This version of the Rules and Regulations was updated on December 23, 2025.
1. PREAMBLE
Series Mania Buyers Upfront is an international event showcasing exclusive clips from up to 12 eagerly awaited series with strong global appeal. Curated by the festival’s artistic team, the selection will consist of sneak previews of upcoming high-end series that have not been shown before at any industry screening event, such as MIPCOM, MIA, Content London, Content America, TV Drama Vision Göteborg, Berlinale, MIPLondon, London Screenings, etc. The series will either be about to be released or still in post-production. Selection will be based on artistic merit and broad audience appeal. The Buyers Upfront selection is also open to series submitted to the Series Mania Festival call for entries and to the Series Mania Forum ‘Coming Next’ sessions.
10 to 12 selected series will be presented to an exclusive audience of international buyers at the Lille Chamber of Commerce (CCI) on March 23, ahead of the Series Mania Forum 2026.
Series Mania Forum will take place from March 24 to 26, 2026 at the Lille Grand Palais. This event, dedicated to TV series professionals, runs alongside the public festival. Over 5,000 professionals from 75 countries will gather at the Lille Grand Palais for three days.
By submitting a series to the Buyers Upfront selection, the applicant agrees to allow the showcasing of their material – videos and any other documents submitted – during the Buyers Upfront.
The selected series will be announced in early March 2026.
Due to logistical and time constraints, only two representatives per selected series will be allowed on stage during 15 minutes to introduce them at the Buyers Upfront screenings held on Monday, March 23, 2026 and attend the award ceremony during Series Mania Forum. Selected applicants are responsible for their own costs and expenses.
2. ELIGIBILITY
Series Mania only accepts exclusive clips of new scripted series or miniseries (drama and comedy) produced in 2025 or due for completion in 2026. Submitted works must be fictional.
Series Mania will not accept the following submissions:
- Documentary series
- Animated series
- Children’s series
- Pitch trailers, moodboard or pilot only
- Follow-up seasons from returning series
- Re-submissions are not eligible. This applies to series which have already been submitted and viewed by the Festival Programming Team for a previous edition of Series Mania.
To be eligible for consideration:
- Applicants must fully comply with these Entry Rules and Regulations, including all deadlines, entry material and other requirements.
- Submissions should include 1 clip of a series (10 minutes minimum – 12 minutes maximum) and a trailer (2 minutes maximum).
- Submitted video material must be in their original version with English subtitles unless the original version of the episodes is in English.
- If some images are part of a global sizzle screened during any of these markets / events: MIPCOM, MIA, Content London, MIPLondon, London Screenings, Berlinale, Content America, etc…. the series can be still eligible only if the global sizzle is assessed by the Series Mania’s team. Please send the link to [email protected]
- In no case the submitted series must have been presented to buyers and/or released on any channel, platform, streaming service or mobile app before March 24, 2026
3. HOW TO ENTER
Apply online at https://submissions-series-mania.festicine.fr/en/buyers-upfront-2026
Click “submit” after fully completing the online entry form. Please note that the online entry form will require you to submit a password-protected URL that links to your series.There is no entry fee, submissions are entirely free of charge.
4. KEY DATES AND SUBMISSION DEADLINE
- December 16, 2025 to February 10, 2026 – Open call for submissions
- February 10, 2026 – Submissions close at 14:00 / 2:00PM (UTC+1)
All entries must have been completed and received by Series Mania at this time. No submissions will be accepted after this date and time.
- March 2026 – Official selection announced
- March 23, 2026 – Series Mania Buyers Upfront
Due to the number of submissions received, the Series Mania team is unable to provide individual feedback on selection decisions.
5. ENTRY MATERIAL
All entries must include the following:
- An official Series Mania entry form properly completed
- A password-protected streaming link of the required materials
Note: If you are unable to submit your excerpt and trailer by URL link, please feel free to contact the Series Mania team to discuss an alternate method of submission (email to [email protected])
Additional material:
- 1 royalty-free unit photo (still photo from the submitted series) that Series Mania may use for communications purposes in case of selection only
The 10-12 minutes clip and trailer of your series must be submitted via a password-protected streaming URL link. Links must remain active and accessible until March 26th, 2026. This streaming link must include a downloadable version of the available excerpts. Please prepare this link prior to completing your online entry form.Note: Submissions may be on a work-in-progress form; however, excerpts that are not final cuts must be clearly labeled Work in Progress (“WIP”) or Rough Cut with an indication of what will change or what is missing at the time of submission.
6. REQUIRED MATERIALS
All submitted first look series must consist of:
- clip* intended to be from 10 to 12 minutes in length maximum (mandatory)
*Acceptable options for the 12-minutes clip include: the beginning of the first episode, a highlight sequence of impactful scenes either from the first episode or from the overall season. Final cuts or picture locks are preferred but not required, we will accept work in progress at different stages of the editing, grading and/or mixing process.trailer of 2 minutes maximum (optional but highly recommended)
7. BUYERS UPFRONT SCREENINGS
Selected excerpts will be screened at the CCI on March 23, 2026.
PREMIERE SCREENINGS MATERIAL
Selected excerpts will be screened in High Definition, in its original version with English subtitles. The right holders will provide high-definition video files in their original language and with English subtitles. The technical specifications will be provided to the finalists in due time.
COMMUNICATION AND PROMOTIONAL MATERIAL
Series Mania reserves the right to communicate on the selection ahead of the Buyers Upfront.
For any question regarding these rules and regulations, please send an email to [email protected]