We are looking for the five minutes you are most proud of available by YouTube or Vimeo link (they can be unlisted). You can provide a longer tape but the review committee is only guaranteed to watch the first five minutes. Start the tape right when you start speaking on stage, avoid edits that jump in time, and submit a high quality recording to have the best chance of being selected for the festival.

Submissions are open from January 1st to May 15th, 2026. Responses from the panel will arrive by June 1st, 2026 via the email provided to let you know if you have made it into the festival.

We’re open to all kinds of comedic content! Whether it’s a sketch, parody, animation, or experimental comedy, we want to see it. While we encourage you to follow the general guidelines (shorts should be up to ~5 minutes long and focus on humor), there’s plenty of room for creative freedom.

Yes, you can! Each short will need its own submission form and fee, but we’d love to see all your ideas.

All selected digital shorts will be showcased during the festival, and attendees will vote for their favorite. The short with the most audience votes will win a cash prize of $250. The creator(s) don’t have to be present at the festival to collect the prize.

We don’t directly pay submission comedians. We cover lodging in Bend over the festival weekend for accepted comedians as well as local goodies and at least one provided meal.

Yes! We give free submissions to a limited number of comedians who are in need of financial assistance. Email us at info@bendcomedyfestival.com to receive a free submission code.