A horror film contest. Prizes include promotion on the Hollywood Investigator website and award plaques (which are FREE -- we do not charge winners for their plaques). Screenings at fan conventions. Past winning films have screened at the World Horror Convention (New York City, Winnipeg, Salt Lake City), Loscon (Los Angeles), Tuscon (Tucson), and various theaters in Santa Monica, CA.

Tabloid Witch founder Thomas M. Sipos is the author of Horror Film Festivals and Awards (McFarland 2012) and Horror Film Aesthetics (McFarland 2010), available on Amazon.com.

Awards & Prizes

Winners receive promotion and plaques. Award categories include:

* Best Horror Feature Film
* Best Animated Horror Film
* Best Dramatic Horror Short Film
* Best Comedic Horror Short Film
* Best Avant-Garde Horror Film
* Best Horror Documentary
* Best Trash Horror Film
* Best Horror TV/Web Series
* Best Horror Music Video
* Best Dramatic Actress
* Best Dramatic Actor
* Best Comedic Actress
* Best Comedic Actor
* Best Cinematography
* Best Sound Design
* Best Editing
* Best Production Design
* Best Visual Effects
* Best Make-Up Effects
* Best Music Soundtrack
* Honorable Mention

Rules & Terms

Horror. Any kind of horror: supernatural, science fiction, dark fantasy, slashers, comedic, trash, animation, avant-garde, surreal, documentary, music video -- it's all good. Okay if it's been screened elsewhere.

32 Reviews
Overall Rating
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Value
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Networking
  • Jon Farrington

    Probably are favorite film festival! Great communication, great festival, and great coverage. We received an honorable mention for our film and received a plague and a wonderful write up. Appreciate this organization and will be submitting all of our upcoming films to them.

    May 2026
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  • Eric Baktanian

    Easily one of the best festival experiences I've had, and super thankful to the Tabloid Witch Awards for the best Cinematography Award for our incredibly talented Cinematographer, Caitlin Brown for the short film BE NICE. We will be submitting again every chance we get. Thank you for the fun experience!!

    December 2025
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  • Darren McInnes

    Unfortunately I wasn't able to attend but it looks like it was a great event. Excellent communication and great enthusiasm from the organizers. Thanks guys!

    December 2025
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  • sean kurosawa

    Best of the Best B horror film fest!
    The host Thomas's deep insight into the work is amazing!

    December 2025
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  • Mark Krol

    Participating in The Tabloid Witch Awards was a fantastic experience for the entire "Broken Reality" team. The organizers were incredibly communicative and transparent throughout the entire process, making us feel valued as filmmakers.
    We are truly honored to have received the Best Dramatic Actress award. It is refreshing to see a festival that pays such close attention to the details of the performances and provides genuine recognition for indie genre films. We highly recommend this festival to any filmmaker looking for a platform that seriously supports and celebrates horror and dramatic cinema. Thank you for this recognition!

    December 2025
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