The Archive In Between Competition
The Archive’s head curator has been summoned from the Archive to host and judge an animated storytelling competition held by Abyss.
Join our AI world-building TV Pilot competition to win prizes and recognition
The Archive Award
$3,000 for the selected by the head curator.
Audience Award
$2,000 for the submission with the highest rating.
2nd place Audience Award
$1,000 for the submission with the second-highest rating.
Submit your animated 3-6 minute video for the chance to win prizes and meet with The Archive’s head curator. 16:9 encouraged.
Videos are encouraged to be 16:9 aspect ratio. All videos must respond to one of the following prompts, and fit within the science fiction/alternative history genre.
- We last visited the moon in 1972. There's a reason we haven't gone back.
- The world tree died a hundred years ago. The Sap Wars have raged ever since.
- The Intersolar Protectorate's colony on Pluto went silent 6 months ago. They sent me to find out why.
- WW3 began not with nukes, but when the mole people finally decided Earth's surface was theirs to take.
- Welcome to Cepheus Prime, mankind's first colony in the Andromeda Galaxy!
- It was trapped in the glaciers during the last ice age, but now, as the world warms, it is waking once again.
- At the height of their power, the Romans found something ancient and forgotten deep in the caves of the Caucasus mountains, something they sacrificed whole legions to protect...
- Pay a visit to Hayber Heights, Minnesota, the only town in America located on top of an interdimensional rift!
How it works
Create your tv pilot
Use any AI tools and techniques to create a 3-6 minutes pilot episode, for a returnable world building series.
Submit your tv pilot
Submit your entry through the competitions portal before September 24, 2025.
View and rate all submissions
View and rate all submissions on the Abyss competitions portal between September 24, 2025 and October 7, 2025.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the deadline for the submission?
What is the deadline for the submission?
The submission deadline is September 24, 2025.
What is the desired runtime for the submission?
What is the desired runtime for the submission?
3-6 minutes, with all future eps imagined at the same 3-6 minutes runtime.
Is there a cost to participating in the competition?
Is there a cost to participating in the competition?
No, there is no cost in submitting.
Do I retain ownership of the IP if I submit to the competition?
Do I retain ownership of the IP if I submit to the competition?
Yes you retain ownership of the IP, but Abyss has the right to publicize and distribute.
When is the announcement for the winner?
When is the announcement for the winner?
The winner will be announced two weeks after the deadline. The deadline is: September 24, 2025.
Will I be able to see the other submissions?
Will I be able to see the other submissions?
Yes, once the submission portal is closed, all submissions will be viewable on the Abyss platform, and after the winner has been announced, all submissions will live within the filmmakers profile. Applicants will be able to rate each other's work before the winner is announced.