NotaPushyMum.Com

Hi,

My Ds (17 years old now) was lead in a student film a couple of years back. The film was submitted to several film festivals and the director contacted us today to let us know that he won best actor at a film festival in Madrid! Of course we were delighted. She told us that the festival wanted to invite him to attend the award ceremony and of course we were over the moon. She told us that they would contact us with details.

They have now contacted us and said that they would like to invite him to the award and can he attend. This Friday! Talk about short notice! However I presumed that they would pay for his travel expenses but made they made no mention of this in the email. Now I don't know what to do!!!

Does anyone here have any experience about this? Is it usual that they do pay for expenses or do they never pay for expenses? I would ask but don't want to if this is not the done thing. I of course want to support him in his career and I know networking is very important in this business. But on the other hand it is coming up to Christmas and at such short notice flights are expensive. It will set us back around £ 300.00 What do you NPMS think? Would you go for it or would you ask for travel? Don't even know if it is an important festival or not and if it is worth the expense.

Any advice would be much appreciated!

Without hesitation I'd be asking about travel, I'd also be explaining that without it then it just wouldn't be possible for us to attend.

We have been fortunate to attend several FF with DS in the past and usually they offer travel, accommodation and sometimes per diem and party invitations (depending on the fest budget). These should all be made clear when you receive the invitation, even if its last minute and I would certainly go back to them to clarify. Does he have an agent? If so, I would pass it on to her to negotiate.

Earlier this year, DS was invited to a FF in Chicago but they were not going to offer anything so he politely declined. Two days before his film was due to screen, they called to say that they now WOULD fly us there and hotel for three nights, but by then it was too late as he had committed to something else.

Film festivals are fantastic experiences, especially being a winner. Well done to your DS, I really hope it works out so that he can go.

Thanks for your really useful advice. In the end we were totally honest and said he would love to come but just could not afford it so politely declined the invitation. They said they would cover travel and accommodation so he went in the end, is there now! I am so proud.

I however did not feel I could ask them to pay for me and I could not afford to go so unfortunately I did not go. I am gutted to be honest as I would have loved to have been there. But he is 17 now so I might have cramped his style anyway!