Sorry for Your Loss - Film Festival Submission Fees

Hello! My name is Elizabeth Kallies and I am currently pursuing a Master's degree in Film Directing at the University of Edinburgh. I am in the post-production (editing) stage of my short documentary, Sorry for Your Loss.

I have been around cameras for as long as I remember and my passion for filmmaking was amplified after the loss of my mother. Seeing how quickly and tragically life can change made me want to capture all the good moments while I still had them. I furthered my film skills while studying narrative filmmaking at the University of Wisconsin - Madison, finding myself, over time, more drawn to telling real stories about real people. That passion led me to the Edinburgh College of Art, nestled within a vibrant creative community, where I’m now focusing on documentary filmmaking.

Sorry for Your Loss explores how we talk about grief and to those who have been bereaved. People often mean well, but their words can be unintentionally painful. Phrases like “she’s in a better place” or “everything happens for a reason,” for example, leave me feeling isolated and unsure how to respond. It made me wonder: what should people say? How do we comfort someone when there is really no way to make it better?

In this film, I sit down with others who have lost loved ones to see if they feel similarly to me. Although our stories are different, we share common frustrations and find ourselves not only feeling sad but connected, comforted, and heard.

My goal is that my film will encourage people to start conversations about dealing with grief and feel more comfortable talking about their own loss or with others who have been bereaved. The best way to reach the widest audience possible is to screen my film at film festivals BUT submission fees are expensive! As a student filmmaker working with limited resources, I would really appreciate your generosity in helping me share my film with the world!

I am hoping to screen the films in locations near my supporters! For example, here are the costs of some of the festivals I am looking at:

Wisconsin Film Festival: $35

MKE Short Film Fest: $35

Madison Film Festival: $40

London Short Film Festival: $50

Glasgow Short Film Festival: $50

Edinburgh International Film Festival: $45

If you want to follow along with the making of the film, I post weekly on my film Instagram at elizabethk.films! If you want more information, feel free to message me there!

Thank you for your support and contributions! :)