The Greenlight

Lead sponsor Fairground · The Fairground IP Challenge

Got a story that deserves to be a series? The winning concept becomes a funded series on Fairground.

Prize: A funded series on Fairground
Entries close: Midday (UK time) on Sunday 11 October
Premiere: The shortlist screens on Friday 16 October at the IMAX

The brief

Got a story that deserves to be a series? Enter a new film or one you've already made.

Make a pilot in five days, the opening of a series people will want to keep watching, or bring a film you've already made, as long as you hold the rights to it.

How to enter

Make your Big Screen Hack profile, if you haven't already. It takes about two minutes. Make your profile →
Share your card to unlock your partner credits. Your codes appear on your profile and on each challenge page.
Read the brief and the rules on this page, then make your entry during hack week, on your own or as a team.
Get it in before midday (UK time) on Sunday 11 October. Early submissions are guaranteed to be judged.

The rules

For this track

Enter a new pilot made during hack week, or a film you've already made, as long as you hold the rights to it.

For every track and challenge

Entry is free.
Enter on your own or as a team. You don't need a ready-made crew: you can find collaborators among the people taking part.
Entries close at midday (UK time) on Sunday 11 October. Early submissions are guaranteed to be judged.
Unless the brief says otherwise, you can make something new during hack week or enter work you've already made, as long as you hold the rights to it.
You keep what you make. Big Screen Hack gets the limited rights in the chapter terms to judge, screen, promote and archive your entry, and everyone in your team must have the authority to grant those rights.
Before any public screening, you tell us who owns the script, which AI models you used, any material shot with real people, permission for anyone's likeness, the music rights and any territory restrictions.
Sponsors' challenges are judged separately from the independent main jury.
Partner credits are one code per person for each partner, redeemed on the partner's own platform.
The shortlist premieres on Friday 16 October at the IMAX.

The full rules for the event, including rights and what you need to tell us about how your entry was made, are in the participant guide.

Prize and judging

The winning concept is developed and funded into a series on Fairground, on a 50/50 revenue share. Terms apply.
Your film, then development, then a series on Fairground.
The shortlist premieres on Friday 16 October at the IMAX, during BFI London Film Festival week.
Judged by the independent main jury on story, craft, originality and command of the medium.

Challenges in The Greenlight

Sponsors set these challenges inside the track, each with its own brief and prizes.

More challenges for this track are revealed as they're confirmed.