Skybound Insiders
Nothing Found
View All Search Results
Get Ready for Invincible Presents: Atom Eve on Steam!
Skybound Insiders
Nothing Found
View All Search Results

Spike & Mike Is Back!

Skybound Entertainment is excited to announce “Skybound Presents: Spike & Mike’s Festival of Animation!”

Since its inception in the late 1970s, Spike & Mike’s curated festivals, including the renowned “Spike & Mike’s Sick and Twisted Festival of Animation,” have showcased cutting-edge, daring, and often hilarious animated shorts. These guerilla style festivals became the theatrical launchpad for many of the animation industry’s most acclaimed figures, including the likes of Pete Doctor (Monsters, Inc., Up), Mike Judge (Beavis & Butt-Head), and Nick Park (Wallace and Gromit).

And now YOU have the opportunity to join this lauded class of creators!

Skybound Entertainment, the creator-led multi-platform entertainment company behind The Walking Dead, Invincible, and dozens of other properties across film, TV, animation, gaming, and podcasts, has announced the revival of the iconic Spike & Mike’s Festival of Animation.

Submissions are now open for short films from creators across the US, Canada, and the UK. Whether you’re an industry professional, a student, or an animation creator in any medium, we want to see your short films!

If you’re an animator, university, and organization with a library of shorts, shoot us an email for your original work to also be considered for the newly minted “Skybound Presents: Spike & Mike’s” library of animation.

Creators may submit to one of the following festival categories:

This classic animation showcase aims to highlight creator’s unique, innovative animation styles across mediums, content, and backgrounds.

Does your short push some boundaries? Is it definitely NSFW? The Sick and Twisted Festival began in 1990 as a home for animated pieces which are simply too revolting or adult in nature for the prestigious and tasteful Classic show. Let’s see how far we can push the envelope in 2024.

Is your short film is best watched in a ball gown or a tuxedo? Is the art of your poster only complete if it’s covered in leafy festival laurels? Do you have ambitions for it to win ALL the awards? Consider submitting to the Arty Farty festival, and audiences the world over will sip expensive champagne and clap politely as they watch your art come to life on-screen.  

 

Details of the festival, including partnerships, are still being finalized, but festival awards in the works include project stipends, acquisitions, and development opportunities.

 

For questions about the festival, or if you’re a creator, university, or organization with a library of shorts you’d like considered for the festival, please shoot us an email at spikeandmikefest@skybound.com.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES 

 

  • You must be at least 18 years of age and a legal resident of the fifty (50) United States or the District of Columbia, the United Kingdom, or Canada (excluding Quebec). The submission window will close at 11:59PM PT on January 5, 2024. All materials must be fully submitted by the deadline.
  • All submissions must be your own original work and/or you must have all rights necessary to submit.
  • Submissions with non-English dialogue must include subtitles.
  • Submitted films must be at least 1 minute in length but no more than 15 minutes in length, including title cards. Creator credits should be included in the work itself.
  • Short may not contain, and you (and, if an eligible minor, your parent or legal guardian) hereby represent and warrant that it does not contain, any content that:
    • includes music for which you cannot grant the rights set forth in the Grant of Rights to Entries set forth below (Skybound reserves the right to require proof in a form acceptable to Skybound);
    • infringes upon the copyrights, trademarks, rights of privacy, publicity or other intellectual property or other rights of any person or entity;
    • contains copyrighted materials owned by others (including music, lyrics, dialogue), without permission to the extent permission is necessary;
    • contains any personal identification, such as license plate numbers, personal names, e-mail addresses or street addresses;
    • contains the names or voices of any person, or otherwise identifies any person, including, without limitation, celebrities and/or other public or private figures, living or dead, without permission, to the extent permission is necessary; or
    • violates any law, rule or regulation.

FAQs

When will I know if my short has been accepted into the festival?

All submissions will be notified via email a few months before the festival.

Will you accept shorts with non-English dialogue?

Yes, but they must be subtitled/dubbed in English.

 

Do I still own the rights to my film if I submit?

Yes. The language about usage in our submission form specifically relates to Skybound’s usage of the film in the context of the Spike And Mike Festival.  Should your film be chosen however,  the buyout is all encompassing because we want to be able to promote, exhibit, and distribute the film in whatever format or iteration the Spike & Mike Festival of Animation takes in the future.

Why are submissions limited to the US, Canada, and the UK?

Different countries have different copyright laws. Since this is the first year of Skybound’s revival of the festival, we focused on just the US, Canada, and the UK. However, we hope to include more international submissions in the future, so please join our mailing list for updates.

Will you accept shorts in a different aspect ratio than 1920 x 1080?

If your film is in a different aspect ratio, please add the appropriate black bars to conform to the requirements. Submissions that advance to the semi-finalist round will be given more specific technical directions.

What are the differences between the three festival categories?

Consider them programming blocks within one, large festival. If you submit to one category and your short is selected, it will be screened with other shorts that fit that category.

Don't have an account yet?
Copyright © 2018 All Site Content and © 2018 SKYBOUND, unless otherwise noted here. All Right Reserved.

Fill the forms bellow to register

Already have an account?
All fields are required.

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In