You are invited to the Milwaukee Horror Film Festival hosted by award-winning filmmaker and international film judge CJ Vecchio!

UPDATE: We just teamed up with The Milwaukee Horror Con!!!!

This thrilling event is the perfect opportunity for indie horror filmmakers to showcase their spine-chilling shorts. With an array of terrifying films, engaging panels, and special guest appearances, it's a weekend you won't want to miss.

Join us on for our second event on MARCH 22-23, 2025. This iconic venue provides the perfect backdrop for a weekend of horror and cinematic creativity.

Submit your horror short now and be part of the frightful fun! Don't miss the chance to have your work seen by industry professionals and horror enthusiasts alike.

Secure your spot and get ready to scare!

Awards & Prizes

TROPHY AWARDS

Best Horror Feature
Best Horror Short
Best Horror Milwaukee/WI
Best Horror 1st Time Director
Best Horror Director
Best Horror Director - Milwaukee/WI
Best Horror Actor & Actress
Best Horror Actor & Actress - Milwaukee/WI
Best Young Performer
CERTIFICATE AWARDS

Best Horror International (Short & Feature)
Best Horror Cinematography
Best Horror Trailer (must have download link)
Best Horror Comedy
Best Horror Cartoon/Animation/Puppet
Best LGBTQ Horror
Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy Horror*
Best Midnight/Grindhouse/WTF
Best AI Horror
Best Horror Film Poster
Best Screenplay (1st, 2nd & 3rd place)
Fest Directors Choice Award
More Information On The Milwaukee Horror Film Festival Awards:

*Trophy award winners NOT PRESENT will incur shipping & handling costs for the award to be shipped. Certificate winners will be emailed PDFs at no cost to the winner 4 days after the live event.

** Our Selection / Awards Procedure: Festival Director / Producers make official selections for the festival by vote. Official Selections are then screened/graded by 5 different judges anonymously and given an overall grade on a 5-point scale for each of the qualifying award categories (with the exception of the “Fest Directors Choice Award”). All judges' points are then added together to give it a grade. The top 5 films by grade in each category are then considered an award nominee and listed on this page. The film with the highest grade in each category is considered and announced as that category’s award winner at the festival. In the event of a tie for the highest grade, the festival director, festival producer, and festival founder will each vote on the tied films, giving the majority vote the award. In the event that one of the production staff is involved in one of the films involving a tie, a 3rd party will be selected to vote in place of the production staff member involved.

**** The Festival Directors Choice Award nominees are the Film Festival Director's top 5 choice films of the festival. The Directors Choice Award is presented at the festival to the Director's favorite film of the festival. (Any film that the festival director is personally involved in at any level is not eligible for this award.)

Award Winners will be announced LIVE at The Milwaukee Horror Film Festival! www.milwaukeehorrorfest.com

Rules & Terms

The Festival is open to any film that might be considered a horror film, or anything of a disturbing nature, dark art, and/or frightening. This includes Horror Sci-Fi, Horror Thriller, Animated Horror, Found-Footage Horror, Fan-Film Horror, and more.

We are only accepting submissions via online screener (here on filmfreeway.com), and exhibition films will need to be in DCP FORMAT along with MOV or MP4 file if selected.

DCP Requirements:

Operating System: Linux (we cannot accept any files saved from a MAC program)
Target Color: DC28DCI_XYZE_314_351
Color Space: Unity RGB or XYZ
Audio: LCR or 5.1 is preferred, but if it is formatted 7.1, it will still play out as 5.1. Accepts mono or stereo
Gamma: Gamma 2.6
We are not accepting DVD/BluRay/Hardcopy submissions. Only films with DCP files will be played live at the theatre; films that do not have DCP will only be in our online streaming festival.

It is recommended that the hard drive that the DCP is sent on is formatted as EXT2/EXT3 or NTFS for ease of ingestion.

There is NO 'Film Made By' date. We have shown horror films from as early as the 30s. Please feel free to submit your early work as well as your current work.

Rules for Submissions

The rules are basic but necessary. Please take a quick look at the info below before you submit.

I, the undersigned, acknowledge and agree:

I have read, understood, and fully comply with all submission eligibility information, Submission Guidelines, Terms and Conditions of Entry, and Entry Eligibility requirements.
To the best of my knowledge, all of the statements in this submission are true.
This film or video is not subject to any litigation nor is threatened by any litigation.
I am duly authorized to submit this film to the festival.
I hold The Milwaukee Horror Film Festival harmless from any damage to the print(s) or media materials(s) en route or otherwise during the course of the festival’s possession of the film.
I hold The Milwaukee Horror Film Festival, its owners, management, juries, subsidiaries, agents, sponsors, affiliates, and etc., harmless from any and all claims of liability resulting from my entry.
I certify that I have full rights to the use of the music in the entered work.
I give permission for The Milwaukee Horror Film Festival to use stills, trailers, titles, copy, and/or information for promotional purposes.
Physical awards and paper certificates will only be distributed to winners who are present at the event, and their availability is limited. After the event, all winners will receive a downloadable PDF of the certificate via email. Additionally, participants will have the option to purchase a physical trophy for an additional cost, which includes shipping and handling.
I give permission for The Milwaukee Horror Film Festival to screen the film at the Festival live and online for which it was submitted.
If selected, I will provide The Milwaukee Horror Film Festival with a digital copy of my film's movie poster (in vertical format) for use on the festival website.