Kyoto AI Film Festival 2026Submission checklist

Official requirements

• A Kyoto connection, including fictional or future Kyoto; neither filming nor residence in Kyoto is required.
• Generative AI in visual, script, sound or music expression; hybrid work, all genres and aspect ratios are accepted.
• Approximately five minutes including titles/credits, with no minimum. Up to two films per person/team; previously released work is accepted.
• Submit a public/unlisted YouTube URL through the official form, with email, title, director, duration and synopsis. Public credits are optional.
• Agree to website display, metaverse screening and voting. The organiser describes YouTube embedding and a non-public contact email.
• The site says an acknowledgement follows within several days. If absent, enquire with entrant name and title. No live receipt was tested.

Our preparation tips

• Write one sentence explaining why Kyoto matters to this particular story, then support it in the synopsis. Japanese-looking imagery alone does not demonstrate that the theme is met.
• Log the separate running times of the story, opening titles and end credits, then total the submitted export. Ask for written clarification near or above five minutes; do not silently exclude credits from the calculation.
• Test the YouTube URL in a signed-out browser. Check playback, embedding permission, audio and subtitles. Resolve region, age or copyright restrictions rather than relying on playback inside your own account.
• Treat the YouTube visibility setting, festival exhibition permission and other premiere commitments as separate checks. An unlisted setting limits discovery; it does not promise that the work will remain private once embedded.
• Keep your own AI-process summary and music, asset, voice and likeness permission records. These are preparation recommendations, not confirmed mandatory uploads to the festival or Film Atlas.
• Retain the reviewed rules, exact video URL, film title, form outcome and acknowledgement date. A form submission is not an award or a guaranteed screening; follow up using the organiser’s instructions instead of sending repeated entries.

Still to confirm

• No exact tolerance around approximately five minutes is given. Do not turn 300 seconds into an automatic rejection; ask whether an overrun is acceptable or needs revision.
• Age, nationality/residence, completion-year and subtitle/encoding/resolution requirements are not fully established. Silence is not verified eligibility for every entrant or every delivery specification.
• Confirm licence duration, withdrawal, deletion and third-party reuse boundaries before relying on compatibility with another festival’s premiere or distribution commitments.
• The call schedules voting/screenings for 1–25 December and results on 28 December 2026. Detailed arrangements remain pending. The current WEB-voting link leads to a different site’s old 2024 page; do not treat it as a working 2026 ballot.
• Actual form sending, restricted-video acceptance, replacement/duplicate entries and acknowledgement delivery were not tested. Follow the official instructions and written clarification.

Sources reviewed

The checklist above is readable here in full. These official links provide evidence and a place to check later changes; reading them does not establish that an entry has been accepted.

• Official Kyoto call, form fields and acknowledgement instructions↗
• Organiser-posted 2026 call, including Japan-time deadline and publication route↗

A standalone public checklist reviewed on 26 October 2026 using the official site and organiser-posted 8 October call. Separate from WAIFF Kyoto; no dedicated ZIP/PDF, live submission or eligibility confirmation.