National YoungArts Competition

Overview

The National YoungArts Competition is an annual national arts competition for US-based artists aged 15 to 18 (or in grades 10 through 12). The competition accepts submissions across 10 disciplines: Classical Music, Dance, Design, Film, Jazz, Photography, Theater, Visual Arts, Voice, and Writing. For young filmmakers, it is one of the few national-level competitions that awards cash prizes and mentorship at the pre-college stage.

All award winners receive cash prizes between $250 and $10,000. Winners with distinction are invited to National YoungArts Week (NYAW), an all-expenses-paid, weeklong intensive program in Miami where participants take master classes with established artists, collaborate across disciplines, and present their work publicly. Past visiting artists include Debbie Allen, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Wynton Marsalis, Salman Rushdie, and Mickalene Thomas.

High school seniors who attend NYAW are eligible for nomination as US Presidential Scholars in the Arts, one of the highest honors available to American high school students. YoungArts also provides lifetime professional development support to all award winners, regardless of level.

Founded in 1981, YoungArts has supported more than 25,000 alumni. Alumni include Academy Award winners, Emmy recipients, Pulitzer Prize winners, and Tony Award recipients. The 2026 cycle received a record number of applications, with a 30% increase in submissions over the previous year.

What It Funds

Cash Awards

All YoungArts award winners receive cash prizes between $250 and $10,000. Awards are determined through a blind adjudication process by discipline-specific panels of professional artists. The panels review submissions without access to applicant names or identifying information.

National YoungArts Week

Winners with distinction are invited to National YoungArts Week in Miami. The program is all-expenses-paid: travel, housing, and meals are covered by YoungArts. During the week, participants attend master classes, workshops, and cross-disciplinary collaborations with artist-mentors. Film participants screen their work and receive feedback from working filmmakers and industry professionals.

US Presidential Scholars in the Arts

High school seniors who attend NYAW are eligible for nomination as US Presidential Scholars in the Arts. Up to 20 students are nominated annually. This is a separate honor from the YoungArts award itself and is administered through the White House Commission on Presidential Scholars.

Ongoing Professional Support

All award winners, regardless of level, gain access to YoungArts' lifetime professional development programs. This includes mentorship opportunities, grants for continuing education (such as the Jorge M. Perez Award at $25,000 and the Longshore Excellence in Arts Award at $25,000), and access to the YoungArts alumni network.

Film Category Submission Requirements

The film category accepts work in documentary, narrative, experimental, and animation formats. For the 2026 cycle (referenced as a model for future cycles), the requirements were:

• Submit one main short film that the applicant directed or animated. A second optional film can be submitted where the applicant is either the director/animator or cinematographer.
• Total running time for the entire application must not exceed 10 minutes. This is a maximum, not a target - even 2-minute shorts have been awarded.
• Excerpts are acceptable.
• Submissions must be in English or with English subtitles.
• Each file cannot exceed 2 GB.
• Submissions that do not have a primary artistic focus on filmmaking will not be considered. This excludes video footage of staged plays, theater performances, and art installations.

Application requirements are updated annually. Filmmakers should consult the YoungArts application requirements page for the current cycle's specific guidelines.

Eligibility

To be eligible for the YoungArts competition, applicants must meet all three of the following criteria:

1. Citizenship/Residency: Be a US citizen, a permanent resident, or legally able to receive taxable income in the US (i.e., have a Social Security number).
2. Age/Grade: Be 15 to 18 years of age or enrolled in grades 10 through 12 as of December 1 of the application year.
3. First-time NYAW attendance: If selected as an award winner with distinction, this must be the applicant's first time attending National YoungArts Week. Former winners who did not attend NYAW when first selected may attend in a subsequent year if they win again.

The competition is open to artists who demonstrate excellence in one of the 10 disciplines. There is no minimum GPA, no portfolio fee, and no requirement for school nomination or teacher recommendation.

Application Timeline

2027 Cycle

• Summer 2026: Application opens
• October 6, 2026, 8:00 PM ET: Application deadline
• Late November 2026: Award winners announced

2026 Cycle (for reference)

• July 22, 2025: Application opened
• October 8, 2025, 8:00 PM ET: Application deadline
• November 24, 2025: Award winners announced

Applications are submitted online through the YoungArts website. There is no application fee.

Adjudication Process

Submissions are reviewed through a rigorous blind adjudication process. Discipline-specific panels of professional artists evaluate work without access to applicant names or identifying information. Panelists are working professionals in their fields, selected by YoungArts to evaluate technical skill, artistic voice, and creative potential.

The adjudication process produces multiple award levels. Only the highest-level winners are invited to National YoungArts Week. All award levels receive the cash prize and lifetime access to YoungArts professional development programs.

Who Should Apply

US high school students aged 15 to 18 who are directing or animating their own short films and who want national recognition, a cash award, and access to a weeklong mentorship intensive with working artists. The competition is particularly valuable for students building a portfolio for college admission or early career development.

Filmmakers who have completed at least one short film - narrative, documentary, experimental, or animation - that they directed or animated are the strongest candidates. The film need not be long (2-minute shorts have won), but it must demonstrate a primary artistic focus on filmmaking. Video documentation of theater performances or art installations is not eligible in the film category.

Students who are serious about film but have not yet directed a complete short should consider waiting until they have a finished piece before applying. The competition evaluates the submitted work, not the applicant's potential or intentions.

See Also

For an overview of film career pathways beyond secondary school, see Film Grants and the Development Pathway. For understanding the core filmmaking craft terms that support a strong film submission, see the Director and Cinematography glossary entries. For planning a production schedule for a short film submission, use the Production Schedule Calculator.