What is FestiVote and who is it for?

FestiVote is a web-based digital voting platform for film festivals, covering both jury and audience voting. It replaces paper ballots with authenticated online voting and gives organizers real-time, trackable results. It is built for festival organizers and exhibitors — the site positions itself as "For Festivals By Filmmakers" — and it fits festivals of any size, from small community events to major ones, since pricing is described as customizable rather than fixed.

What FestiVote does

The core idea is simple: attendees vote for films from their own devices instead of filling out paper ballots, and organizers get data back from those votes.

• Digital audience and jury voting — described as "customized virtual balloting," with no download required because it runs in the browser.
• Real-time results — organizers can track results as voting happens rather than waiting for a manual count.
• Authenticated secure voting — the platform emphasizes fair and secure voting as a core promise.
• Analytics — the site frames paper voting as a dead end because it produces no trackable data, and positions FestiVote as the way to give filmmakers insights about audience response.
• Festival dashboard — a management view for organizers, plus a separate MyFestiVote dashboard and leaderboard for attendees.
• Sponsor and partner spotlight — a built-in place to surface festival sponsors and partners.

Who it is for

The primary audience is festival organizers — the demo request form asks whether you are an organizer, an exhibitor, or other, and if you are an organizer, which festival you represent. That tells you the platform is sold to the festival side, not to individual filmgoers.

Two groups benefit in different ways:

The site also lists industry partners and references The Film Festival Doctor, a consulting and management service for festival clients, as part of its ecosystem.

Why festivals consider switching

The pitch rests on three claims the site makes directly:

1. Paper voting loses data. Paper ballots don't produce trackable results, so organizers and filmmakers can't see how audiences actually responded.
2. Reputation risk. The site warns against "compromising your festival's reputation" by staying on an outdated method.
3. Engagement and reach. Digital voting is presented as a way to welcome more diverse audiences and put more eyes on submitted films.

It also acknowledges that switching methods is hard and offers guided onboarding rather than a self-serve signup.

How getting started works

FestiVote does not appear to be a plug-and-play tool you can sign up for instantly. The stated path is:

1. Schedule an intro call with FestiVote's founder.
2. Curate a plan that fits your festival's needs.
3. Demo your personalized virtual ballot.

There is also a demo request form that asks for your role and, for organizers, your festival name. If you want to evaluate it, the intro call is the entry point — expect a conversation about your festival's setup before you see pricing, since the site describes pricing as customizable modules rather than published tiers.

What to check before committing

• Pricing is not published. The site says plans range from "mom & pop to major" with customizable modules, but no numbers appear on the page. Ask for a quote tied to your festival's size and voting volume.
• Onboarding is hands-on. Because the process starts with a founder call, plan for lead time before your festival's voting window.
• Confirm your voting model. The platform covers both jury and audience voting, so clarify which you need and how authenticated voting will work for your attendees.