What opened, and when
Chroma Awards Season 2 opened for entries on 19 October 2026 at 12:00 p.m. Pacific time. That was 3:00 a.m. on 20 October in the Philippines.
The official rules are dated 2 November 2026. ElevenLabs administers the contest.
The rules close entries on 7 January 2027 at 11:45 p.m. Pacific time. That is 3:45 p.m. on 8 January 2027 in the Philippines.
The rules say no purchase or payment is required to enter or win. Any other cost you take on is yours.
The opening line of the 19 October announcement says entries run until 1 January 2027. A later section of that same post says 7 January 2027 at 11:45 p.m. Pacific time. Use the rules for the close.
The rules say ElevenLabs can change the window if it posts a notice. Check the date again before you submit.
Who can enter, and who cannot
You must be at least 18 on the day you enter. If the age of majority where you live is higher, you must meet that age.
The Philippines is not on the list of excluded places. The rules bar residents of Russia, and places under comprehensive U.S. sanctions. They name Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria, and annexed regions of Ukraine.
They also bar a person on the U.S. Treasury sanctions list, an immediate family member of that person, and an employee of a sanctioned entity.
You cannot enter if you are an employee or official of a national, state, provincial or local government body or agency. A family member of that person cannot enter either.
The rules do not define how far family member reaches for that bar. The sanctions rule, which is separate, defines immediate family as a spouse, parent, child, sibling, grandparent or stepchild.
A teacher on a government payroll fits those words. So does a city or municipal employee, and a family member of either person. A teacher at a private school does not, unless a family member’s government job covers them. The rules do not name Philippine jobs. If you are unsure, ask the organizers before you submit.
People who work for ElevenLabs, or who help run the contest, cannot win. Their immediate family members cannot win either.
A team can enter if every person on the team qualifies. You enter as a person or a team, not in a company name.
The ElevenLabs sponsor-award page says a submitter must be over 18. The official rules say at least 18. If you are 18, read both lines before you count on that sponsor prize.
Why this matters for Filipino creators
A creator in the Philippines can enter when the age rule is met and the government bar does not cover them. The contest is not open to every Filipino.
The prizes page lists sponsor awards for tools many creators already use, including CapCut and ElevenLabs. Using a tool in a significant way, and tagging it with proof, is how those awards describe eligibility.
The announcement describes more than 1 million dollars in free trials and promotions. The rules say extra resources may be listed on the submission site. This article did not open those offers, and it does not say which ones work in the Philippines.
The rules say winners pay their own taxes and transfer fees, and that ElevenLabs may withhold part of a prize under U.S. tax rules. This article does not explain how a prize is taxed in the Philippines.
What you can send
The prizes page lists film and TV, advertising, music video, games, and behind-the-scenes work. It also lists student fellowships and sponsor-tool awards.
The rules’ entry sentence also names a song. The prizes page does not list a separate song division.
Each entry must use at least one AI tool. You may be asked to name the tools.
Work that is not a music video must be voiced in English, subtitled in English, or have neither dialogue nor subtitles. A music video follows the music-video rules.
The link must be public, so the gallery can embed it. It cannot be private, unlisted or password-protected. You also send a download link and a thumbnail.
You may send more than one entry. Each one must be clearly different from your others, as ElevenLabs judges that difference.
The announcement says one project can go in only one category. The rules do not repeat that sentence. They do say one entry can take only one prize inside the film, ad, music-video, game and behind-the-scenes group.
Sponsor prizes can stack across different sponsors. The same sponsor cannot give one entry two of its prizes.
The announcement says a project made after 1 February 2026 can enter. The rules do not repeat that date. They say a project that already existed before the window must not have been in an earlier Chroma Awards season or in Project Odyssey. For an older film, read both pages.
Do not use someone else’s characters, logos or footage unless you have written permission. Do not use a person’s face or voice unless you have permission. The rules forbid deepfakes and likenesses you are not allowed to use.
What the prizes page lists
The prizes page, dated 2 November 2026, labels a cash and travel-perk pool of 450,000 dollars or more. Travel perks are inside that figure. It is not a cash pile of that size.
The ElevenLabs sponsor page lists 22,000 dollars across 22 places. The top three places also list a gala trip. A creator-partner seat is included only if one is available. That page says its judges will be announced later.
A student fellowship on the prizes page is for students and young professionals aged 18 to 24. The rules tie a stipend of 5,500 dollars to accepting and finishing a summer 2027 internship. The government bar still applies.
A travel package is one economy flight, a two-night hotel stay capped at 3,000 dollars, and one gala invite. The gala is around April 2027. The place is not set. The trip cannot be swapped for cash.
The rules say winners will be named on or around 11 February 2027, at 10:00 p.m. Pacific time. That is 2:00 p.m. on 12 February 2027 in the Philippines.
The same rules print a judging end of 10 February 2025. That date is before entries close. Treat 11 February 2027 as the announcement date the rules give, and check the page again before you plan around the judging window.
- Creative-tool awards: 263,750 dollars
- Student fellowships: 55,000 dollars
- Film and TV: 38,000 dollars
- Advertising: 35,000 dollars
- Music video: 24,000 dollars
- Games: 20,500 dollars
- Behind the scenes: 17,000 dollars
What to do next
- Read the official rules before the announcement when a date disagrees. The close in the rules is 7 January 2027 at 11:45 p.m. Pacific time.
- If you work for government, or a family member does, ask the organizers before you submit.
- Enter as yourself or as a team of eligible people, not in a company name.
- Use at least one AI tool. Keep a public link, add English voice or English subtitles when the work is not a music video, and include a download link and a thumbnail.
- Open the prizes page for your division. Treat 450,000 dollars or more as cash plus travel, not cash alone.
- Check the close again before 7 January. The rules say the window can change on notice.
How this was checked
The dates, the no-payment line, the age rule, the country list, the government bar, the submission requirements, the travel package and the tax lines were read on the Chroma Awards rules page on 5 November 2026. That page is dated 2 November 2026.
The division totals and the pool of 450,000 dollars were read the same day on the prizes page. The student age range and the ElevenLabs award amounts are on those pages, which carry the same date.
The 1 January line, the 1 February line, the one-category line and the trials figure come from the ElevenLabs announcement published 19 October 2026 and updated 28 October 2026. Where that post disagrees with the rules, this article follows the rules.
The Philippine clocks are conversions from the Pacific times printed on the rules. The page itself does not print a Philippine time. The examples of a public-school teacher and a city employee are a reading of the government sentence, not a list the organizer published.
Put this into practice
Before you block out a week for an entry, read the rules and compare the dates on the two pages.
Sources & further reading
Source note. The linked sources support the news in this article. The explanations and suggested next steps are from Pinoy AI Works.
