Exclusive or non-exclusive: which licence should you choose?

Both let your film appear on The Short Film Show, and with both you keep the copyright. The difference is whether your film can be anywhere else at the same time.

The short version

Non-exclusive. Your film can stay on YouTube, Vimeo, your own site and other platforms, and keep screening wherever you like. It sits in the catalogue with standard visibility.

Exclusive. Your film is only here for 12 months. In return it gets prioritised promotion, including a place in the Exclusive Films section of the home page and an Exclusive badge on the film. We can’t promise a particular spot or date.

What exclusive means

For the length of the agreement, normally 12 months from the day your film goes live, the film can’t be made available to anyone else. That means not on YouTube, Vimeo or other streaming platforms. You can’t withdraw it during that time unless we agree in writing.

When the 12 months end, the film carries on under the standard non-exclusive terms unless you renew, and you can then remove it on 30 days’ written notice.

What non-exclusive means

You can keep your film on your own website, YouTube or Vimeo, keep screening it, and place it with other platforms on a non-exclusive basis. There is one limit: you can’t give anyone else rights that conflict with ours, such as an exclusive deal that would need your film to come off The Short Film Show.

Rights and ownership

Whichever you choose, you keep full ownership of your film. We don’t acquire or buy rights. You grant us a licence to show and share your film on the terms you chose. That licence lets us:

• stream your film securely to viewers on our platform and apps;
• show it on our 24/7 channel;
• license it to partner platforms and channels that carry The Short Film Show;
• use trailers, stills, extracts and promotional material to advertise your film;
• display your title, synopsis, credits and images in our catalogue.

Showing your film on a partner platform or channel is a licence to show it, not a sale of it. You keep ownership, and we don’t buy your rights.

You can withdraw a film within 14 days of uploading it, by writing to support@theshortfilmshow.com. After that the licence continues and the film stays on the platform, other than for a valid copyright claim.

The 24/7 channel

The channel is about reach. Viewing on it isn’t part of the Filmmaker Impact Fund, whichever licence you choose.

How to choose

Choose exclusive if you want prioritised promotion, if your film isn’t online anywhere else, or if you want a clear premiere window.

Choose non-exclusive if your film is already online or still screening, if you want to use it in your portfolio and pitches, or if you simply want the audience without restrictions.

You choose when you submit, and you can’t switch afterwards. How to submit your film