2017 SMABFA Awards

What makes a film eligible?

In order to be eligible to win a SMABFA award for a film, the movie must be a full length picture with a wide-theater release in the United States. We do not consider films that are direct-to-video, direct-to-streaming or are only shown in a limited theatrical release. The films must also fit at least one of these three criteria:

• Score under a 20% on Rottentomatoes.com
• Be listed on a "worst movies of the year" list from either The A.V. Club, Screencrush, or WhatCulture.com. Other resources may be added as needed.
• Be unanimously voted as eligible by the SMABFA voting committee

Actor and Actress awards are eligible for any actor or actress who appeared in a film meeting the criteria above.

How are the nominees and winners chosen?

Winners and nominees are chosen by a committee of bad film enthusiasts who watched all of the eligible films. Each voter secretly casts their votes in a closed ballot online survey. The top five from each category are chosen and released as nominees. The nominee with the highest score is considered the winner of the award.

Who is this SMABFA committee?

The committee members have the right to anonymity so all members may not be listed. The committee is chosen by the producer of Stinker Madness. The three hosts of the Stinker Madness podcast are permanent members of the committee. Other committee members are chosen based of their demonstrated knowledge and affection toward the "Stinker" or "Bad Movie" hobby. Members must also show a dedication to fairness and equality and show no bias towards voting. Members must also reside within the continental United States. At any time a member may be removed from the committee by a unanimous decision by the Stinker Madness producers and hosts.

If you are interested in becoming a member of the SMABFA Committee and fit the criteria above, please email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Hey! "INSERT MOVIE TITLE HERE" didn't get chosen. That movie was awful. You suck.

While we understand that our selections won't please everyone, we don't really care. The SMABFAs are not a popularity contest. If you want to be a part of a popularity contest you might try a raspberry of an awards show. The SMABFAs are chosen based on the quality of the story, how well that story is presented, the enjoyability of viewing and the strength or weaknesses of the performances given in a film. We do not select movies/actors because of outside influences such as pop culture popularity or whether an adaptation is "screwed up". We also don't judge based off other films if the film is part of a franchise. Each film is a standalone piece.

With that in mind, there are a few exceptions that may help you understand why your movie isn't part of the SMABFAs. The film MUST attempt to present a story. Stag films or propaganda films are excluded. This happened in 2014's SMABFAs when Kirk Cameron's Saving Christmas was excluded as it was not a film but a sermon. Children's movies may also be excluded. We are not children. We don't get them. They like many many many things that are incredibly dumb. We do not attempt to judge their films. This happened in 2015's SMABFAs with the exclusion of Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip, which despite the horrendous reviews, one SMABFA committee member saw this film and witnessed children dancing in the aisles of the theater and singing. It was a children's film liked by children. Case closed. Exceptions to theses exceptions may occur in future years.

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