2025 PARTICIPANT KEY DATES*

Friday, January 10, 2025
Event: Igniter Meet & Greet
Are you looking for a team to join? Meet others who are considering joining the challenge, too. We’ll be there to answer your questions and discuss the process. 

Monday, January 13, 2025
Submissions Close
Last chance to sign up for the 2025 Canadian Comedy Film Igniter!

Friday, January 17, 2025 - 12:00 pm - 3:00 pm ET
Workshop: Script Writing Basics / Comedy for Short-Form Content
Virtual event, Workshop Leaders: Liesl Lafferty (Firecracker Writing Dept) & Naomi Snieckus (Mr. D, Popularity Papers)

Friday, January 24, 2025 - 12:00 pm - 3:00 pm ET
Workshop: Producing / Directing on a Four-week Timeline
Virtual event, Workshop Leaders: Filmcoop Inc. (Less Than Kosher) & Winnifred Jong (Pretty Hard Cases, Tokens)

Friday, January 31, 2025 - 12:00 pm - 3:00 pm ET
Workshop: Team Building Conflict and Resolution / DEI /

Virtual event, Workshop Leaders: Veronica Martin & Sedina Fiati (Firecracker Department)

PROMPT ANNOUNCEMENT!

Friday, February 14, 2025
Event: Mid Challenge Check-In
We are halfway through! Do you have questions? Do you need to problem-solve? Come and chat to find your answers.
Virtual event

Friday, February 28, 2025
Final Deadline for completed films

Monday, March 14, 2025
Official Showcase selections announced

March 24 - 29, 2025, Canadian Film Fest
TheCanadian Film Fest & Firecracker Department Present: The Canadian Comedy Film Igniter Showcase
In-person during the festival
Date and time TBA

*Workshops and dates are subject to change on short notice due to the unpredictable nature of our industry.

COSTS  

• December 24, 2024: Early Deadline, $200

• January 13, 2025: Regular Deadline, $225

• All submission fees include CFF Festival Passes for your team (worth $600+, with a maximum of 3 passes per team). 

AWARDS AND PRIZES

• Complimentary CFF festival passes for up to 3 key participants (valued at $600+). Gives access to 2025 Canadian Film Fest screenings and industry series events. 

• Festival laurels for films selected for the showcase

• In-kind career-building prizes will be awarded to select films.

• VIP invitation to the yearly Firecracker Department Brunch during TIFF.

• Films selected for the showcase will participate in a live audience screening and receive juried feedback from industry professionals. Past jurors included Carolyn Taylor (I Have Nothing, Baroness Von Sketch), Vanessa Matsui (How to Fail as a Pop Star, Ghost BFF), Allana Harkin (Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, Nesting), Winnie Jong (Tokens, Law and Order), Julie Bristow (Catalyst), and Winnie Wong (Wonder PR). 

1. Key Applicants must self-identify as female or non-binary and be 18+. 

2. Key Applicants must be the writer, director, and/or producer of the project (1 - 3 individuals per team maximum). 

3. Key Applicants must be a Canadian citizen or have permanent resident status. 

4. The final film must be a maximum of 6 minutes in length, including end credits. 

5. All films must include elements of specific PROMPTS that will be presented to applicants on January 31, 2025. 

6. All creativity and principal photography (writing/shotlisting/designing/shooting/editing/post-production/delivery) must occur during the official filming period, February 1 - February 28th, 2025. The majority of your film must contain footage shot or created within these dates.

7. The project must fit the comedy genre but is not limited to a genre hybrid so long as the work is intended to be humorous by eliciting laughter from the audience. 

8. The jury focus of the films will be on story, comedy and vision execution over production quality. Teams are encouraged to be creative with the resources available to them. Any type of video or film camera may be used.

9. The project can be in any language, however, English subtitles must be provided for dialogue other than English.

10. Applicants must have the rights to any music and clearance for art used in the film. 

11. Final films must be uploaded on FilmFreeway in its media formatted requirements. 

12. CFF/Firecracker Dept reserves the right to disqualify entries deemed to be inappropriate or otherwise non-compliant. 

13. Top films selected for screening will be determined at the jury’s discretion based on the number of submissions.

14. Canadian Film Fest and Firecracker Department require that you acknowledge Comedy Igniter’s support by including our company logos in the end credits of the project created. Logos and specifications will be provided to you. 

15. The protagonist must be female or non-binary (we want to see stories from these perspectives).