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African AI Film Festival 2026 · Guide

How to win the African AI Film Festival.One African story. Ten minutes. Hollywood and Kampala.

Who is allowed to submit, the five distinct criteria applied by the festival jury during evaluation, the nine competitive awards on offer, and a working timeline leading up to the late deadline of 20 October 2026. Then develop the narrative, create a detailed storyboard from that narrative, and produce the finished film inside 熙熙.
Start writing for freeSee the scene
  • Late deadline 20 October 2026
  • African connection required
  • Free for African-based filmmakers
Lost Garden · Episode 1

Independent guide. 熙熙 does not organise the African AI Film Festival and is not affiliated with the African AI Arts and Culture Institute. Rules read on 1 October 2026. Official festival site

Available to use starting today in 熙熙: free access to full screenwriting capabilities, plus automated storyboard generation derived directly from your completed screenplay when you subscribe to the 年度会员, priced at ¥168 一年.

Also available now: video generation of each shot, powered by Seedance, on the same 年度会员, with 3,000 张额度 一年.

The rules on one card

What the inaugural edition requires.

The first African AI Film Festival is organized and operated by a California-based nonprofit organization and positions itself as the first dedicated global platform specifically for African filmmakers and diaspora creators working primarily with AI technology. Two eligibility conditions take precedence over any assessment of craft or technique: a demonstrable African connection through heritage, subject matter, or collaboration, and the use of AI as a central creative tool in the production of the film.
Late deadline
20 October 2026, when submissions close
Fee
$5 to $10 late, always free for African-based and student entrants
Running time
1 to 10 minutes, documentary 5 to 20
AI requirement
AI central to the film, minor colour correction does not count
African connection
At least one of three: heritage, subject, collaboration
Delivery
H.264 MP4, 1080p minimum, 24 to 30 fps
Eligibility
18 and over, finished on or after 1 January 2024
The festival
Hollywood on 21 November, Kampala on 12 December

Source: the official festival's home page and detailed FAQ section hosted on africanaifilmfestival.org, accessed and reviewed on 1 October 2026. The FilmFreeway submission page could not be successfully opened during the preparation of this guide. The organizing body retains the right to modify or update its rules and eligibility requirements: verify current terms on the official site during the week you plan to submit.

Key dates

Nineteen days to the late deadline.

Submissions first opened on 16 June 2026 and the free regular submission window has already closed as of 30 September. Plan your production schedule by counting backwards from the final date of 20 October, rather than counting forwards from the moment your initial idea takes shape.

  1. 16 Jun 2026

    Submissions open

    Entries go through FilmFreeway. You upload the film, name your AI tools and pick one category.

  2. 30 Sep 2026

    Free regular deadline

    Closed on 30 September. After it, non-African entrants pay a late fee of $5 to $10.

  3. 20 Oct 2026

    Late deadline, submissions close

    Final day for entries. Africa-based filmmakers and Student and Emerging entrants still pay nothing.

  4. Early Nov 2026

    Selections announced

    Selected films are told in early November, a few weeks before the first screening.

  5. 21 Nov and 12 Dec 2026

    Hollywood, then Kampala

    Selected films screen live at the Hollywood premiere on 21 November and at the Kampala premiere on 12 December.

How films are judged

Five criteria, weights unpublished.

The festival explicitly lists five distinct judging criteria and does not publicly disclose their relative weights in the final scoring. Two of those criteria center specifically on Africa-related content and on AI integration, which sets this evaluation framework apart from the grids used by general-purpose film festivals. Below each criterion in the full guidelines, we provide our strategic advice for meeting it effectively.

  • Storytelling and emotional impact

    The festival’s own question is whether the film moves you. One character, one wish, one change, in a few minutes. Write the ending first, then work back to the opening.

  • Creative and innovative use of AI

    The rules ask if AI is used inventively and not as a gimmick. Use it for what a small crew cannot film: a vanished city, a spirit, a scale. Then say how, in your disclosure.

  • Cultural authenticity and resonance

    This asks whether the film genuinely connects to African stories and voices. A name, a mask or a landscape is not enough. Work with people who know the language, the clothing and the place, and credit them.

  • Technical craft

    Coherence, editing, sound and visual quality. Faces that stay the same, clean subtitles and a mix that does not clip. The spec is firm: 1080p, H.264 MP4.

  • Originality of vision

    Fresh, distinct, memorable. With a first edition, there is no past winner to copy, so a film that follows a clear personal idea stands out.

AI tool disclosure is a mandatory submission requirement and, according to the festival's official statement, transparency about AI usage never results in a penalty against your overall score. The Audience Award operates as a separate public voting mechanism, conducted independently of the jury's evaluation process.

Who decides

Four named judges, from four countries.

The festival publicly names both its jury panel members and its advisory board roster. A working journalist, an established director, a professional cinematographer and an experienced AI filmmaker review and score the submitted films, while the broader public votes in a parallel process exclusively for the Audience Award.

  • Amira Sayed, Egypt

    An award-winning journalist and media educator, with a master’s in Television and Digital Journalism from the American University in Cairo. Her documentary Ladies of The Nile won the 2025 BEA Festival of Media Arts Award of Excellence. Her own work is factual, so a documentary entry meets a trained eye.

  • Joan Kabugu, Kenya

    A director and the founder of ECILA Films, honoured as a WIFA Best Director and a FortyUnder40 Africa laureate. A working director reads a film for direction and clarity of intent.

  • T.J. Seaman, Nigeria

    A cinematographer with nearly three decades of feature and documentary work, and CEO of CineCulture Films. Expect an eye for light and framing, so give every shot a consistent light.

  • Pauline Nabbosa, Uganda

    An AI filmmaker, digital creator and founder of the AI media firm Kreator Mastery. She will notice the difference between a film that uses AI well and one that shows off its tools.

The four categories

Pick one category. A film enters only one.

There is no overarching creative theme imposed beyond the mandatory African connection requirement, but the festival defines four competitive categories each with its own strict length limits. Select your target category before you begin writing your screenplay, since the category assignment directly fixes the maximum running time your finished film may have. Beneath each category card in the official guidelines is the strategic angle we would personally take when developing a submission for it.

  • 01

    AI Short Film

    1 to 10 minutes. Narrative fiction brought to life with generative tools.

    The default choice and the busiest one. Open on a strong image with a question, and finish before the ten minute line, with room for credits.

  • 02

    AI Animation

    1 to 10 minutes. Animated work in any style: 2D, 3D, experimental.

    Any style is allowed, so pick one and keep it. A single held look beats a mix of styles, and a stylised world forgives generation glitches that realism does not.

  • 03

    AI Documentary

    5 to 20 minutes. Non-fiction and factual storytelling, AI-enhanced.

    The longest category and the one with the strictest ethics rule: no generated depiction of a real person without documented consent. Use AI for reconstruction and atmosphere, and keep real faces real.

  • 04

    Student and Emerging

    1 to 10 minutes. First-time filmmakers and enrolled students, with guardian consent under 18.

    Always free to enter, at any deadline. A first film should stay small and finished: two characters, one place, one clear change.

From script to screen

Lost Garden: one scene, six shots.

The festival’s first question is “does it move you?”. This is the Source Tree scene from Lost Garden, episode 1, an animated series made by the 熙熙 team with Seedance: the screenplay page, then each shot as a storyboard frame and as the final image.

Logline. A small knight wakes up in a dead world and learns he is the last guardian of a seed that could bring the garden back.

Screenplay · episode 1 · the Source Tree

INT. HEART OF THE ROOTS - NIGHT

Living roots coil around LANTERN and pin him down. A voice stops them.

THE SOURCE TREE

Stop. He is my guest.

A giant woman of roots and white lilies opens her arms over the cavern.

Her eyes open. Blue, and vast.

THE SOURCE TREE

Welcome to you, Lantern Knight.

She lifts him in her palm, like a lamp.

THE SOURCE TREE

Do not be afraid. I will not harm you.

In the dark, a seed of light opens. Inside the flower, a sleeping child.

THE SOURCE TREE

You must find yours. Protect her.

CUT TO:

  1. A small lantern-helmed knight bound by thick roots in a ruined hall
    Storyboard frame of the trap shot, in grey
    01

    Medium · the trap

    Medium shot, Lantern bound by thick living roots in a ruined hall, glowing blue mushrooms on the floor, cold light

  2. A giant woman made of roots and white lilies spreads her many arms in a dark cavern
    Storyboard frame of the wide shot, in grey
    02

    Wide · the Source Tree

    Symmetrical wide shot, a giant woman made of roots, arms spread with many hands, white lilies, blue glyphs

  3. Extreme close-up of a giant pale face with piercing blue eyes
    Storyboard frame of the eyes close-up, in grey
    03

    Extreme close-up · the eyes

    Extreme close-up on the giant's face, piercing blue eyes opening, pale skin, soft light from below

  4. A tiny armored knight stands in the middle of a giant open hand
    Storyboard frame of the palm shot, in grey
    04

    High angle · the palm

    High angle, the tiny knight standing in the center of a giant open palm, stone floor far below

  5. A giant fingertip gently touches the chest of a small armored knight
    Storyboard frame of the touch close-up, in grey
    05

    Close-up · the touch

    Close-up, a giant fingertip gently touches the knight's armored chest, faceless helm, emotion through posture

  6. A sleeping pink-haired child curled inside a glowing blue flower
    Storyboard frame of the seed insert, in grey
    06

    Insert · the seed

    Top-down insert, a glowing pale blue flower opening, a sleeping child with pink hair curled inside

Lost Garden, episode 1 runs 17 minutes in its current form, so it would require a tight editorial cut to fit within the 10 minute maximum limit of the short and animation categories. It demonstrates the festival's first judging criterion at work in practice: a scene anchored by two distinct characters and a central emotional feeling. Episode 1 was selected as a finalist at the AI London Festival. The embedded player opens on the Source Tree sequence, beginning approximately 7 minutes 35 seconds into the episode.

The script

Eight minutes, four movements.

Aim for a finished running time of 8 minutes: leaving two minutes of buffer below the 10 minute limit creates essential room for burned-in subtitles, an opening title card and closing credits. That target translates to roughly 8 screenplay pages and 70 to 100 individual shots with an average duration of 4 to 6 seconds each.

  1. 0:00 to 0:50

    The image and the question

    A place, a person, and a reason to keep watching.

  2. 0:50 to 2:50

    The place and the longing

    Show where the story lives and what the character wants. If it matters, show it through gesture and sound.

  3. 2:50 to 6:25

    The obstacle

    One event that changes what is possible. The scene people will talk about belongs here.

  4. 6:25 to 8:00

    The change

    What the character has become, shown rather than told. Close on a single image and roll the credits.

A film presented in a language other than English needs English subtitles provided, either burned directly into the video or supplied as a separate .srt file. Write the dialogue in its native language first during the screenplay phase, then create the English translation: subtitles written as an afterthought after the film is finished read as an afterthought to the audience.

Day by day

Nineteen days, step by step.

Today is 1 October: nineteen days remain until the final deadline. This production plan is tight but realistic for completing a short film if the core story is already clear and ready in your head. If the story is not yet fully formed, consider aiming the same film concept at the next festival deadline you can realistically reach.
  1. 01

    1 to 3 October

    The connection and the category

    State your African connection honestly: heritage, subject or collaboration. Choose AI Short Film, Animation, Documentary or Student and Emerging, and fix the length.

  2. 02

    4 to 6 October

    The screenplay

    Eight pages, little dialogue. Write it free in 熙熙, in industry format, and read it aloud to someone from the culture you depict.

  3. 03

    7 to 9 October

    Look and shot list

    Pin down one reference per character and per place. Turn the screenplay into a shot list and tune every frame. A consistent look is cheaper to plan than to fix.

  4. 04

    10 to 15 October

    The footage

    Generate scene by scene with Seedance in 熙熙, or with any other video tool, since the festival imposes none. Keep every prompt.

  5. 05

    16 to 18 October

    Cut, mix and subtitle

    Cut to about 8 minutes, mix the sound, add English subtitles if needed, and export H.264 MP4 at 1080p and 24 to 30 fps.

  6. 06

    19 and 20 October

    Disclose and submit

    List the main AI tools and models and say how you used them. Upload on FilmFreeway before the end of 20 October. Keep the project files in case a question comes after an award.

Disqualification traps

Eight ways to lose the film on a technicality.

Most eligibility rules and submission requirements are published on the home page and the detailed FAQ section, presented in short declarative sentences. The festival organization reserves the right to disqualify a submission at any stage of the process, even after an award has been announced or presented.

  • No real African connection

    An entry must meet at least one condition: a lead filmmaker of African or diaspora heritage, an African subject, language, history or culture, or an African collaboration. Add one by genuine work, never by decoration.

  • AI that is not central

    Generated or augmented video, animation, imagery, voice, music or script must be central to the film. Minor AI colour correction does not qualify.

  • A film in two categories

    A film may be entered in one category only. A 12 minute short does not fit the 10 minute limit and must be cut or sent to the documentary category if it is factual.

  • A real person, generated

    No AI-generated depiction of a real, identifiable person without documented consent, and no deepfake meant to deceive or defame. Create fictional characters instead.

  • A skipped disclosure

    It is mandatory: list the main AI tools and models and describe how AI was used. The festival says it never counts against your score, so hide nothing.

  • Rights nobody granted

    You must own or have secured all rights, including third-party assets, music and likenesses, and warrant the work does not knowingly infringe anyone’s rights. Check each music source.

  • The wrong specification

    H.264 MP4, at least 1080p, 24 to 30 frames per second, with English subtitles burned in or as an .srt file for a film in another language.

  • A film finished too early

    Films must be completed on or after 1 January 2024. Earlier work does not qualify, though a film that has already screened or been released is welcome in Year One.

Why 熙熙

No tool imposed. A story to build well.

The festival permits you to use any AI tool or combination of tools and asks you to name them transparently in your disclosure. 熙熙 covers the creative stage tools rarely help with effectively: screenplay development, storyboard generation, and footage production all within one connected project workspace.

  • Your disclosure, already written

    Every shot links to a scene, a frame and a prompt. The list of AI tools and tasks the festival asks for comes from the project, not from memory.

  • A script before the footage

    Storytelling and emotional impact lead the five criteria. A screenplay in industry format, read aloud and storyboarded, shows you the weak minute before you spend on it.

  • Faces that stay faces

    Characters, locations and references carry across the film, which is what makes a short read as direction. It matters in the documentary and animation categories as much as in fiction.

  • Start for free today

    The 免费档 costs nothing and never expires, which suits a nineteen-day sprint. The 年度会员, ¥168 一年, adds the storyboard and Seedance video generation of each shot.

Real productions

International festival-recognized films have been written and produced with 熙熙.

熙熙 is already being used as a creative workspace for real AI film productions, from cinematic shorts to animated series pilots selected, nominated, and awarded by international festivals.

  • Video thumbnail for VOIDBORN

    VOIDBORN

    AI animated / cinematic short

    Festival recognition

    • 1st Place Silver

      Mondial Chroma Awards

    • 2nd Place 熙熙

      Mondial Chroma Awards

    • Award Winner

      Seoul International AI Film Festival

  • Video thumbnail for Les Fils du Vinnana

    Les Fils du Vinnana

    AI short film

    Festival recognition

    • Honorable Mention

      Top Quark Film Festival

    • People's Choice Nominee

      Illuminate Oneness of Humanity

    • Nominee

      ALTFF Supershort

  • Video thumbnail for Lost Garden

    Lost Garden

    AI animated series pilot

    Festival recognition

    • Finalist

      AI London Festival

See what creators are building

The pipeline

Write. Board. Produce.

  1. 熙熙 screenplay editor: acts, sequences and beats above the formatted script of The Yellow Umbrella

    01The screenplay, enriched

    An industry-standard screenplay editor, and more: a visual outline and beat editor, your writing inspirations (notes, photos, audio) kept next to the page, and an AI researcher to support your writing, not replace it.

  2. 熙熙 storyboard: shot S3 of The Yellow Umbrella with characters, shot settings and the script beside it

    02The storyboard, made easy

    Shot breakdown generated from your screenplay, manual control over every shot (frame, angle, movement, duration), and generative AI previsualization in one click.

  3. 熙熙 production canvas: shots S3 and S4 as connected nodes carrying their storyboard panels and prompts

    03AI production, with finesse

    Footage generation pipelines connected to your screenplay and storyboard. Optimized out of the box, fully editable workflow.

More AI film festivals

Guides for other festivals

Go further

Guides for festival films

FAQ

The African AI Film Festival, your questions

How do you win the African AI Film Festival?
A four-judge jury scores films on five criteria: storytelling and emotional impact, creative use of AI, cultural authenticity, technical craft and originality. Nine awards include Best of Festival and a public-vote Audience Award. Start with a story that connects to Africa for real, then use AI where it adds something.
Can I enter if I am not African?
Yes, if the film meets at least one condition: an African or diaspora lead filmmaker, an African story, language, history or culture, or an African collaboration. A film with none of the three is not eligible.
Is it free to enter?
It was free through the 30 September regular deadline. After it, a late fee of $5 to $10 applies to non-African entrants. Africa-based filmmakers and Student and Emerging entrants never pay.
What is the deadline?
20 October 2026 is the late deadline, and submissions close that day. Selections are announced in early November, and the festival is on 21 November in Hollywood and 12 December in Kampala.
Which AI tool must I use?
No. The festival names Runway, Sora, Midjourney and ElevenLabs only as examples of what to list in your disclosure. Any tool works if AI is central to the film.
What length limits apply?
AI Short Film, AI Animation and Student and Emerging take 1 to 10 minutes. AI Documentary takes 5 to 20 minutes. A film may be entered in only one category.
Can a film that already played elsewhere enter?
Yes. Previously screened or released films are welcome in Year One, provided they were completed on or after 1 January 2024. They also need English subtitles if they are not in English.
What does a win bring?
Trophies and laurels, credits from sponsors such as Runway and Adobe, mentorship and pitch opportunities, and a live screening at the Hollywood and Kampala premieres. The festival frames its prizes as prestige and opportunity over cash, and lists no cash prize.

Nineteen days. Start with the page.

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