafting clever plots.

Remember:

This list isn’t exhaustive - there are tons of other genres out there! Feel free to mix and match genres, or even create your own.
Just keep in mind that we do not accept the following types of films:

  • Training videos

  • Music videos

  • Behind-the-scenes 'making of’ films

  • Trailers, extracts of longer films, or incomplete films

  • Straightforward recordings of arts (or other) events

  • Film clips made solely for curriculum learning

  • Video diaries (unless used creatively within a narrative) or vox pops

So, get creative, pick your genre, and start making your film. We can’t wait to see what you come up with for the Hertfordshire Film Festival 2025!

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