Entry rules: cost of entry
The rules of 11 of the 25 festivals cover whether entry costs anything. The reading met most often is “Free to enter”, for 6. The table sets every festival's reading beside the words of its rules. As of 2026-09-25.
| Festival | Reading | In the rules |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Billion AI Film Award | None in the rules read | None in the rules read (2026-09-25) |
| Academy Awards | None in the rules read | None in the rules read (2026-09-25) |
| African AI Film Festival | Free for some entrants | Free at the regular deadline, with a small late fee; always free for Africa-based and student entrants |
| AI Cinema Festival NYC | None in the rules read | None in the rules read (2026-09-25) |
| AI Film Festival Japan | Free for some entrants | Free entry for the music-score category until August 15 with a waiver code |
| AI for Good Film Festival | None in the rules read | None in the rules read (2026-09-25) |
| AI International Film Festival | None in the rules read | None in the rules read (2026-09-25) |
| AI Shortest Film Competition | None in the rules read | None in the rules read (2026-09-25) |
| Artefact AI Film Festival | None in the rules read | None in the rules read (2026-09-25) |
| Astana AI Film Festival | Free to enter | Free for everyone |
| Bochnia International AI Film Festival | Fees by deadline | A submission fee that rises by deadline, paid through FilmFreeway |
| Chroma Awards | Free to enter | No purchase or payment needed to enter |
| Cinema Shift Festival | None in the rules read | None in the rules read (2026-09-25) |
| Higgsfield Global Film Festival | Free to enter | Any registered user aged 18 or over; no paid subscription needed to submit |
| Human vs. AI Film Festival | None in the rules read | None in the rules read (2026-09-25) |
| K-Culture AI International Film Festival | None in the rules read | None in the rules read (2026-09-25) |
| LifeArt AI Film Festival | None in the rules read | None in the rules read (2026-09-25) |
| Project Odyssey | None in the rules read | None in the rules read (2026-09-25) |
| Reply AI Film Festival | Free to enter | No participation fee |
| Runway AI Festival | Free to enter | No entry fee |
| Runway Gen:48 | Free to enter | No entry fee or purchase |
| Sundance Film Festival | Fees by deadline | Entry fees that rise from the early to the late deadline |
| Turkey International AI Film Festival | None in the rules read | None in the rules read (2026-09-25) |
| World AI Film Festival | None in the rules read | None in the rules read (2026-09-25) |
| World AI Film Festival USA | Fees by deadline | Fees rise by deadline, with lower student and youth rates |
Inclusion rule. All 25 festivals on the register. Order. Alphabetical by festival name.
1About this rule
This rule records whether entering costs money. 6 festivals are free to enter, 3 charge fees that rise by deadline, 2 are free for some entrants, and 14 do not say on their own site.
Where a festival charges, the cost usually rises from the early deadline to the late one. Where its own site says nothing, the fee is often shown only at the submission step, on the platform that takes entries.
2Readings and their festivals
- Free to enter: Astana AI Film Festival, Chroma Awards, Higgsfield Global Film Festival, Reply AI Film Festival, Runway AI Festival and Runway Gen:48
- Fees by deadline: Bochnia International AI Film Festival, Sundance Film Festival and World AI Film Festival USA
- Free for some entrants: African AI Film Festival and AI Film Festival Japan
- None in the rules read: 1 Billion AI Film Award, Academy Awards, AI Cinema Festival NYC, AI for Good Film Festival, AI International Film Festival, AI Shortest Film Competition, Artefact AI Film Festival, Cinema Shift Festival, Human vs. AI Film Festival, K-Culture AI International Film Festival, LifeArt AI Film Festival, Project Odyssey, Turkey International AI Film Festival and World AI Film Festival
3Festivals with a detailed reading
- African AI Film Festival — Free at the regular deadline, with a small late fee; always free for Africa-based and student entrants
- AI Film Festival Japan — Free entry for the music-score category until August 15 with a waiver code
- Bochnia International AI Film Festival — A submission fee that rises by deadline, paid through FilmFreeway
- Chroma Awards — No purchase or payment needed to enter
- Runway AI Festival — No entry fee
- Runway Gen:48 — No entry fee or purchase
- Sundance Film Festival — Entry fees that rise from the early to the late deadline
4The other rules
What the rules ask of AI · Saying which tools were used · Running time allowed · Latest deadline · Where winners are shown · What the entrant keeps or grants · Prizes
5What a generator hands an entrant
For an entrant reading “Fee”, this is what SceneMixer publishes about the film its pipeline hands over:
An AI short drama is a serialized show of 60–120 second vertical episodes whose cast, sets and footage are generated by AI. Making one takes six steps: analyze the script into episodes, lock a consistent cast with reference art, localize for your market, write and edit storyboards, generate each 4–15 second shot, then composite and publish.
SceneMixer, How to Make an AI Short Drama, Step by Step (read 2026-10-13)
Typically 60–120 seconds, always 9:16 vertical, ending on a hook. SceneMixer's episode outlines are generated with that pacing, and setting a project to 9:16 makes every segment vertical (the default is 16:9).
SceneMixer, How to Make ReelShort-Style Dramas with AI — “How long is a ReelShort-style episode?” (read 2026-10-13)