Terms and Conditions

1. Welcome to Miralot

Please read these General Terms and Conditions ("Terms") carefully before using our services. By accessing and using the Miralot platform ("Platform"), you agree to be bound by these Terms and our Privacy Policy.

"You" refers to any user of the Platform. "Miralot" refers to the Platform and the services provided by Miralot GmbH.

2. Description of Services

Miralot is a free platform offering the following services:

• Submission Management: Tools for organising and tracking your festival submissions. Miralot does not submit films on your behalf under this feature.
• Festival Matching & Strategy: Data-driven recommendations to help filmmakers identify relevant festivals, plan submission strategy, and manage deadlines and film assets.
• Submission Service: If you choose this service, you authorise Miralot to act as your representative for submitting your film to festivals. Festival submission fees are not included and will be charged separately.

All services are provided free of charge. A 3% payment fee applies when festival submission fees are collected and processed through the Miralot platform (see Section 3). This fee applies across all submission channels (see Section 2.1).

As part of the service, Miralot will periodically send you a notification email (approximately once per month) to inform you when new festival recommendations are available on your dashboard. These emails contain a prompt to log in to the platform and do not include the recommendations themselves. You can opt out of these notifications at any time via the unsubscribe link in each email.

2.1 Submission Channels

When using the Submission Service, Miralot may submit your film via one of the following channels, depending on the festival:

• (a) Direct festival integration: Miralot transmits your film data directly to the festival via a technical integration, without passing through a third-party platform.
• (b) Third-party submission platform: Miralot submits on your behalf via an external festival submission platform. The platform's own terms and conditions and privacy policy apply to the onward transmission of your data.
• (c) Festival homepage submission: Miralot submits your film via the festival's own website or submission form. In this case, your data is entered directly into the festival's own systems, and the festival's privacy policy and terms apply to that transmission.

In all cases, you select the festivals you wish to submit to via the Miralot platform, and Miralot handles the transmission through the appropriate channel on your behalf.

You are responsible for the completeness and accuracy of all information and materials you provide via the Miralot platform. Miralot submits only the data you have entered and does not independently verify the accuracy of your submissions. Any errors, omissions, or misrepresentations in the data you provide are your sole responsibility.

3. Fees & Payment

Miralot does not charge a subscription or access fee. All platform features are available free of charge.

3.1 Payment Fee

When festival submission fees are collected and forwarded through the Miralot platform on your behalf, a payment fee of 3% is applied to the transaction amount. This fee applies regardless of the submission channel used and covers payment processing and platform costs.

• The 3% payment fee is calculated on the festival's stated submission fee and deducted at the time of payment processing.
• Festival submission fees are set by third-party festivals and are not determined by Miralot.
• Payments are processed securely via Stripe in accordance with PCI-DSS standards.
• All amounts are quoted in Euro (EUR). VAT applies where required by law.

3.2 Festival Cancellation, Postponement, and Non-Occurrence

If a festival is cancelled, postponed, changes format, or otherwise does not take place as announced after a submission has been processed:

• The 3% Miralot payment fee is non-refundable once payment processing has been successfully completed. Miralot acts solely as a payment intermediary and submission agent; the contractual relationship for festival participation is between you and the festival.
• Festival submission fees paid via a third-party submission platform are subject to the refund and cancellation policies of the respective platform and/or festival. Miralot has no control over these policies. Where Miralot has collected a festival submission fee on your behalf, Miralot will make reasonable efforts to facilitate a refund from the festival or platform, but cannot guarantee reimbursement.
• For directly integrated festivals, submission fees are subject to the festival's own refund policy. Miralot will communicate any refund information provided by the festival and make reasonable efforts to facilitate reimbursement, but cannot guarantee the outcome.
• For festival homepage submissions, refund claims must be directed to the festival directly. Miralot will assist in forwarding refund requests where possible.
• Miralot's liability for losses arising from a festival's cancellation, postponement, change of format, or non-occurrence is excluded to the extent permitted by applicable law. This exclusion does not apply where Miralot has acted with intent or gross negligence, or where mandatory statutory rights apply.

3.3 Refunds of the Payment Fee

The 3% payment fee is non-refundable once a submission payment has been successfully processed. In the event of a demonstrable technical error on Miralot's part that prevented a submission from being executed, the payment fee will be refunded.

3.4 Failed Payments

If a payment cannot be processed, the submission will not proceed. Miralot accepts no liability for missed deadlines resulting from payment failures caused by the user's payment method or bank.

4. User Account & Eligibility

• Users must be at least 18 years old or use the Platform under the supervision of a legal guardian.
• You are responsible for safeguarding your login credentials and all activities on your account.
• Use of another user's account or credentials is strictly prohibited.
• You must not upload, submit, or otherwise provide any content that is illegal under applicable law. This includes, without limitation, child sexual abuse material (CSAM) or any content that sexually exploits or endangers minors, content that incites violence or hatred, and content that infringes third-party intellectual property rights without authorisation.
• Miralot does not actively pre-screen all uploaded content, but reserves the right to review, remove, or restrict access to any content at any time. Upon becoming aware of potentially illegal content, Miralot will act immediately, including removing the content, suspending or terminating the account, and reporting to the relevant law enforcement authorities as required by applicable law.
• Miralot may suspend or terminate accounts that violate these Terms or applicable laws.

5. Intellectual Property & Rights

By submitting a film or related materials, you agree:

• Matching & Strategy: You grant Miralot a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide licence to use uploaded materials (synopsis, stills, trailers, submission history) strictly for festival matching and strategy recommendations, platform functionality, and anonymised analysis to improve services. Any promotional use requires your separate, explicit consent.
• Submission Service: In addition to the above, you authorise Miralot to provide your film materials to selected festivals via the applicable submission channel. Miralot will not alter the content of your film without your explicit consent.
• Authority to Act: You grant Miralot a revocable power of attorney (Vollmacht) to submit your films to selected festivals on your behalf. This authority may be revoked at any time before a submission to a specific festival occurs. Once a submission has been completed, withdrawal is no longer possible for that specific submission.
• Duration of Rights: Rights remain in effect until (a) completion of all selected festival submissions, or (b) deletion of your account, whichever is later. Thereafter, your personal data and film materials will be deleted within 90 days unless you consent to extended retention.
• Your Warranties: You warrant that you own or have secured all necessary rights (copyright, music, distribution, image rights, etc.) for your film and its content.
• Accuracy of Submissions: You warrant that all information and materials submitted via the Miralot platform are accurate, complete, and not misleading. You accept full responsibility for the truthfulness of your submissions, including film metadata, eligibility information, and any representations made to festivals.

6. Data Protection & Privacy

• Miralot complies with the German Federal Data Protection Act (BDSG) and the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
• Your personal data is processed only for purposes outlined in these Terms and our Privacy Policy.
• Processing is based on Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR (performance of contract). After the termination of rights, your personal data and materials are deleted within 90 days.
• Anonymised film metadata may be retained under Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR (legitimate interests) for service improvement. You may object under Art. 21 GDPR.
• For submissions via third-party platforms or festival homepages, the respective third party's privacy policy governs the processing of your data by that party. Miralot is not responsible for third-party data practices.
• Your full data subject rights are set out in our Privacy Policy.

7. Licence & Restrictions

You are granted a limited, non-transferable licence to use the Platform in accordance with these Terms. You agree not to:

• reproduce, distribute, or commercially exploit Platform content beyond the intended use of the services,
• copy, extract, scrape, harvest, or otherwise collect data or database content from the Platform for the purpose of creating a competing service or for any use not expressly authorised by Miralot,
• upload, submit, or distribute any content that is unlawful, harmful, obscene, or otherwise objectionable, including any material that sexually exploits or endangers minors or that violates applicable laws on child protection,
• use the Platform for unlawful purposes or in breach of these Terms.

8. Liability & Disclaimers

• Mandatory liability: Miralot is fully liable for damages caused by intent, gross negligence, or personal injury, as required by law.
• Limited liability: For other damages, liability is limited to foreseeable, typically occurring damages.
• Exclusions: Miralot is not liable for: festival rejection decisions; festival cancellations, postponements, format changes, or non-occurrence; failures or policy changes of third-party submission platforms or festival systems; consequences arising from inaccurate, incomplete, or misleading information provided by the user; indirect or consequential damages; or user errors.
• Data loss: We maintain regular backups, but you are responsible for keeping copies of your materials.
• Recommendations: All festival matching and strategy recommendations are suggestions; final decisions remain with you.

Miralot makes no guarantees regarding:

• the accuracy or completeness of its database,
• the success of any festival submissions,
• the continued operation, occurrence, or format of any festival,
• the terms, availability, or reliability of any third-party submission platform or festival system,
• the content of third-party websites linked from the Platform.

9. Termination

• Either party may terminate the service relationship at any time with 30 days' notice.
• Ongoing festival submissions will continue until completion.
• Revocation of submission authority is possible at any time before the actual submission to a specific festival occurs.
• After termination: personal data and film materials are deleted within 90 days, unless you consent to extended retention.
• Miralot may terminate immediately for material breach of these Terms, including but not limited to the upload or distribution of illegal content. In such cases, Miralot reserves the right to retain relevant data as required for law enforcement purposes and to report the incident to the competent authorities.

10. Amendments & Availability

• We may amend these Terms from time to time. You will be notified of any material changes at least six (6) weeks in advance by email. If you do not object in writing within this period and continue to use the Platform, the changes will be deemed accepted.
• Miralot may modify, suspend, or discontinue the Platform at any time. We are not liable for data loss or service interruptions.

11. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Miralot and its employees from any third-party claims, liabilities, or expenses arising from: your use of the Platform, your violation of these Terms, or infringement of third-party rights in your content.

12. Governing Law & Jurisdiction

These Terms are governed by the laws of Germany. The exclusive place of jurisdiction is Berlin, Germany. If any provision is deemed invalid, the remaining provisions remain in full force and effect.

13. Compliance with the Digital Services Act (DSA)

Miralot operates as an intermediary service within the meaning of Regulation (EU) 2022/2065 (Digital Services Act). The following provisions apply in accordance with Miralot's obligations under the DSA.

13.1 Notice-and-Action (Art. 16 DSA)

If you become aware of content on the Miralot platform that you believe to be illegal, you may submit a notice to Miralot at any time. Notices should be sent to: legal@miralot.com

A valid notice should include: a description of the allegedly illegal content and its location on the platform; the legal reason why you consider the content to be illegal; your name and contact details (optional for anonymous reports, where permitted); and a statement that the information provided is accurate to the best of your knowledge.

Miralot will assess all notices in a timely and diligent manner and take appropriate action where content is found to be illegal, including removal or disabling of access. You will be informed of the outcome of your notice where contact details have been provided.

13.2 Single Point of Contact (Art. 11 DSA)

Miralot's single point of contact for direct communication with competent authorities and the European Commission in relation to the DSA is:

Miralot GmbH, Pestalozzistr. 5–8, 13187 Berlin | legal@miralot.com

13.3 Competent Digital Services Coordinator

The competent Digital Services Coordinator (DSC) for Miralot as a service established in Germany is:

Bundesnetzagentur (Federal Network Agency), Tulpenfeld 4, 53113 Bonn, Germany | https://www.bundesnetzagentur.de

14. Right of Withdrawal (Consumers Only)

14.1 Statutory Right of Withdrawal

If you are a consumer within the meaning of Article 2(1) of Directive 2011/83/EU and § 13 BGB, and you have paid a submission payment fee through the Miralot platform, you have the right to withdraw from that transaction within 14 days without giving any reason, provided that the festival submission has not yet been executed.

To exercise this right, please contact: Miralot GmbH, Pestalozzistr. 5–8, 13187 Berlin | legal@miralot.com

14.2 Consequences of Withdrawal

If you withdraw before a festival submission has been executed, we shall reimburse any submission fees paid through the Miralot platform within 14 days. The 3% payment fee is non-refundable once payment processing has commenced.

14.3 Exclusion of Right of Withdrawal

The right of withdrawal expires once Miralot has executed the festival submission on your behalf with your prior express consent and acknowledgment that the right of withdrawal expires upon full execution of the service.

14.4 Model Withdrawal Form