FAQ
Q: What is this competition about?
A: We want you to submit the best machinima film that you created while you were a student in high school, college or as a graduate student.
Q: Who is eligible to enter the competition?
A: See the rules/prizes page for details, but the skinny is this competition is accepting machinima films that were created while the filmmaker was a high school, college or graduate student. We welcome and encourage submissions from all over the world. You cannot enter if you are affiliated with the Ivy Film Festival or Machinima.com.
Q: What are the competition dates?
A: The dates for the competition are:
*March 16th: Submission deadline. You will not be able to submit a film after this date.
*March 17-23rd: First round voting for top 10
*March 25-April 6th: Second round voting to determine the winner of the Audience Award. Also, the judging period to determine the winner of the Jury Prize.
*April 7th: Winners of the Jury Prize and Audience Award announced on Machinima.com and IvyFilmFestival.com.
Q: Is there an entry fee?
A: No entry fee.
Q: Am I allowed multiple entries?
A: You can enter as many videos as you like. Just make sure that each video is submitted separately. An entry will be disqualified if it has more than one video associated with it.
Q: Can I change my entry once it is submitted?
A: No. All entries will be final, so make sure everything is perfect before you hit the submit button!
Q: How are the winners chosen and what are the prizes?
A: Machinima.com will award two prizes. There will be one winner of the Audience Choice Award and one winner of the Jury Prize. It is possible to win both awards. A panel of judges will select the Jury Prize and the community will select the Audience Choice Awards. Winners will be announced online and at the Ivy Film Festival. Winners will receive prizes and have their films screened at the Ivy Film Festival. The winner of the Jury Prize will receive $500 plus an award statue at the Ivy Film Festival. The winner of the Audience Choice Award will receive $250.**
**Winners are solely responsible for their own transportation and accommodations to the Ivy Film Festival.
**Additional prizes may be announced and awarded. prizes may be changed at anytime at the discretion of the Ivy Film Festival and Machinima.com.
Q: Do I retain the rights to my machinima video submission?
A: Yes, however, Machinima.com and the Ivy Film Festival retain the right to show the video (or a portion of the video) in order to promote the video and the competition wherever possible.
Q: How long should the video be?
A: There are no restrictions (though we recommend under 10 minutes) and it should be no larger than 100MB.
Q: What are the video guidelines for submitting my video?
A: Here are the suggested format guidelines:
Resolution: Minimum of 320x240, maximum of 800x600.
Framerate: Minimum 20 frames per second.
Audio: Minimum 22khz 16-bit audio.
Size: 100 Mb.
Q: How do I keep my video submission under 100mb?
A: Because everyone uses different software to convert their videos to WMV, MOV, or AVI, you will have to consult your software manual or look online for some help. Some areas to consider are: higher compression, shorter time, smaller window/screen size, and/or lowering sound quality to mono (single channel) and lower quality. You don’t want the final quality to be so bad that it detracts from the idea you are pitching, so review your final file to make sure it displays well and looks and sounds legible. It may compress further in our video player.
Q: How do I view Flash files or the Flash video player?
A: You can download the free Flash Player by clicking here. (http://www.adobe.com/products/flashplayer/)