Welcome to Musicbed Challenge, the 30-day short-film competition.

Winners are announced on September 4 at 5 pm UTC.

No. To submit to Musicbed Challenge, you will need to upload your film to your personal Vimeo account or YouTube channel. It can be listed as public or unlisted to be embedded on musicbed.com.

You can either upload your submission as unlisted or create a secondary YouTube or Vimeo account to upload your submission.

No. Participants may only submit one entry to Musicbed Challenge.

Yes, filmmakers retain the rights to their work submitted to Musicbed Challenge.

No. All submissions will be final. Please make sure you are uploading the correct version of your edit before submitting.

We won't accept submissions that use generative AI, nor will submissions that use AI to manipulate any Filmsupply footage be accepted.

You must use at least 10 seconds of one song provided by Musicbed in the Musicbed Challenge 2026 playlist, or a Musicbed song you license using your free trial. If you'd like to incorporate music beyond that, you must either have a valid license or own the rights to the audio. We will not accept submissions that use songs created using generative AI.

In the starter kit, there's a link to the Musicbed Challenge 2026 playlist where you can download individual songs, along with the license document. Once you have selected the song you'd like to use in your submission, press the down arrow button next to the song and then select "Try It". You can also download a song outside of the Musicbed Challenge playlist using your free trial.

The music license provided by Musicbed for your submission does not legally permit the selected songs to be published anywhere else besides Musicbed Challenge or your personal social media account via our Web/Social license. If you'd like to submit your entry elsewhere and you use a song provided by Musicbed, you'll need to purchase the proper license(s). Your license does not cover portfolio use, nor does it cover using digital ad spend behind your submission post.

Yes, and you share the prizes among the team.

No. A submission is only eligible to win one prize package if selected by our judges' panel.

Yes! Keep in mind that international winners are subject to applicable taxes, laws, and fees on all winnings within their country.

You can use stock footage as long as it is properly licensed or you own the rights.

Though our judges are of diverse backgrounds, they may not be familiar with certain languages. You can use your judgment on whether to add subtitles to your film or not.

You must be at least 18 years of age to be eligible for entry.

No existing brands, brand names, or logos should appear in your submission unless you have secured the necessary rights and approvals from the brand. This includes typing out the name of a company or logo instead of using the actual logo image (for example, typing out the word "Netflix" instead of using an image of the official Netflix logo). Any visible branding without explicit permission, sent to our team in the form of an official approval or licensing document, will result in disqualification.

If you have signed up for a Musicbed trial, you need to submit your film before your 14-day trial expires.

YouTube or Vimeo. Please make sure your link is listed as public, or we cannot review your submission, and it will be disqualified.

Narrative and documentary submissions must be under 10:00 minutes in length. Any submissions over 10:00 minutes will be disqualified.

Spec ad submissions must be under 90 seconds in length. Any submissions over 90 seconds in length will be disqualified.

No, only finalists are eligible to receive votes and judges' feedback during the voting period. There will be a maximum of 10 finalists total. If you do not see your film live on our website at the time of public voting, that means you were not selected as a finalist.

Yes. Anyone can participate in public voting.

Yes. However, voters are limited to voting once per day.

Yes. However, voters are limited to voting once per day.

You may use Musicbed Sounds or additional SFX in your entry, as long as you either have a valid license or own the rights to the audio.

You may use other VFX in your entry as long as you either have a valid license or own the rights to the material.

Entries will be judged on four criteria: Creativity, Storytelling, Song Use, and Craft by our esteemed panel of judges. If your submission does not meet the guidelines outlined in these FAQs, it will automatically be disqualified.