A new contest wants a full 20 episode AI series, and pays 100% of paid-view revenue for six months
NEXTALE Award is free to enter and open worldwide. Upload a complete AI series of 20+ episodes by 14 December 2026 for a share of $3,000 and six months of paid-view revenue.
Most AI film contests ask for a single short. NEXTALE Award asks for a season. To enter, you need a finished series of at least 20 episodes, uploaded in full to a platform that is still in the process of launching its audience.
That changes who this contest is for. It suits creators already working in vertical drama or web series, people who have been building episodes in tools such as Higgsfield, Kling or Seedance and have a body of work sitting on a hard drive. Entry is free, open worldwide, and any language is accepted. The deadline is 14 December 2026, so there are roughly six weeks left at the time of writing.
What you submit
You create a free account on NEXTALE Studio and upload a complete series of 20 or more episodes. The page says any AI tool is allowed, naming Higgsfield, Kling and Seedance as examples. The tags on the listing point to short drama, vertical drama and web series, so this is a serial storytelling contest, not a showreel one.
The word to notice is complete. The page describes both the grand prize and the early-entry bonuses in terms of complete series, so a half-finished run is unlikely to count. The official page does not state a per-episode length limit or a technical specification, so check the NEXTALE Award page before you start exporting.
Prize structure
The cash prize pool is $3,000 in total, split two ways:
- A $2,000 grand prize for the best complete series.
- $100 each for the first 10 complete series uploaded, as early-entry bonuses.
The early-entry bonuses reward speed, not quality, and the page does not say whether they are paid to every one of the first ten qualifying uploads regardless of judging. Since entry is free, getting a finished series up early costs nothing.
There is also a revenue element. The page states that entrants receive 100% of revenue from paid views for the first six months after launch, win or not. That is a potential income stream for every entrant, though the page gives no figures on audience size or viewing prices, so treat it as upside, not a forecast.
Terms worth reading
The tracker page is a summary, and it does not reproduce the full rules. Several things are not stated there, and they matter for a 20-episode body of work:
- Rights and licensing: the listing does not say who owns the series or what licence NEXTALE takes. Because your episodes will sit on the platform and earn paid views, read the terms on the organiser's site for the scope and length of any licence.
- Revenue after six months: the 100% share is described for the first six months only. What happens to revenue after that is not stated.
- Judging: the listing does not name judges or criteria.
- Exclusivity: nothing on the page says whether you can publish the same series elsewhere.
In its favour, entry is free and there is no stated eligibility restriction by country or language.
Practical notes
The deadline is 14 December 2026. No cutoff time or timezone is published, so aim to upload at least a day early. Create your NEXTALE Studio account first and confirm the upload works before your final episode is ready. Entry is through the official NEXTALE Award page, and the contest is also listed on AI Film Contests.
Source: AI Film Contests, NEXTALE Award