• I/we have read the 72-Hour Filmmaker Showdown rules, regulations and release and understand that failure to adhere to the rules, regulations and release will result in immediate disqualification.
• I/we agree to abide by the decision of the 72-Hour Filmmaker Showdown judges and organizers with regard to all matters and decisions.
• I/we grant the organizers of the 72-Hour Filmmaker Showdown non-exclusive right to use my/our name photograph and submission in connection with any or all promotional or publicity activities regarding the 72-Hour Filmmaker Showdown and the World Ski & Snowboard Festival (including jumbotron, webcasting,
  affiliated websites and part of World Ski & Snowboard Festival social media accounts). I/we also grant the organizers of the Filmmaker Showdown the right to edit film entries for time and content.
• I/we shall be solely responsible for taking all necessary steps to establish and protect any and all copyright associated with my/our submission, and the organizers of the 72-Hour Filmmaker Showdown have no obligations with respect to copyrights.
• I/we will indemnify, defend and hold harmless the 72-Hour Filmmaker Showdown, its employees, sponsors, judges and partners from and against all claims, demands, losses, damages, costs, judgments, liabilities and expenses arising out of, or in connection with, any and all claims arising from, or in connection with, my/our submission.
• I/we agree to have at minimum one representative present at the Mandatory Directors Meetings at 5:30pm on Friday March 27th, 2026 as outlined in the rules and regulations
• I agree to not show my film publicly prior to the screening on Tuesday, April 7th, 2026 and understand that failure to comply with this rule will result in disqualification.
• Filmmakers and their teams will conduct themselves in a respectable and cautious manner when filming.
• The Filmmaker will reserve ownership of the film.
• Filming must not take place on Whistler Blackcomb property.
• To maintain a level playing field and ensure compliance with local and federal regulations, drone use has been omitted from this year’s contest. While drones can enhance production value, they may create an unfair competitive advantage and introduce safety considerations. In addition, Transport Canada requirements—including licensing, insurance, and associated
  administrative obligations—cannot be applied equitably across all teams. As such, drones are not permitted. Any use of drones will result in disqualification.
• Filming must not commence before 6 pm on Friday, March 27th, completed films must be submitted by 6 pm on Monday, March 30th. Teams filming outside of these dates or submitting films after the March 30th deadline will be disqualified.

The contestants are asked to take into account the “spirit of this event”.   The contest is about creativity within a 72-hour period, not creativity around usurping the roles and regulations.

Contestants are encouraged to embrace the ‘spirit of this event’ by showcasing their creativity within the 72-hour period. This contest is an opportunity to celebrate innovation while respecting the land and the event’s guidelines. We value designs that reflect both creativity and stewardship, ensuring the integrity of the roles and regulations is upheld. We also acknowledge and honour the unceded territories of the Squamish Nation and Lil’wat Nation and express our gratitude for the opportunity to create and celebrate here.

Entrants will have a period of 72 hours to shoot, edit and produce their work. Work done in this time period only will be accepted. Submitting work that was shot or produced earlier by the Filmmaker team or otherwise is cause for immediate disqualification. Filmmakers must keep and provide event producers access to all raw footage if requested. Failure to do so will be cause for immediate disqualification.

All filmmakers will be required to accurately set their dates and times on their cameras before the start of filming. Filmmakers must retain all raw footage and be prepared to make this footage available at the discretion of the Event Director, at any time. Failure to date footage will cause for immediate disqualification.

All work must be shot within a 100 square kilometre radius of Whistler Village. Failure to do so will cause immediate disqualification.

Filming must stay within 100 sq km of Whistler Village; no filming on Whistler Blackcomb property.

To maintain a level playing field and ensure compliance with local and federal regulations, drone use has been omitted from this year’s contest. While drones can enhance production value, they may create an unfair competitive advantage and introduce safety considerations. In addition, Transport Canada requirements – including licensing, insurance, and associated administrative obligations – cannot be applied equitably across all teams. As such, drones are not permitted.
Any use of drones will result in disqualification.

Keep areas open, respect public access, protect the environment, and clean up after filming.

All graphics and live-action visuals must be generated within 72hrs. Some previously produced background visuals can be the exception, i.e. a television show playing in the background. Contact the event producers for clarification if required.

There are some production elements that can be done outside of the 72 hours such as scripting, storyboarding, casting and location scouting. Please contact the show’s producer if you need to clarify anything prior to getting started.

MANDATORY PROP: Filmmaker teams will be required to incorporate a MANDATORY PROP. This MANDATORY PROP will be chosen at random by the Festival Producers and revealed and handed out at the Mandatory Directors’ Meeting at 5:30pm on Friday, March 27th, 2026 at the Mountain Club in the Westin. Please note that this MANDATORY PROP must be in frame/on screen for a minimum of 5 consecutive seconds! Entries that ignore this role will be immediately disqualified.

Filmmakers may be individuals or teams. Different individuals may shoot, edit or produce segments of the work. However, Filmmaker teams must choose a team Director to attend meetings and act as the main contact and liaison with the event producers.

Directors MUST attend the MANDATORY DIRECTORS MEETING on Friday, March 27th, 2026 at 5:30 pm at the Mountain Club in the Westin to review contest roles and guidelines and to retrieve the MANDATORY PROP. The contest will begin at 6 pm immediately after the meeting. PLEASE CHECK THE WEBSITE CLOSER TO THE EVENT DATE www.wssf.com. FOR ANY CHANGES ON THE MEETING LOCATION

Finished work must be submitted in person at the Mountain Club in the Westin no later than 6 pm Monday, March 30th, 2026. No exceptions!

Late entries will be reviewed by the panel of industry professionals but will not be shown as a finalist or qualify for prizing. However, the producer of the Filmmaker Showdown may choose to screen a late entry at the Gala if they so choose.

Entries may be in the form of narrative, documentary, action or experimental work. The subject matter is up to each individuals team.

Technical quality may factor into the judges’ decisions therefore we suggest that filmmaker teams use the best equipment available to them. Please refer to the Tech Specs sheet for further details.

Finished work must not be longer than 5 MINUTES, including credits. No exceptions. The minimum length of the film must be no less than 3 minutes. If filmmaker teams do not adhere to these roles they will be disqualified.

Content must be in accordance with commonly accepted Broadcast Guidelines as work may be shown on television and Jumbotron during and after the WSSF. Festival organizers reserve the right to determine what is acceptable

Music and narration are acceptable. Music does not have to be produced within the 72hrs; however, narration must adhere to the 72hr roles. It is the responsibility of the filmmaker to secure music clearance as intended for national television broadcasts. Festival organizers will not be held responsible for any films shown that did not get the necessary music rights.

ALL MUSIC RIGHTS MUST BE SECURED PRIOR TO THE FILMMAKER’S SHOWDOWN. A Music Release Form must accompany your entry. Regretfully, no film will be considered for the final Showdown if music rights have not been cleared.

Films must be free of sponsorship titles and billboards wherever possible.

TICKETS: Each participating team that fulfills the project will receive 2 tickets to the Showdown on Tuesday, April 7th, 2026. Please note: Teams will only be issued tickets if they have submitted a film that adheres to the roles and regulations. Those tickets will be sent digitally on April 6th. The Filmmaker Showdown is one of the most popular events at the WSSF therefore if tickets are not picked up by noon they will be sold to the public.

Each FINALIST team will receive 2 additional tickets to the 72hr Filmmaker Showdown on Tuesday, April 7th, 2026. Teams will have these tickets sent to them digitally.

An independent review committee made up of industry professionals will review all entries and choose a minimum of 5 and a maximum of 10 films to be screened at the Filmmaker Showdown Gala. The review committee will flag films that they believe to be shot outside the 72-hour period and will contact the filmmaker in question to review raw footage.

The review process is the only opportunity for a film to be disqualified prior to the Filmmaker Showdown. If after the Filmmaker Showdown, another finalist feels that roles or regulations have been broken, they must submit a formal protest form. The producers will not protect the identity of the accuser if such a protest form is filed. If the accusation is to be found true decided at the sole discretion of event producers, the winner will forfeit prizing which will then be directed to a charity of the Event Producer’s choosing.

Filmmakers must agree to not show their film publicly prior to the screening on Tuesday, April 7th and understand that failure to comply with this role will result in disqualification.

• The Event Director reserves the right to determine the number of films shown during the Filmmaker Showdown. The final number will be based on the recommendation of the Film Review Panel. The finalists, whose works are chosen to be screened at the Showdown, will be notified no later than the morning of April 7th. Directors or a team designate must be in attendance to present their work on April 7th. It is the responsibility of each filmmaker team to ensure that the Event Producers have appropriate contact information for this notification. All participants are encouraged to attend the Filmmaker Showdown evening on April 7th. 
• There will be a short break between films for set-up and show introductions.
• The order of presenting filmmakers is determined by a random draw held at the Directors Meeting. If a director cannot be present at the Directors Meeting before the event then the producer will pick for them. Filmmakers may not trade positions once the order has been determined. 
• The Director or team designate will have use of a microphone and have no more than 20 seconds prior to the start of the presentation to introduce their work
• A state-of-the-art sound system will be used at the Filmmaker Showdown. Due to the high-quality sound system, filmmakers are encouraged to consider the quality of their music production. Please note that MP3 files, due to their high compression, are not appropriate quality to be used.  (A list of Filmmaker Technical Dos & Don’ts will be posted on the Festival website to help filmmakers make their films the best they can be.)

• A panel of 3 judges will be selected by Filmmaker Showdown Event Producers and the Festival team to choose the Best of Show. The final judging criteria are based on the judges’ overall impression of each film and their professional opinion.
• Judges will take no notes during the presentations but can take notes during the breaks. Judges are precluded by agreements to discuss presentations or reasons for decisions of themselves or others on the panel.
• At the conclusion of the final presentation, judges will cast a single vote for Best of Show using only their best opinion. There are no pre-determined criteria for casting votes. The judges will render their decision based on the overall impression of the film. 
• Judges will write their choice for Best of Show on a ballot and a count will be made. The count and each judge’s voting record will be kept confidential among the judges. 
• The filmmaker with the most amount of votes will be awarded first place. 
• In the event of any unforeseen circumstances or anything not covered by the rules, the judges will decide by majority vote. Their decision(s) are final and may not be appealed. 
• An Audience Choice Award will be awarded on the night of the contest. This will be chosen by the audience after all films have been shown. Votes will be counted by a WSSF member and announced before the Judges choices on the night.
• The World Ski & Snowboard Festival reserves the right to show all entries in post-event television shows & media.
• In the event of any dispute or question around awards, disqualifications or qualifications, rules or any other aspect regarding the event that could impact the outcome, the WSSF Event Director shall be the sole arbitrator of any such dispute and any such ruling that comes from the process is final with no opportunity for appeal.