The New Hampshire Film Festival, slated for Oct. 16-19 in downtown Portsmouth, drew more than 600 entries by the Aug. 22 deadline for submissions, making the 2008 field the largest in the festival’s eight-year history.

“The volume of submissions speaks to both the success of the New Hampshire Film Festival and the real need for a quality venue where filmmakers can share their work,” said Nicole Gregg, NHFF festival director. “We are fortunate to be inundated with so many films. The quality of this year’s field is certainly impressive.”

The total number of NHFF submissions has risen from about 500 in 2007, about 300 in 2006, and about 100 in 2005. The 2008 NHFF also received a record number of entries from New Hampshire filmmakers. More than 50 original Granite State films were submitted. Also up are the number of original scripts submitted to the screenplay competition, which tripled to 94 entries.