Brand Storytelling’s call for Official Selections is open for two more weeks. Brands and their storytelling partners can submit work through October 30 for consideration at BST: The Future of Content, the 12th edition of the event, taking place January 20 to 23, 2027, in Boulder, Colorado.
There is no fee to submit this year.
What Official Selections are
Each year, Brand Storytelling names a small group of Official Selections. These are brand-funded projects that show the industry what this work can achieve when it is made well and measured against real goals. Each selection is screened in full or in part for the BST audience, and the brand and creative team behind it join a Q&A on stage. The goal is simple: put the best recent work in front of the people deciding what brands make next, and let the community learn from how it was made.
Since 2022, Brand Storytelling has recognized more than 50 Official Selections. Past selections include:
- The Final Copy of Ilon Specht for L’Oreal, from Oscar-winning director Ben Proudfoot
- We Are As Gods for Stripe
- Learning to Drown for The North Face
- Gaining Ground: The Fight for Black Land for John Deere
- A Radical Act: Renee Montgomery for P&G
- Choiceology with Katy Milkman for Charles Schwab
- Faces of Music for Sephora
- The Theory of Spice for Yogi Tea / The Yogi Foundation
- The Last Barf Bag for Dramamine
- Creator Odyssey for Lenovo
What’s eligible
BST is accepting brand-funded content and entertainment released in the past 12 months. Eligible formats include:
- Feature films and short films
- Series
- Podcasts
- Vertical and web video
- Creator-led work
Brands can submit their own work, and so can the agencies, studios, producers, and creators who make it with them. Official Selections are presented with the brand, so submissions from storytelling partners will ask for a named brand contact.
Selections are made on three criteria:
- Entertainment excellence
- Results against the goal the brand set at the outset
- Work that will move the industry forward by inspiring other brands and creators to innovate
Evidence of performance strengthens a submission, including views, reach, brand lift, and awards.
An open door for past submitters
Many of the brands and partners who have submitted to Brand Storytelling in past years have released new work since. Teams that have submitted before, whether or not their work was selected, are encouraged to submit projects released in the past 12 months. Every submission is considered on its own merits.
What Official Selections receive
BST will name a final group of 5 to 10 Official Selections. Each will receive:
- A screening and Q&A in a room of C-suite executives and decision-makers from brands and their storytelling partners
- Two industry passes for the team behind the work
- Two brand passes
- Official Selection laurels and recognition on site
Final selections will be announced in the last week of November.
“For ten years I’ve watched this community prove that brands can make work people choose to watch,” said Jordan P. Kelley, Editor-in-Chief and General Manager, Aivanta. “Official Selections are how we put the best of that work in front of the people who decide what gets made next. If your team released something in the past year that you’re proud of, we want to see it.”
How to submit
Submissions are free and open through October 30 at https://events.aivanta.io/e/bst-future-of-content.
About BST: The Future of Content
BST: The Future of Content is the longest-running event dedicated to news, trends, insight, education, and thought leadership on non-interruptive brand content and entertainment. Founded in 2016 as Brand Storytelling, the event convenes brand leaders and the storytelling partners who make and distribute brand content with them. The 12th edition takes place January 20 to 23, 2027, in Boulder, Colorado. Programming takes place at the Denver Marriott Westminster, between Denver and Boulder.
Brand Storytelling is part of Aivanta, Inc., a media, intelligence, and events company focused on senior marketing, brand, and agency decision-makers.