Well, I finally did it. The full-length White Wolf / Lobo Blanco has now been submitted to eleven film festivals.
After all the late nights, the edits, the sound work, and the number of times I said “okay, now it’s finished,” the movie is taking its next step. I’m excited. I’m nervous. And I’m already getting far too familiar with the refresh button in my inbox.
Back in August, I shared the trailer’s festival timeline. That was the first chance to introduce this story and see how people responded. Now the completed feature has its own list, its own categories, and its own very long stretch of waiting.
Eleven festivals. The whole story.
These feature submissions went in on October 21 and 22. Some are big swings I wanted to take. Others offer a more focused home for independent work or films made with AI. Together, they give this first feature a chance to find people who connect with the story.
Garden State means a lot to me as a New Jersey filmmaker. And yes, Tribeca is on the list. So is Cinequest. It still feels a little surreal to type those names next to a film that started as an idea I wasn’t even sure I could pull off.
I also entered dedicated AI feature categories at CHARACTERS Awards and World AI Cinema Festival. NeuroScope has the film in both Narrative Feature and AI FILM. New World and La Garriga were entered through their all-category packages, with the completed feature as the submitted project.
The first dates I’m watching: October and November 2026
Here is the full-feature notification calendar, in date order. The last column shows whether I also submitted the trailer to that festival as a separate earlier entry.
| Festival & feature entry | Feature notification date | Trailer also entered? |
|---|---|---|
| CHARACTERS Awards Best AI Feature Film | October 31, 2026 | No |
| Purgatory Film Festival Best Feature Film | November 1, 2026 | Yes — earlier entry; not selected |
| NeuroScope Films Narrative Feature + AI FILM | November 5, 2026 | No |
| World AI Cinema Festival Best AI Feature Film | November 15, 2026* | No |
| Wrap Film Festival Grand Prix: Feature Film | November 16, 2026 | Yes |
*World AI Cinema Festival lists November 15 for its first selection notifications. It announces later stages during the month, with monthly winners scheduled for November 30.
The waiting continues into 2027
| Festival & feature entry | Feature notification date | Trailer also entered? |
|---|---|---|
| Prague Film Festival 2027 Feature Film | January 11, 2027 | No |
| Cinequest Film Festival Thriller, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Horror Feature Competition | January 29, 2027 | No |
| Garden State Film Festival Feature | February 1, 2027 | Yes |
| Tribeca Festival Features | April 30, 2027 | No |
| New World Film Festival V.I.P. — all categories, marketing + interview | May 18, 2027 | Yes |
| La Garriga Film Fest V.I.P. — interview, all categories + marketing | June 1, 2027 | Yes |
These are the festivals’ currently published notification dates, checked October 25, 2026. They are decision dates, not screening dates, and festivals may revise them. Each festival name links to its listing.
Where the trailer and the feature cross paths
Five festivals have received both versions: Garden State, Wrap, New World, La Garriga, and Purgatory. The trailer and feature are separate submissions, so each has its own result.
There is one detail I want to keep clear: Purgatory’s earlier trailer entry was not selected. The full film is a new entry in Best Feature Film. The “yes” in that row means the trailer was submitted there previously; it does not mean that earlier decision is still pending.
The trailer has already given us a moment I’ll never forget: Best Trailer at the New York Istanbul Short Film Festival. That win belongs to the trailer. Now I get to see what happens when the full story has its turn.
Excited? Absolutely. Patient? We’re working on it.
A few answers could arrive before Thanksgiving. Others won’t arrive until well into next year. The current calendar runs all the way to June 2027, which means there may be stretches where the update is simply: still waiting.
I know an entry doesn’t guarantee a selection. But getting this film finished and putting it forward is a milestone I want to enjoy. There was a time when making a full movie felt like the impossible part. Now it exists, and I’ve given it a chance.
As decisions come in, I’ll share them here—the good news, the disappointments, and whatever comes next. Thank you for following along, encouraging me, and helping make this whole adventure feel a little less crazy.
Eleven festivals. One finished feature. Now we wait.
— Anthony
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