We want genre films (horror, sci-fi, thrillers, action, etc)  where a monster or creature element is centered. We will let you be the judge of what defines a “monster”. Your project can be a crossover (romantic thriller, action western sci-fi, and so on) but please make sure it is predominantly that first genre category. And DO NOT forget the monster.

‍You may submit up to two (2) projects but they will need to be separate submissions.

There is no absolute, but THIS IS a micro-budget feature film contest. We would suggest something between 75-95 pages. Nothing below 75 or above 120 will be accepted without prior approval.

We only require the first 20 pages at the time of submission. But, if you are accepted into the next round (quarterfinals) you will have only one week to send your full-length script. If you cannot provide a full script at that time, your project will be disqualified. We do encourage you to have a finished script when you submit because we find that time spent impacts quality. But you do you.

‍All films will need to be predominantly in the English language and submission scripts must be predominantly in English. The inclusion of other languages does not disqualify a film as long as English remains the predominant language.

Up to 5 finalist teams will be selected to be part of the lab at Fantastic Fest 2026 in Austin, Texas. From the lab finalists, one team will be selected as the winner following the live-pitch event and offered the $100k financing and a distribution deal. See our submission criteria for more details. 

If you are selected as a finalist you will be required to include an AV component in your live pitch presentation. This can be a slide show or a video or something else that supports your pitch. If you are selected as a finalist, we will help you craft this.

So, you DO NOT need a proof of concept video for your submission. If you already have a video you’d like to include in your lookbook, you may. But please don’t rush out and spend money on shooting something. We want to see your creativity on the page.

‍These are your ideas. We share your pitches and scripts internally with our team. As a finalist your projects will then be shared with the judges before you pitch your project on stage during the festival. Because we are filmmakers first, we always recommend registering your script with the WGA for a very small fee, you do not need to be a WGA member to utilize its registration service.

No. Fantastic Fest does not own any submitted intellectual property. However, If you are selected as a finalist you must sign an agreement with Chroma to fund, distribute, and sell your film worldwide to participate in the lab. This agreement then becomes applicable to the winning project.

This is a financing lab. We will read your creative materials and evaluate them against your production plan. If your script is incredible but you don’t show us how you plan to pull it off for $100,00, that’s not going to work. Go into as much detail as you feel is needed to show us you have a solid plan. Provide further written explanation where you feel it’s needed.

‍This movie must be finished in one calendar year. Though submitted projects are mostly in the 100k or under budget range, we are open to projects that already have some funding in place if they meet the other requirements. If you have additional financing in place, you must detail that in the budget and “creative statement” sections.

You may bring in additional funds with your submission but they must be locked in when submitting. And they must abide by the terms of our agreement. Whatever financing you have secured that is extraneous to the $100,000 prize, please detail it in the appropriate short answer question. Similarly, if you are using a tax-incentive program or similar, please detail the terms of the program and why you believe those funds are fully “secured” and meet our terms. We do not know the details of every program around the world.

The Fantastic Pitches team will assess the project’s feasibility and financial viability, as well as likelihood of success within the genre space. Projects must feature compelling, original subject matter and be categorized as a genre film. We welcome international projects and/or co-productions to submit as long as they can meet the language and distribution requirements. We look forward to reading your projects! Please reach out to us with specific co-production and international questions at pitches@fantasticfest.com.