Already released your AI film? Where you can still enter
Posting your full film on Bilibili, Douyin or YouTube does not rule out every competition. Check whether this edition accepts its release history and whether you can grant the permissions it asks for. Two calls below explicitly allow prior releases; one needs clarification, and one is unsuitable for an already released film.
Public rules reviewed ·
A selected comparison, not a complete list or an eligibility guarantee. Deadline labels follow recorded dates; extensions and new rules need official confirmation.
Releases, screenings and previous awards allowed; disclose them
SVAIFF KOREA 2026
Recorded deadline shown above
Release and award history
Article 2(3) permits online releases, other festival screenings and previous awards without a judging disadvantage for that history. It does not ask you to remove an old post first. Disclose each history accurately. Notify the secretariat before entry if transferred rights or a distribution/exclusivity deal could prevent the global final or publication.1
Other eligibility conditions
Completed from 1 Jan 2025; all nationalities/residences. Under-19s, including team members, need guardian consent. AI must generate or substantially assist at least 50% of visual content or core narrative elements. Narrative, animation, documentary and K-culture: up to 20 minutes; ads: three; music videos: seven, including credits. One category per film; up to five films per category.12
What an existing film still needs
Verify email in the official flow, register/upload the film and prepare a poster, 12 answers, roughly two pages of process notes and three evidence scenes with start/end timecodes. Retrospective notes are allowed but must reflect the work. A public film still needs process evidence. The guide/checklist specifies commercially usable paid AI plans; clarify free-tool or open-source workflows first.12
Costs and stages
Korea entry is free. The 19 cash-prize winners must enter the global final; the Korea organiser covers its USD 99 fee. The 31 encouragement winners may decline the final and keep the Korea award, or opt in and pay USD 99 per film. Travel is separate; attendance at the US ceremony is optional.12
New permissions you would grant
Korea-stage online full-film publication needs separate consent; promotional excerpts/materials can be used for two years after the event. The separate global organiser has non-commercial full-film publication without a fixed end date and a 12-month same-terms priority-collaboration arrangement for final winners. An old public upload does not establish co-rightsholder consent to these new uses. Recheck the latest global conditions in writing before the final.12
Our take
For a released or award-winning short, check completion date, category and commercial tool permissions first, then assess the global stage. Record first-release date/link, screenings, awards and distribution contracts. Resolve exclusivity with the secretariat before accepting the terms.12
No premiere requirement or completion-date restriction
WAIFF LA USA 2027 · US edition
Recorded deadline shown above
Release and award history
Sections 1.3–1.4 explicitly allow online distribution, streaming releases and US/international festival screenings, with no completion-date restriction. This evidence covers release and screening; it is not a separate confirmation of every prior-award situation or the rules of other WAIFF editions.1
Other eligibility conditions
Entrants must be 13+; under-18s need guardian consent. AI must be used in making the work, with a named creative lead. Live-action/animated shorts: 3–40 minutes; vertical: 30 seconds–3 minutes; music videos: 1–10 minutes, with other categories available. Clarify the 40-minute overlap and credit timing. General entry differs from Cannes advancement, which also needs US ties and Headquarters category eligibility.12
What an existing film still needs
Use the official FilmFreeway route. Supply HD-or-better MP4/MOV, a representative still, synopsis up to 150 words, biography up to 100 words and full credits; non-English work needs English subtitles. Every entry requires a Production Journal identifying AI tools; missing journals are not reviewed. 4K is preferred, C2PA encouraged; an initial DCP is not compulsory for everyone.1
Costs and stages
Regular: non-feature $45 standard or $25 for eligible students/ages 13–18; features add $5. Late: $60/$35, with the same feature surcharge. The site uses a dollar sign; explicit currency and checkout extras remain unconfirmed. Each category costs separately; withdrawal/disqualification does not produce a refund.1
New permissions you would grant
All submissions grant five-year worldwide non-exclusive screening/promotion rights, including whole-film use and specified partner sublicensing, plus perpetual non-commercial archival, educational and research uses. Accepting a Tier 1 award adds perpetual catalog uses, with separate compilation/channel provisions. Retained ownership and non-exclusivity do not mean one screening only; withdrawal does not automatically end surviving licences.1
Our take
Worth assessing for an existing film if you can supply the journal and accept the licences. Check music, likeness and distribution permissions before choosing a category and fee. If you need to control full-film promotion or perpetual archiving, obtain clarification first: no premiere requirement does not mean a narrow licence.12
Release-history permission unconfirmed; not a verified match
AI Film 3 · AI in Anime 2026
Recorded deadline shown above
Release and award history
The reviewed organiser page and its linked FilmFreeway text do not explicitly allow or prohibit prior releases, screenings or awards for this call. Omission of a premiere clause is not verified permission. Do not import the future 2027 conference rules into this separate November showcase.21
Other eligibility conditions
For AI-enhanced animation/narrative work with identifiable AI tools/process. The published general rules say 2–30 minutes; confirm the actual category limit and credit timing before entry. Complete age, territory and completion-year conditions remain unconfirmed. Do not invent an AI-percentage threshold.2
What an existing film still needs
Ask with the title, completion date, first-release date/link, runtime and screening/award history; retain the written answer. If eligible, use the designated FilmFreeway flow with the film, description and poster. HD-or-better MP4 is among the accepted formats; DCP is not the only option.2
Costs and stages
Published rules make the entry fee non-refundable. This review did not test signed-in category checkout; existing fee records are not a final quote. Resolve release eligibility and runtime before paying rather than paying to find out.2
New permissions you would grant
Submission includes a non-exclusive worldwide exhibition, reproduction, distribution and related promotional licence; posters may also be used in credited book development. Complete duration and withdrawal terms are not sufficiently specified. Prior-release eligibility and permission for new uses are separate questions.2
Our take
A candidate to clarify, not a recommendation to pay immediately. If the organiser does not answer clearly in time, assess the explicitly permitted options above. A nearby deadline does not turn an unknown condition into permission.21
Unreleased work, with no previous entry in another competition
1 Billion Followers Summit · AI Film Award 2027
Recorded deadline shown above
Release and award history
Clause 5.3(b) excludes films previously publicly released, broadcast, published, entered in or awarded by another competition. An unposted film may still fail this condition if entered elsewhere. Deleting or hiding an old post does not erase that release or entry history.1
Other eligibility conditions
Aged 18+, submitted personally by the creator or an authorised individual for a team/company. The at-least-70% visual/audio generation requirement and Seedance evidence must meet the official rules. A new project needs the current themes, model and full eligibility checks; renaming an old film does not establish eligibility.1
What an existing film still needs
The terms specify a 5–7-minute film, 16:9, at least 1080p, MOV/MP4 and English subtitles. The homepage and terms differ on credit timing; clarify borderline runtime. Retain tools/versions, generation and clearance evidence for 24 months after the award closes, and supply it within seven days of a request.12
Costs and stages
Entry is free, but production/submission costs including tools, compute, licences and translation are yours and are not reimbursed. Free entry does not fix an ineligible release history; producing a separate new film may still be costly.1
New permissions you would grant
Keep the film unpublished until the award announcement or formal non-finalist notification. A private/unlisted screener does not undo prior public release. Entry also grants a perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free, sublicensable non-exclusive screening/promotional licence; private review does not mean the organiser will never publish it.12
Our take
Set this award aside for a film already released or entered elsewhere. For an unreleased film never entered in another competition, compare submission order and future publication commitments before reserving it for this award. Do not discover incompatible conditions only after cross-submitting.1