Smart Phone Horror Film Contest – Ten Scary Minutes

Welcome to the 2021, the 9th annual edition of the online contest!

With the exceptional video recording capabilities of smartphones, (iPhone, the new BlackBerrys, Windows and Android based cell phones) and the advent of high quality POV cameras like GoPro, Garmin, Sony, Safari etc, and the many user-friendly video editing options like I-Movie, Movie Maker etc., I decided to have a little fun and challenge you to a horror movie contest.

The challenge, you create a short, (up to), ten minute horror movie. It may be Gothic scary, like Hitchcock, shock scary, mock scary or outright B-movie campy! The whole idea is to take that cool smartphone or action cam, use your imagination and have a little fun! The prize, for first place? A whopping $200.00 US bucks, (just enough for pizza and beverages), the social cred of being savvy-cool and well, maybe your production goes viral. Who knows? Maybe you may become the next movie horror master!

This is a not-for profit video contest where our only goal is to to help ignite the imaginations and showcase grass-roots budding movie producers. This is our third year and I hope you will debut in the annual Ten Scary Minutes online horror movie making contest.

Your video contest entry may be less than but not longer than ten minutes. Most entries have been in the five (5) minute range with 90 seconds of credits which is perfect! But for those of you with a good story to tell, no more than ten (10) scary minutes!

The contest opens for submissions August 1, with the submission deadline October 31st. The contest results be announced October 31.

Contest Rules

“Ten Scary Minutes” is an online horror movie making contest. The goal, to create a 10 minute horror movie, using a smartphone, tablet or POV camera, like GOPro etc. for the video capture – you may use any non-professional video camera! Please review the Contest Rules.

The contest is online and open to anyone world wide, with the prize of two hundred dollars ($200.00 USD) wired to the winner using Western Union.

Contest opens for submissions August 1. The deadline for submissions is October 1. Contest results will be announced October 31. The Official Judging Form is on page 3 of the Press Release and can be downloaded here: The Official Judging Form

Production Rules:

1. Your video production contest entry to Ten Scary Minutes, (“Submission”), must be at least 720P HD resolution or better.
2. Your submission cannot exceed 10 minutes, including opening titles and credits.

Content Rules:

1. If you are under the age of 13, you need to have a legal guardian complete the submission on your behalf. This is to ensure compliance with Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act COPPA.
2. You cannot re-use a Submission from previous years.
3. Your Submission end title credits must include the following statements or points are taken off from your score (see Judging Form):
   • Entered in the – www.tenscaryminutes.com online horror movie making contest;
   • List the type of camera used (smartphones or tablets, you may use any non-professional video camera, like GO Pro, DSLR etc;
   • List the editing software you used;
   • Credit any special effects used;
   • Credit any stock images or video you used;
   • Credit any copyrighted audio elements used;
   • Credit Director(s):
   • Credit Actor(s):
   • Music Credits:
4. Your Submission will not feature any explicit sexual content. Such content will disqualify the entry. You agree not to use any high-risk stunts, film in high risk or restricted areas or depicted any persons (age, sex, race, religion, physical attributes) in ways that are intended to be disparaging.
5. You have obtained written consent of any persons to use their likeness in your Submission.
6. You cannot incorporate third-party copyrighted materials into your Submission without expressed written permission of the owner of that copyright and the copyright must be acknowledged in your  credits.
7. You own the copyright of your production and have the authority and capacity to assign the right to use the Submission.

General Terms and Conditions:

1. To enter you accept and agree to be governed by the Production Rules and the Content Rules when producing your Submission.
2. You grant non-exclusive worldwide rights for the use your Submission in whole or in part, to be used by the producers of the Tens Scary Minutes video contest, on the website www.tenscaryminutes.com, in promotional materials, in any medium, in any streaming or broadcast service and mode, in any format, without financial consideration.
3. You agree that the producers of “Ten Scary Minutes”, the video contest producers, sponsors, officers, directors, agents, parent companies, subsidiaries, affiliates, employees, companies providing services to, (“Released Parties”), are not responsible for any liabilities, expenses or loss incurred with respect to your Submission or any aspect of its production.
4. In exchange for the right to participate by entering your Submission you agree to indemnify and defend the Released Parties, from any and all claims, demands, causes of action of any nature or kind whatsoever, whether presently known or unknown, foreseen or unforeseen, that arise out of your participation and your Submission.
5. For clarity you shall indemnify, hold harmless and defend the producers of “Ten Scary Minutes”, the video contest producers, sponsors, officers, directors, agents, parent companies, subsidiaries, affiliates, employees, companies providing services to, (“Released Parties”) from any and all claims made against you and your Submission.
6. We, the Released Parties, make no claim to copyright of your Submission and copyright shall remain with the credited producer found in the credits of your Submission.
7. The opinions, beliefs and assertions presented in a particular Submission do not reflect those held by the Released Parties and are solely those of the producer of that Submission.
8. The administration of Tenscaryminutes.com reserves the right to remove any submission at its sole discretion without notice or consideration.
9. You agree that by entering the video contest your relationship to the Released Parties is exclusively as a participant in the contest. You agree not to make claims of liability or loss to or against the Released Parties.
10. All prizes as advertised are accepted as awarded.
11. The Production Rules, Content Rules, General Terms and Conditions are subject to change at any time at the sole discretion of the Producers of Ten Scary Minutes.
12. By entering your Submission, you agree to and accept without reservation the terms and conditions outlined in the Production Rules, Content Rules, General Terms andConditions.

How to Submit your entry:

1. To enter, click on the “Movie Entries” tab. You will be brought to the Gallery Page where on the top right, you will see a federated login for Facebook and Gmail. You can choose either to login with and if you logging in the future, you will need to use the same credentials to get to the same profile.
2. Please login and then click, “My Entries”, (we do not store any of your personal data on our site!).
3. From there, you will come to the entry form which you will complete, then upload your submission.
4. If you have questions, please contact us at “[email protected]”.

Contact Us:

If you need to contact use, please email: [email protected]