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American Film Market 2026 Returns to Los Angeles, Nov. 10–15

American Film Market 2026 Returns to Los Angeles, Nov. 10–15

The Independent Film & Television Alliance has announced that the 2026 American Film Market will take place November 10–15 at the Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles. The event returns to the venue after spending last fall there following a contentious, one-year relocation to Las Vegas. AFM 2026 will also mark the first edition under the leadership of Jackie Brenneman, who assumes the role of IFTA CEO as longtime executive Jean Prewitt steps down.

Commenting on the decision, IFTA Board Chair and COO & Partner of The Asylum, Paul Bales, noted in a message to stakeholders that the industry’s response to the Market’s return to Los Angeles in 2025 confirmed the Fairmont Century Plaza—along with screenings at AMC Century City 15—as the most effective environment for the full range of AFM business activity. He added that beyond the venue’s upscale setting, the location offers participants seamless access to Los Angeles’ broader production, financing, distribution, agency, and creative ecosystem.

If you want to show your film at the Los Angeles film market, order its conversion to DCP format through our DCP Maker service.

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Top Film Festival dates of 2026

Explore the calendar of major film festivals around the world and submit your application in time to participate.

DCP Maker provides you with insights to anticipate the 2026 film festival season. Explore the dates of the world’s major film festivals including Cannes, Berlin, Sundance, Venice, Locarno, Hot Docs, IDFA, and many more.

If you’re a filmmaker looking to submit your film to a festival, one of the key requirements is often a Digital Cinema Package (DCP). A DCP is a digital version of your film that meets the technical specifications required for projection in a cinema.

DCP Maker will help you create a DCP for your film festival, ensuring that your DCP provides the best possible viewer experience at the film festival.

Order your movie conversion to DCP now!

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The dates mentioned above are subject to change and are regularly updated.

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How to Convert SRT to XML Format for DCP?

To convert an SRT subtitle file to XML format suitable for Digital Cinema Package (DCP), you need to transform the .srt into an Interop or SMPTE-compliant XML subtitle file. Here’s a step-by-step overview of how to do it:

What You Need to Know First

DCP subtitle formats are XML files conforming to either:

  • Interop DCP (older, more compatible)
  • SMPTE DCP (newer, supports more features like Unicode, positioning, etc.)

SRT is a simple subtitle format: Start time –> End time, followed by the text.

DCP XML is much more structured, uses XML schema, and has:

  • <subtitle> elements
  • Timecodes in HH:MM:SS:FF format (frames, not milliseconds!)
  • Frame rate is critical (usually 24fps or 25fps for DCP)

Tools You Can Use

Example: SRT → Interop XML (Simplified)

Input .srt

1
00:00:01,000 –> 00:00:04,000
Hello, world!

2
00:00:05,000 –> 00:00:07,000
This is a test.

Output .xml

XML

Want a XML Subtitles?

If you’re interested, we can provide:

Convert SRT to XML
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How can I create a DCP with subtitles?

To create a DCP (Digital Cinema Package) with subtitles, you’ll need to follow these general steps. This assumes you’re starting from a video (e.g., a ProRes, MP4 or DPX sequence), audio (WAV), and subtitles (SRT, STL, or XML format). The goal is to wrap everything in a DCP structure compatible with cinema playback.

DCP creation tools or service:

  • Free or paid software: EasyDCP, FinalDCP, Clipster, OpenDCP, DCP-o-matic etc.
  • Paid online service: DCP Maker

Subtitling tools (for conversion and preview):

  • Software: Subtitle Edit (Windows), Aegisub, Belle Nuit
  • DIY SRT → XML converter if you’re working with Interop/SMPT format manually

SRT → XML conversion service

Paid online service: DCP Maker SRT to XML D-Cinema Subtitles

Step-by-Step Guide

1. Prepare Your Assets
Video: Export as 24fps, 2K/4K, image sequence (e.g., TIFF, DPX) or a compatible movie file (e.g., ProRes)
Audio: Export as 24-bit WAV, mono/stereo/5.1, at 48kHz or 96kHz
Subtitles: SRT is fine initially, but will need to be converted to DCP-compatible XML

2. Convert Subtitles to DCP XML

Cinema DCPs support two main subtitle formats:

  • Interop XML: Older, limited formatting
  • SMPTE XML: Modern standard, supports more characters and formatting

Use one of the following:

Convert SRT to XML D-Cinema Subtitles

3. Create the DCP

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10 February is the final deadline to submit your film to the goEast – Central and Eastern European Film!

goEast - Central and Eastern European Film

February 10, 2025, is the closing date for submissions for the goEast – Central and Eastern European Film, which will take place in the Germany from April 23 to 29, 2025, in Wiesbaden.

goEast – Festival of Central and Eastern European Film aims at increasing the international audience’s awareness for film-cultural developments in Central and Eastern Europe, at facilitating international contacts between filmmakers and supporting independent filmmaking in Central and Eastern Europe, raising international dialogue, understanding and cultural integration. goEast is organized by DFF – Deutsches Filminstitut & Filmmuseum (Schaumainkai 41, 60596 Frankfurt).

Click to Submit

All invited films will be required to send a DCP file for exhibition, which you can order from DCP Maker at a special discounted price of 30% using promo code GOEAST25 until April 1, 2025.

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31st January is the final deadline to submit your film to the 28th Brussels Short Film Festival!

Brussels Short Film Festival

January 31, 2025, is the closing date for submissions for the 28th Brussels Short Film Festival (BSFF), which will take place in the Belgium from April 24 to May 3, 2025, in Brussels.

Click to Submit

All invited films will be required to send a DCP file for exhibition, which you can order from DCP Maker at a special discounted price of 30% using promo code BSFF25 until April 1, 2025.

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31th January is the final deadline to submit your film to the 17th annual Milwaukee Film Festival (MFF25)!

Milwaukee Film Festival (MFF25)

January 31, 2025, is the closing date for submissions for the 17th Milwaukee Film Festival (MFF25), which will take place in the United States from April 24 to May 8, 2025, in Milwaukee.

Film fans everywhere are encouraged to mark their calendars and save the dates for the 17th annual Milwaukee Film Festival, which will take place April 24-May 8, 2025. 

Click to Submit

All invited films will be required to send a DCP file for exhibition, which you can order from DCP Maker at a special discounted price of 30% using promo code MFF25 until April 10, 2025.

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7 January is the final deadline to submit your film to the Film and Folklore Festival in Trinidad & Tobago!

Film and Folklore Festival in Trinidad

January 7, 2025, is the closing date for submissions for the Film and Folklore Festival, which will take place in the Trinidad & Tobago from March 17 -19, 2025

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All invited films will be required to send a DCP file for exhibition, which you can order from DCP Maker at a special discounted price of 30% using promo code FFF until March 1, 2025.

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30th December is the final deadline to submit your film to the Independent Film Festival Boston (IFFBoston)!

Independent Film Festival Boston (IFFBoston)

December 30, 2024, is the closing date for submissions for the Independent Film Festival Boston (IFFBoston), which will take place in the United States from May 23 to May 30, 2025, in Cambridge.

Named Boston’s Best Film Festival by Boston Magazine in 2016 and 2017, IFFBoston (Independent Film Festival Boston) will be celebrating our 22nd year with our 2025 event. IFFBoston has steadily become the premiere festival in New England and developed a noted national reputation for its quality as a regional festival.

Click to Submit

All invited films will be required to send a DCP file for exhibition, which you can order from DCP Maker at a special discounted price of 30% using promo code IFFBoston25 until May 1, 2025.

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31th December is the final deadline to submit your film to the Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF)!

HKIFF

December 31, 2024, is the closing date for submissions for the Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF), which will take place in the China from March 17 -19, 2025, at Hong Kong.

Click to submit

All invited films will be required to send a DCP file for exhibition, which you can order from DCP Maker at a special discounted price of 30% using promo code HKIFF until March 1, 2025.

Click to make a DCP