FilmsAI Is Paying $300 Each for the Best Halloween AI Film and the Best Halloween AI Music Video
FilmsAI has two $300 cash prizes for Halloween-themed AI work, one for a music video and one for a film. Entries close on 28 October 2026 and must run at least 90 seconds.
Most Halloween contests want a jump scare and a pumpkin. This one asks for your nightmares, your dark comedy and your strange Halloween stories, and it will take them at any length, up to and including a feature film.
The contest comes from FilmsAI, a platform for AI-made films and music videos, and was announced by its founder Krista Gable on X on 1 October 2026. There are two categories and two winners. Each gets $300, and the owners of FilmsAI have funded the pool, which was raised to $600 total. With the deadline on 28 October, there are only a few days left to finish something and upload it.
What you submit
The two categories are Halloween AI Music Video and Halloween AI Film. The film category explicitly includes shorts and animation, so you do not need a live-action look to qualify.
Every entry must be Halloween-themed and at least 90 seconds long. There is no maximum length, and Gable says feature-length films are welcome. You may enter one piece per category, so two entries is the ceiling if you want to try for both prizes.
To enter, upload your work through the FilmsAI website and choose the matching contest category at the point of upload. A dedicated Halloween category has been added at filmsai.com/halloween. Entries must also meet the platform's submission guidelines, which are published separately.
Prize structure
The prizes are cash, not credits or software subscriptions. One $300 prize goes to the winning music video and one $300 prize goes to the winning film. That is $600 across the whole contest. The page does not describe runner-up prizes, so assume there are none.
Judging is described as independent. The announcement says the judges would be named on 1 October, and that neither Gable nor her co-owner Paul will judge. The page text does not list the judges or the scoring criteria, so check the guidelines before you decide how to cut your piece.
Terms worth reading
The announcement itself does not state an entry fee, and nothing in it suggests one, but the full terms sit on a separate legal page. Read the Halloween 2026 Contest Guidelines before uploading, because that is where licence wording, eligibility rules and any rights language will be set out. The summary post does not cover them, so this article cannot confirm who owns the work after entry or whether FilmsAI may screen or promote entries.
One point worth knowing is that uploading to FilmsAI is also how you access the platform's other programmes. Work in the regular categories needs to run for 30 seconds or more and counts toward October monetisation, subject to that programme's eligibility requirements. Halloween work that does not meet the 90 second contest minimum, or that is surplus to your two contest entries, can go into those normal categories instead.
Practical notes
The announcement says entries are open from 1 to 28 October 2026 but gives no cutoff time or timezone for the final day. Treat the deadline as the start of 28 October rather than the end if you are unsure, and upload with at least a day in hand so a late-night upload problem does not cost you the prize. The announcement does mention Eastern time for the judges' reveal, which suggests the organisers work on US East Coast hours.
The official announcement is on X and uploads go through FilmsAI's Halloween page.
Source: Krista Gable on X, FilmsAI Halloween contest announcement