AIShortFilmHub

Entry rules for AI-made films

How long can an AI short film be for festivals?

It depends on the festival. The shortest caps are 60 seconds at LTX's competition, four minutes at Gen:48 and 314 seconds at Artefact. Reply takes up to 40 minutes, Sparknify 30, T-AIFF 20. Higgsfield and Astana set a three-minute minimum, and the 1 Billion award asked for 7 to 10. From 17 source pages, read 2026-09-25; no maker pays to be listed.

Festivals listed here, and the rest17 festivals are listed for this question; the other 8 are not listed on this page.AnswersRules answer it17 festivalsNot listed for thisquestion8 festivalsRegisterEight rules per festival
Fig. 1 Counted from the register on the reading day.
Festivals whose rules answer this, read 2026-09-25.
FestivalRuleWhat the rules say
1 Billion AI Film AwardRunning time7 to 10 minutes, subtitled in English
African AI Film FestivalRunning time1 to 10 minutes for shorts, animation and student work; 5 to 20 for documentary
AI for Good Film FestivalRunning time1 to 10 minutes, completed between September 1, 2026 and May 1, 2027
AI Shortest Film CompetitionRunning timeUp to 60 seconds
Artefact AI Film FestivalRunning timeNo more than 314 seconds
Astana AI Film FestivalRunning time3 minutes or longer
Bochnia International AI Film FestivalRunning time1 to 15 minutes including credits
Chroma AwardsRunning timeMore than 90 seconds and under 22 minutes; longer films lose points
Higgsfield Global Film FestivalRunning timeAt least 3 minutes; 5 minutes recommended as a maximum, longer still eligible
Human vs. AI Film FestivalRunning time1 to 30 minutes, credits included
Project OdysseyRunning timeUp to 15 minutes, with shorter caps for social, advertising and trailers
Reply AI Film FestivalRunning time1 to 40 minutes, with longer films eligible only for a special mention
Runway AI FestivalRunning time3 to 15 minutes
Runway Gen:48Running time1 to 4 minutes, made inside the 48-hour window
Turkey International AI Film FestivalRunning timeUp to 20 minutes
World AI Film FestivalRunning time5 to 10 minutes for short films
World AI Film Festival USARunning timeSet per category: 3 to 40 minutes for shorts, 40 minutes and up for features, 30 seconds to 3 minutes for vertical

Inclusion rule. A festival is listed when its own rules state what the question asks. Order. Festivals in alphabetical order.

No single cut fits every festival on the register. A three-minute film meets Higgsfield's and Astana's minimum and fits under Artefact's cap, but it is three times too long for LTX's competition, and nothing under 90 seconds qualifies for the Chroma Awards.

Several festivals set the limit by category. WAIFF USA runs from 30 seconds for vertical work to over 40 minutes for features, and the African festival gives documentaries up to 20 minutes.

1From the rules themselves

1 Billion AI Film Award

Entrants created a 7-10 minute AI-generated film (in any language, subtitled in English).

1 Billion Followers Summit, AI Film Award page

African AI Film Festival

5–20 min AI Documentary Non-fiction and factual storytelling, AI-enhanced.

African AI Film Festival, home page

AI for Good Film Festival

Films must have been completed between Sept 1, 2026, and May 1, 2027 , and should be 1 to 10 minutes long.

AI for Good Film Festival, ITU page

AI Shortest Film Competition

Up to 60 seconds long

Forward Festival, AI Shortest Film Competition by LTX

Artefact AI Film Festival

Films should be a maximum of 314 seconds.

Artefact AI Film Festival, rules page

Astana AI Film Festival

Both competitions accept films with a duration of 3 minutes or longer .

Astana AI Film Festival, home page

Bochnia International AI Film Festival

Runtime: 1 to 15 minutes (including end credits).

BIAIFF, 2026 regulations (English)

Chroma Awards

Length: Between >90 seconds and <22 minutes.

Chroma Awards, film division rules

Higgsfield Global Film Festival

Minimum 3:00 minutes (hard requirement).

Higgsfield Global Film Festival, official rules

Human vs. AI Film Festival

Length : 1 to 30 minutes (including credits)

Sparknify, Human vs. AI Film Festival page

Project Odyssey

Maximum length of 15 minutes (900 seconds), unless otherwise specified

Project Odyssey, rules and judging (Season 2)

Reply AI Film Festival

Your AI short movie must be between 1 and 40 minutes long.

Reply AI Film Festival, how it works

Runway AI Festival

3-15 minutes in length.

Runway AI Festival, 2026 page

Runway Gen:48

Create a 1-4 minute video that uses Runway video tools and optionally Epidemic Sound tools

Runway, Gen:48 official rules

Turkey International AI Film Festival

Films not exceeding 20 minutes in duration may apply.

T-AIFF, official site

World AI Film Festival

A.I. Short Films Duration: 5–10 minutes.

World AI Film Festival, competitions page

World AI Film Festival USA

No. 01 Live Action Short Film 3 to 40 minutes No. 02 Feature Film 40+ minutes

World AI Film Festival USA, home page

Running time allowed at every festival · Which AI film contests require one platform? · Which AI film festivals are still taking entries?

2Producing the entry with AI

For an entrant reading “How long can an AI short film be for festivals?”, this is what SceneMixer publishes about the film its pipeline hands over:

Sixty to a hundred and twenty seconds is the working band for vertical short drama, and the outline paces for it.

SceneMixer, AI Drama for TikTok & Reels — “How long should a feed episode be?” (read 2026-10-13)

Paste a scene or a short script and SceneMixer gives you a storyboard — numbered shots with framing and seconds — and then a moving version of each segment, which you can join into a rough cut of the scene.

SceneMixer, Using SceneMixer for Previs and Animatics Before a Live-Action Shoot (read 2026-10-13)