ATX TV Festival announces “Indie TV Pilot Competition & Showcase”

The new program, which debuts in direct response to the growing practice of independently-produced television series, expands on the festival’s ongoing Indie TV programming.

Designed to boost burgeoning independent TV movement, the new ATX TV Festival “Indie TV Pilot Competition & Showcase” will give TV creators a chance to screen their pilot and win the Best Indie TV Pilot award at the 2026 ATX TV Festival, happening May 28-31, 2026 in Austin, TX. This program is designed for independently-produced pilots without world wide distribution that need a boost of industry visibility, distribution,  and guidance to get to the next level.

Longtime ATX TV Festival speaker and attendee Mark Duplass, a leading creative voice in both traditional and independent TV spaces, will join with Duplass Brothers Productions as Strategic Advisors to help guide the program in its first year and beyond. Leading creative crowdfunding platform Seed&Spark will provide support for the program.

“For the last few years, indie TV has been a hot topic both on and off our panels within the industry attendance at ATX TV Festival, and we’ve made intentional moves to highlight these shows, conversations,  and creators alongside amazing traditionally-produced network and streaming TV. With the launch of our ‘Indie TV Pilot Competition & Showcase,’ we’re firmly planting a flag as the place to be for indie TV creators to get their pilots seen and move their work forward. We’re thrilled to launch the new Indie TV Pilot Competition & Showcase timed to our 15th anniversary alongside longtime ATX TV friends and TV mastermind Mark Duplass, whose support and vision is of immense value to us and our community. Our intention is for ATX TV Festival to become a robust marketplace for independent TV series in the coming years, and we can’t wait to kick it off in 2026.”

This Competition & Showcase will expand on the festival’s ongoing Indie TV programming, which has ramped up in recent years and has previously featured screenings and conversations for The Long Long Night (Duplass Brothers Productions), You Belong Here (Macaroni Art), Bollywood Dance U (Meralta Films & Amplify Pictures), and Everyone Is Doing Great from multi-hyphenates James Lafferty & Stephen Colletti, among others.

To participate in the showcase, creators may submit completed Pilot episodes between 20 mins – 1 hour in length, across all genres. From the submitted Pilot episodes, a minimum of three (3) will be selected by the festival’s Programming team to be screened as part of an Indie TV Pilot Showcase, where a judging panel of industry creatives & executives will select one (1) winner.

The Indie TV Pilot Competition & Showcase is the newest addition to ATX TV’s open submission opportunities, alongside the annual Pitch Competition & Mentorship Program which aims to give burgeoning TV writers the community, support, and tools needed to take the next steps in their careers.

Submissions are open for both the Indie TV Pilot Competition & Showcase and ATX TV’s ongoing program, the Pitch Competition & Mentorship Program.