Lithgow Halloween Smartphone Film Competition

We're back baby! After a couple of years in the wilderness, we are super pleased to bring you, supported by Lithgow City Council and SF3, the fourth Lithgow Halloween Smartphone film competition!

The film competition is an official part of the 2026 Halloween festivities, kicking off events on the Friday night with a spooktacular screening at Lithgow's Cinema in the Main Street! We are very lucky to have access to this amazing venue, normally only open to members of the Lithgow Valley Film Society.

The competition is for short suspenseful horror movies, up to a maximum of 10 minutes duration with a G-rating, to be shot on a mobile phone or tablet.

Films will be judged in 4 category areas; ‘Most Creative’, ‘Best Performance’ and 'Best Youth Film' There will also be a ‘People’s Choice’ award and great prizes will be on offer.
Films are independently judged by SF3, who are the organisers of the SmartFone Flick Fest, Australia’s international smartphone film festival.

Entries are free and open to film makers from anywhere in the world - we will be running 3 free workshops for young filmmakers from the Seven Valleys in the lead up to Halloween.

Shortlisted films will be screened and winners announced at a spooktacular gala event launching the 2026 Lithgow Halloween Festival at 7pm Friday 30 October at the Lithgow Cinema, 166 Main Street Lithgow. Tickets for this free event will be avaliable shortly.

Awards & Prizes

$500.00 Australian Dollars for the winner of each of the four categories
Certificates will be awarded for the Finalist and winners.

Rules & Terms

Lithgow Halloween Film Competition Terms and Conditions

1. The film must be in the suspense horror genre but also be suitable for general viewing (G rating).

2. The film must be shot completely on a mobile phone and/or tablet.

3. Films entered must be a maximum of 10 minutes in duration, including titles and credits. There is no minimum time limit.

4. Any add-on devices, equipment or applications can be used during filming.

5. Any software can be used to edit the video and audio. You can edit on any device including phones, laptops, desktop computers and tablets.

6. Any software can be used for colour correction and special effects.

7. Copyright material cannot be used in your film unless you have documentation to prove you have legal authorisation from the musician, artist, writer, photographer or record label. We may ask for this documentation at any time. For advice on getting approval to use copyright material head to https://www.copyright.org.au/ACC/Find_an_Answer/ACC/Public_Content/Find_an_Answer.aspx?hkey=b0de2cd4-daa3-47da-95a5-1e7ecdc8dddc

8. Children under the age of 18 appearing in your film will need signed parental approval.

9. Foreign films are welcome in any language, but you are required to add subtitles in English.

10. The film competition is open to filmmakers of ALL ages.

11. Submission deadline is 11:59pm (AEST), October 15th, 2026

12. Entrants agree to their film or any part of their film, still images from the shoot or film posters being used for promotions for media release, distribution to the media and on social media platforms, including, but not limited to, Lithgow City Council.

13. Entrants may be invited to participate in promotional activities before and after the film competition.

14. All content submitted must be in accordance with the law and any perceived illegal activity will be reported to the appropriate authorities.

15. The judges decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.

16. Entries must be uploaded to FilmFreeway via Vimeo or YouTube. Selected finalists must then submit films in 16:9 ratio and in a non-compressed format. We recommend an MP4 or Quicktime file, the largest size possible, with a constant frame rate and Stereo 48kHz sound.

17. Your film is allowed to be screened in other film festivals.

18. There is no entry fee for the Lithgow Halloween Film Competition.

19. There is no limit on the number of films you can enter.

20. Entries will be accepted from anywhere in the world.

21. By entering the Lithgow Halloween Film Competition, you agree to allow your film to be screened as part of the festival across the weekend of October 30 and any subsequent screenings or media promotion to be decided by the event organisers

14 Reviews
Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Mark Bernard

    Excellent communication and the live event was so professional! Grateful to be a finalist this year!

    November 2023
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  • Malachi Lewis

    I wasn’t able to physically attend but the team was quick to respond and excellent at updating me on the files I sent. Hopefully soon I’ll be able to attend on future projects.

    November 2023
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  • James Wallace

    This is an enjoyable and well-run festival. Joc and I had a great time travelling up to Lithgow and they turned on a fantastic event. Thanks so much, Angela and the Lithgow council for your hospitality.

    November 2023
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  • Michael Dorfman

    An awesome festival with fantastic films and filmmakers! Honored to have our film NIGHTMARE IN NORTH HOLLYWOOD be a small part of it. Highly recommend!!

    November 2023
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  • Nicholas Weed

    The Lithgow Halloween Smartphone Film Competition rejected both, "Student Body Count", and "Terror of the Occult". But, they showed, "Zorbins : Attack of the Zombie Mormons". They rejected two of the three short films I submitted to their event. At least they showed one of them.

    November 2023
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