Modern Uprising Studio Frame Forward AI Film Festival Terms and Conditions
Effective Date: October 9, 2025
These Terms and Conditions (“Terms”) govern participation in the Modern Uprising Studios (“MUS”) Frame Forward AI Film Festival (the “Festival”), presented by Modern Uprising Studios in association with SCREENVISION DIRECT, INC. (“Screenvision” the “Organizers”). By submitting an animated short film (“Submission”) to the Festival, you (“Entrant”) agree to be bound by the following Terms.
NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT IS REQUIRED TO ENTER OR WIN.
ELIGIBLE PARTICIPANTS MUST BE AT LEAST EIGHTEEN (18) YEARS OLD (OR THE AGE OF MAJORITY IN THEIR PLACE OF RESIDENCE, IF HIGHER) AND RESIDENTS OF A JURISDICTION WHERE PARTICIPATION IS LEGALLY PERMITTED.
THE FESTIVAL IS VOID WHERE PARTICIPATION IS PROHIBITED OR RESTRICTED BY LAW.
1. Eligibility
1.1 Age and Residence Requirements. The Festival is open to individuals who are eighteen (18) years of age or older at the time of submission (or the local age of majority in their jurisdiction of residence, if higher) and who reside in a country where participation is not prohibited or restricted by law. IT IS THE SOLE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE ENTRANT TO DETERMINE WHETHER THE FESTIVAL IS LEGAL IN THEIR JURISDICTION OF RESIDENCE. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, MUS MAKES NO REPRESENTATION OR WARRANTY THAT AN INDIVIDUAL RESIDING IN A GIVEN JURISDICTION WHICH IS NOT EXCLUDED AS PER SECTION 1.2 BELOW MAY LAWFULLY PARTICIPATE IN THE FESTIVAL AND UTILIZE THE PRIZE IF DETERMINED TO BE THE WINNER OF THE FESTIVAL. The Festival is void where prohibited or restricted by law.
1.2 Excluded Jurisdictions. The Festival is not open to residents of Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia, Syria, the Crimea, Donetsk People’s Republic, Luhansk People’s Republic region of Ukraine, or any other jurisdiction subject to U.S., UK, or EU trade sanctions, or where participation would otherwise be prohibited or restricted by law.
1.3 Free Entry. No purchase, payment, or other consideration is required to enter or win the Festival. Participation is free of charge.
1.4 Ineligible Parties. Employees, officers, and directors of Modern Uprising Studios (or “MUS”) or Screenvision, and their immediate family members, are not eligible to enter the Festival.
1.5 Definition of Project. For the purposes of these Terms, a “Project” means the audiovisual, film and video work submitted by the Entrant to the Festival, including all associated sound, images, and underlying rights.
1.6 Original Work Requirement. Each entrant may submit only one (1) Project provided that it is the Entrant’s own original work, created solely by the Entrant. The Project must not incorporate any material owned or created by third parties unless the Entrant has obtained all necessary rights, licenses, and permissions for such use.
1.7 Prior Production and Distribution Restrictions. The Project may have been previously produced; however, it must not be encumbered by third party rights, previously or currently licensed to any distributor, broadcaster, or streaming platform, or previously aired or distributed in any commercial manner.
1.8 Entrant Responsibility for Compliance. For the purposes of complying with the eligibility requirements under these Terms, entrants are responsible for compliance with their own local laws.
2. Submission Guidelines
All Submissions must comply with the following requirements:
**MUS Content Guidelines
MUS will not accept any Submission which MUS determines in its sole discretion includes any material which:
3. Use of Artificial Intelligence
3.1 AI Inclusion Policy. This Festival is AI-inclusive, which means the use of AI tools in creating Projects is permitted, provided that Entrants comply with the disclosure requirements in this clause.
3.2 AI Disclosure Requirements. Entrants must describe how AI was used during the creative process, including which parts of the Submission were generated by AI and which were human-created, in the AI Disclosure Form as part of the submission process.
3.3 Deceptive AI Use. Projects that use AI in deceptive or misleading ways (e.g., deepfakes without disclosure, unethical replication of likeness or voice) will be disqualified at MUS’ discretion.
3.4 Extent of AI Use. Submission must show Entrant’s use of AI as part of the creative process; the Submission must be predominantly the work of the individual Entrant with the Entrant using AI as a tool. MUS is looking for AI to function as a means to an end and not as an end in and of itself.
4. Rights Granted by Entrant
By submitting a Project, you grant the Organizers a non-exclusive, royalty-free, and worldwide license to use your Submission for a period of twenty-four (24) months from the date of submission for the following purposes:
4.1 Exhibition and Display Rights Exhibit, screen, stream, broadcast, or otherwise display your Submission publicly (in full or excerpted), including:
4.2 Adaptation and Technical Use Rights. Reproduce, adapt, edit, and reformat your Submission for technical or promotional purposes.
5. Entrant Undertakings
By submitting a Project, you further:
5.1 Moral Rights Waiver. To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, waive any and all moral rights (including rights of attribution and integrity) in connection with these uses and agree not to assert such rights against the Organizers or their licensees, successors, or assigns.
5.2 Ownership and License Confirmation. Acknowledge that you retain full ownership of your original content and underlying intellectual property and agree that the Organizers may use your Submission under this license without further approval, notification, or compensation.
5.3 Negotiation of Additional Rights. Agree that, following the expiry of this twenty-four (24) month license, MUS and Screenvision may seek to negotiate additional rights in good faith with you if further use is desired.
6. Warranties and Representations
By submitting a Project, you represent and warrant that:
6.1 Ownership and Authority. You are the sole creator and owner of the Submission, or you have secured all rights, licenses and permissions necessary to submit and grant the rights contemplated by these Terms.
6.2 Non-Infringement of Third-Party Rights. The Submission does not and will not infringe, misappropriate, or otherwise violate any third-party rights, including but not limited to copyright, trademark, moral rights, rights of privacy, or rights of publicity.
6.3 Music, Imagery, and AI Models. All music, imagery, characters, AI models, or other elements included in the Submission are original to you, royalty-free, properly licensed, or otherwise lawfully used (including under fair use or public domain).
6.4 Releases for Individuals Depicted. You have obtained valid written releases from all identifiable individuals depicted in the Submission, and such releases grant the rights necessary for the Organizers to use the Submission as set forth in these Terms.
6.5 Compliance with Local Laws. Your Submission does not contain material that is unlawful under the laws of the jurisdiction in which the Submission was created or where the Entrant resides.
6.6 Indemnification. You acknowledge and agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless the Organizers, and their respective officers, directors, employees, agents, successors, and assigns, from and against any and all claims, demands, causes of action, judgments (including attorneys’ fees, court costs, and expert’s fees) arising out of or related to any breach by you of the foregoing representations and warranties.
7. Judging and Selection
7.1 Criteria and Panel. Finalist selections will be made by a panel of internal and external judges using scoring criteria that may include creativity, storytelling, innovation in AI usage, and audience appeal.
7.2 Finalist Selection. Three (3) finalists will be chosen and their Submissions exhibited both in-theater and on digital platforms. MUS will arrange for the exhibition of all three (3) finalists’ Submissions, in whole or in part, for the same time period in-theater and on digital platforms. Entrants understand and agree that if they are determined to be a finalist: (a) their Submission as exhibited may differ from the Submission as entered in the Festival due to technological limitations and for other reasons, with MUS disclaiming any and all liability in conjunction therewith; (b) the Submissions including their Submission may be posted in any order, sequence or pattern as determined by MUS in its sole discretion, and MUS may rotate or alter such order/sequence/pattern one or more times in its sole discretion; and (c) their Submission will be attributed to them in a manner to be solely determined by MUS.
7.3 Public Voting. The Winning Film will be determined by public voting from among the finalists. Should the public voting result in a tie, MUS will select an additional judge to review the tied finalist Submissions based on the criteria in Section 7.1 so as to determine the Winning Film. The two (2) finalists who did not submit the Winning Film will not receive any prize or award.
To vote for a finalist Submission, interested persons visit a designated website and follow the instructions. Only persons who are eighteen (18) years of age or older at the time of public voting (or the local age of majority in their jurisdiction of residence, if higher) may vote. MUS will determine in its sole discretion the voting period, which may occur during dates/times that are national, provincial/territorial or religious holidays in certain jurisdictions. MUS reserves the right to limit persons to a certain number of votes during a given time period or overall with the understanding that violation of such limit may result in discounting of votes in excess of such limit or perhaps all votes from the person violating the limit.
Entrants understand and agree that if they are determined to be a finalist: (a) they will not offer any incentive or benefit to any person to vote for their Submission or to refrain from voting for another finalist’s Submission; (b) they will not ridicule, insult or defame any other finalist or such finalist’s Submission via any public statement or posting; and (c) they will not use any method to manipulate or undermine the authenticity or legitimacy of public voting. SHOULD MUS DETERMINE IN ITS SOLE DISCRETION THAT A FINALIST IS IN VIOLATION OF ANY OF THE ABOVE, MUS RESERVES THE RIGHT IN ITS SOLE DISCRETION TO PURSUE ANY AND ALL AVAILABLE REMEDIES AT LAW OR IN EQUITY AGAINST SUCH FINALIST (AS WELL AS ANY PERSON SUSPECTED TO BE ACTING ON SUCH FINALIST’S BEHALF) TO PROTECT ITS RIGHTS, INCLUDING CRIMINAL PROSECUTION, IN ADDITION TO DISQUALIFICATION OF THE FINALIST FROM THE FESTIVAL, DISCOUNTING OF VOTES FOR THE FINALIST, PROVISION OF ADDITIONAL VOTES TO OTHER FINALISTS AND/OR RE-DETERMINATION OF THE WINNING FILM (PERHAPS VIA EVALUATION BY AN ADDITIONAL JUDGE IN LIEU OF PUBLIC VOTING), ALL AS DETERMINED BY MUS IN ITS SOLE DISCRETION.
Should MUS decide to utilize a leaderboard or like mechanism to track the number of votes received by finalist Submissions, such leaderboard/mechanism may not be accurate at any given time and may be updated by MUS one or more times to correct errors or omissions, without liability to MUS under any legal theory and without prior notification of any kind. Without in any way limiting the foregoing, the finalist whose Submission is listed on the final leaderboard/mechanism as receiving the highest vote total may NOT have submitted the Winning Film.
7.4 Finality of Decisions. All decisions of the judges and the Organizers regarding the selection of finalists and the Winning Film are made in their sole discretion and are final, binding, and not subject to appeal.
8. Winning Filmmaker Screening & Support
8.1 Screening & Support. The Winning Filmmaker will receive the following Award: (i) a screening of the winning Film, in Screenvision’s theater network (with the timing, duration, territory and all other elements of the theatrical screening of the winning Film being determined by Organizers in their sole discretion); (ii) possible submission of the winning Film to top-tier film festival(s) of Modern Uprising Studio’s sole choosing (should Modern Uprising Studio choose to submit the winning Film to a given film festival, Modern Uprising Studio will pay any entry or associated fees with doing so); and (iii) Modern Uprising Studio’s creation of an immersive version of the winning Film for possible distribution. IN ALL CASES, WINNING FILMMAKER UNDERSTANDS AND AGREES THAT (i) HE/SHE WILL NOT RECEIVE ANY ROYALTY OR OTHER PAYMENT OF ANY KIND FROM ORGANIZERS RELATIVE TO THE ABOVE AWARD; (ii) ORGANIZERS OR MUS (AS APPLICABLE) MAY EXERCISE THEIR RIGHTS AS SET FORTH ABOVE WITHOUT REVIEW OR APPROVAL OF WINNING FILMMAKER, WITH ORGANIZERS OR MUS (AS APPLICABLE) HAVING CREATIVE CONTROL AS TO SAME; (iii) HE/SHE WILL WORK IN GOOD FAITH AND IN ACTIVE COLLABORATION WITH ORGANIZERS OR MUS (AS APPLICABLE) AT WINNING FILMMAKER’S SOLE EXPENSE TO THE ORGANIZERS’/MUS’ FULFILLMENT OFTHE ELEMENTS COMPRISING THE AWARD AND (iv) WHERE AN ELEMENT OF SCREENING & SUPPORT IS DESIGNATED AS BEING “POSSIBLE,” NOTHING HEREIN IN ANY WAY OBLIGATES MUS TO PROVIDE SUCH ELEMENT AND, IN REFRAINING FROM DOING SO, MUS WILL NOT HAVE ANY LIABIILTY TO WINNING FILMMAKER UNDER ANY LEGAL THEORY. Screening & Support has no retail value.
8.2 Non-Transferability of Award. Award cannot be transferred or assigned. No monetary award or other award substitution is permitted, except at the sole discretion of the Organizers. The award is subject to availability and if the award cannot be awarded for any reason (in whole or in part), the Organizers will not have any liability or obligation to Winning Filmmaker.
8.3 Responsibilities. All costs and expenses associated with award acceptance and use not specifically provided herein are the responsibility of the award recipients.
8.4 Winner Verification Requirements. As a condition of receiving award, potential Winning Filmmaker must respond to award notification within seven days, and provide reasonable proof of identity, age, and compliance with these Terms if requested by the Organizers. Failure to comply may result in disqualification and forfeiture of the award, in which case the Organizers may upon their sole discretion select an alternate Winning Film and Winning Filmmaker.
9. Publicity. Except where prohibited by law, by entering the Festival, each Entrant grants the Organizers the right to use the Entrant’s name, likeness, voice, biographical information, and details of their Submission in any manner, in any media now known or hereafter devised, including without limitation for advertising, marketing, and promotional purposes, without further approval, notice, or compensation. Such rights are granted on a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide basis for the same twenty-four (24) month period specified in Clause 4, unless otherwise extended by mutual agreement.
10. Limitation of Liability
10.1 Exclusion of Liabilities & Damages. TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, MUS AND SCREENVISION SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE, EXEMPLARY, OR SPECIAL DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO (i) THE FESTIVAL, OR (ii) THE AWARD OR PRIZE.
10.2 Liability Cap. YOUR SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE REMEDY FOR ANY CLAIMS RELATING TO THE FESTIVAL SHALL BE LIMITED TO YOUR ACTUAL, REASONABLE, OUT-OF-POCKET EXPENSES INCURRED IN PARTICIPATING IN THE FESTIVAL, IF ANY, AND IN NO EVENT SHALL THE TOTAL LIABILITY OF THE FESTIVAL PARTIES EXCEED ONE HUNDRED U.S. DOLLARS (USD $100), except where liability cannot be excluded or limited by law.
10.3 Waiver and Release of Claims. BY ENTERING THE FESTIVAL, YOU WAIVE AND RELEASE THE FESTIVAL PARTIES FROM ANY AND ALL ACTIONS, CLAIMS, DAMAGES, LOSSES, OR INJURIES OF ANY KIND (COLLECTIVELY, “CLAIMS”) ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THE FESTIVAL OR THE AWARD, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION CLAIMS RELATING TO:
(a) malfunction of any computer, network, satellite, hardware, software, or communications system;
(b) server downtime, corrupted files, unauthorized access, lost, delayed, or mis-redirected Submissions, or any other technical issues, failures, or malfunctions of any kind;
(c) unauthorized human intervention;
(d) errors, delays, or inaccuracies in transmissions, award notifications, award claims, or other communications;
(e) damage to any person’s computer or mobile device; or
(f) typographical or administrative errors in these Terms or related announcements.
10.4 Ambiguities and Errors. In the event of any ambiguity or error in these Terms, MUS reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to clarify or modify these Terms to correct such ambiguity or error. If, for any reason, more valid claims for awards are received than the number stated in these Terms, MUS reserves the right to award only the stated number, selecting the Winning Film from among eligible entries as it deems appropriate.
10.5 Legal Warning. ANY ATTEMPT TO DELIBERATELY UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE OPERATION OF THE FESTIVAL MAY VIOLATE CRIMINAL OR CIVIL LAWS. SHOULD SUCH AN ATTEMPT BE MADE, MUS RESERVES THE RIGHT TO SEEK DAMAGES AND PURSUE ALL AVAILABLE REMEDIES AGAINST ANY SUCH INDIVIDUAL TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW.
10.6 California Residents. If you are a California resident, you expressly waive the provisions of California Civil Code § 1542, which states: “A general release does not extend to claims that the creditor or releasing party does not know or suspect to exist in his or her favor at the time of executing the release and that, if known by him or her, would have materially affected his or her settlement with the debtor or released party.”
11. Right to Disqualify. The Organizers reserve the right, in its reasonable discretion, to disqualify any entrant or Submission, including but not limited to cases of violation of these Terms, fraudulent activity, or failure to meet eligibility requirements. If the Winning Filmmaker is disqualified, the Organizers reserve the right to select a substitute Winning Filmmaker or not to select an entrant to receive the award.
12. Governing Law. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York. Any disputes shall be resolved through arbitration in New York County under AAA Commercial Arbitration Rules. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Organizers may seek temporary, preliminary, or permanent injunctive relief or other equitable remedies in any court of competent jurisdiction, without the necessity of posting bond, to protect its intellectual property rights or to prevent irreparable harm.
13. General Provisions
13.1 Force Majeure. If the Festival cannot be conducted as planned due to circumstances beyond the reasonable control of the Organizers — including, without limitation, acts of God, natural disasters, pandemics or epidemics (including COVID-19), government orders or restrictions, labor disputes, power failures, computer viruses, bugs, tampering, unauthorized intervention, technical failures, or other causes that materially affect the administration, security, fairness, integrity, or proper conduct of the Festival — the Organizers reserve the right, in their reasonable discretion, to modify, suspend, or cancel the Festival. In the event of cancellation, the Organizers may select a Winning Film from among all eligible, non-suspect entries received prior to the time of cancellation.
13.2 Severability. If any provision of these Terms is found by a court or other tribunal of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, illegal, or unenforceable for any reason, such provision shall be severed and the remaining provisions shall continue in full force and effect. To the extent permitted by law, the invalid, illegal, or unenforceable provision shall be deemed replaced by a valid and enforceable provision that most closely reflects the original intent of the Organizers.
13.3 Entire Agreement. These Terms constitute the entire agreement between you and the Organizers with respect to participation in the Festival and supersede all prior or contemporaneous communications, representations, or agreements, whether oral or written, relating to the subject matter herein. No amendment or modification of these Terms shall be valid unless made in writing and posted by MUS on the Festival website.
13.4 Waiver. The failure of the Organizers to enforce any right, term, or provision of these Terms shall not constitute a waiver of that right, term, or provision. Any waiver must be in writing and signed by an authorized representative of MUS to be effective, and shall not operate as a waiver of any future breach or default.
13.5 Notices. All notices or communications required or permitted under these Terms shall be in writing. Notices to the Organizers must be sent to festival@frameforward.ai, and shall be deemed effective upon actual receipt by MUS. Notices to Entrants may be provided by email to the address supplied at the time of entry, or by posting on the Festival website or this portal, and shall be deemed effective upon transmission or posting.
14. Privacy Notice
14.1 Data Collected. MUS is the data controller for the purposes of applicable data protection laws. Screenvision does not act as a data controller and only processes personal data, if at all, on MUS’s instructions. MUS will collect and process the following personal information from each Entrant: full name, email address, year of birth, and country of residence. Additional information may be collected if reasonably necessary for the administration of the Festival, in which case Entrants will be notified at the time of collection.
14.2 Purpose of Collection. MUS collects and uses this information solely for the purposes of administering the Festival, verifying eligibility, contacting Entrants, fulfilling legal and compliance obligations, and for advertising, publicity, and promotional purposes as described in these Terms. Personal information will not be sold or used for unrelated marketing purposes without the Entrant’s explicit consent.
14.3 Data Storage and Service Providers. Entrants’ personal information may be stored and processed using secure third-party service providers, including but not limited to Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Google Cloud, Intuit MailChimp, eBallot, and WordPress. These providers may host data on servers located outside the Entrant’s country of residence. MUS ensures that such providers implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect Entrants’ information.
14.4 Legal Bases. For Entrants located in the European Union, United Kingdom, or other jurisdictions with similar laws, MUS relies on the following legal bases under the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”): (a) performance of a contract (processing necessary to administer participation in the Festival); (b) compliance with legal obligations; and (c) legitimate interests in ensuring the integrity and promotion of the Festival.
14.5 Data Retention. Personal information will be retained only for as long as necessary to administer the Festival and comply with legal obligations, and will thereafter be securely deleted or anonymized.
14.6 Entrant Rights. Depending on local law, Entrants may have the right to: (a) request access to the personal information held about them; (b) request correction or deletion of their information; (c) object to or restrict certain processing; and (d) request data portability. Entrants may exercise these rights by contacting festival@frameforward.ai MUS will respond in accordance with applicable law.
14.7 California Residents. For residents of California, MUS will not sell Entrants’ personal information and will comply with the California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”) and any successor legislation.
14.8 International Transfers. Where personal information is transferred outside of the EU/UK to countries not subject to an adequacy decision, MUS will implement appropriate safeguards, such as Standard Contractual Clauses approved by the European Commission or UK authorities.
14.9 Contact. Questions about privacy or data protection practices may be directed to festival@frameforward.ai.
15. Acceptance
You affirm that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by these Terms and Conditions. You understand that failure to comply may result in disqualification.