My RØDE Reel Returns for a 6th Year

Posted on April 30, 2019

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Now in its 6th year, My RØDE Reel is once again putting on the world’s largest filmmaking competition. This year, Rode has 3 judges and 28 categories, and the winners will take home a collective $1 million in prizes.

The rules for the competition are simple. You make a short film under 3 minutes, using Rode gear in some way (which isn’t hard, considering practically everyone has a Rode mic in their bag or on their camera), and then you submit your film, and bam, you’re done.


Actually there’s one more step, and it’s pretty genius of Rode to include it in the competition. While you’re making your short film, they want you to capture BTS footage, including some shots of you using Rode products, and then edit it into a 3 minute film.

For us, the BTS films are maybe the most entertaining part of My Rode Reel. The competition is truly global, so it’s amazing to see the variety of filmmaking locations, scenes, setups, crew, and gear used around the world.

Plus, there’s the built-in audience. It’s not only the judges who are watching your film, but also the other participants around the globe, who all share a love of filmmaking and the spirit of competition.

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To enter, all you need to do is head over to the My Rode Reel website, register and download your starter pack, and submit everything by August 28.

The main short film has to be between 1 to 3 minutes, but there doesn’t seem to be restrictions on length of the BTS film.

My Rode Reel Prizes

There’s over $1 million in prizes this year, and they range from Rode mics, gear from their partners, to software, education, and music and footage licenses.

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The prizes are too many to list, and there’s multiple categories. But just so you have an idea of what to expect, the Judges Winner alone will take home everything listed below.

My Rode Reel Categories

This year there are 19 categories of winners, and each category will take home a lot of prizes. Here’s a full list

  1. Best Drama
  2. Best Horror
  3. Best Comedy
  4. Best Documentary
  5. Best Action
  6. Best Non-English
  7. Best Sci-fi
  8. Best Music Video
  9. Best Vlog
  10. Best VR
  11. Judges’ Film
  12. People’s Choice
  13. Best Female Filmmaker
  14. Best BTS – Educational
  15. Best BTS – Entertainment
  16. Best Young Filmmaker
  17. Best Sound Design
  18. Best Soundtrack
  19. Best Cinematography
  20. Best Art Direction
  21. Best Location
  22. Best Acting
  23. Best Visual Effects
  24. Best Camera Phone
  25. Best Japanese Film
  26. Best Chinese Film
  27. Best Korean Film
  28. Best Indian Film

My RØDE Reel Judges

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Ryan Connolly – acclaimed filmmaker

Ryan Connolly is a filmmaker, internet personality and presenter best known for his web series Film Riot, which has gained over 1.4-million subscribers. He has also written and directed 15 short films, including PROXiMITY , UFOh Yeah , Ghost House , SENTiNEL and, most recently, BALLiSTIC – his biggest production yet. Collectively, Ryan’s short films have amassed almost 10-million views.

Grace Randolph – Host & Creator of ‘Beyond the Trailer’ YouTube channel

As the host & creator of Beyond The Trailer on YouTube, Grace is the one of the most esteemed film commentators on the platform, as well as the top female critic. Her trailer reactions, box office reports and interviews with celebrities altogether boast a whopping half-a-billion views on YouTube, with over 800k fans subscribing to her channel. Grace studied film at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and had her own comedy group that performed in Times Square and NY’s famed Comedy Cellar.

Dan Mace – YouTube star and winner of My RØDE Reel 2015

Dan Mace is a multi-faceted, multi-award-winning filmmaker. Since winning the My RØDE Reel Judges’ Film prize in 2015, Dan’s rise has been as meteoric as it has been organic: 700k+ followers on YouTube, 230k+ on Instagram and 90k+ on Twitter. He is known for his high-quality films that span a variety of industry categories, as well as his dedication to craft and from-the-heart content.