More Movie Contests...and The Swoscars!

The Fright Nite Film Festival has been a remarkable success! We've been so impressed with the talent of the movie-making community on SmallWorlds that we've planned out a series of movie contests to take place over the next several months, culminating in a very, very special event - The Swoscars!

November 2011 - 'What I am Most Thankful for in SmallWorlds'

"What I am Most Thankful For in SmallWorlds".

Just perfect for the Thanksgiving Season - create a movie that reflects the spirit of what Thanksgiving means for you. You'll need to get your entries in by 11.59pm (SWT), November 27th.

December 2011 - 2 Contests!

Fantastic news! In December, we'll have not just one but two different movie contests. No matter what kind of film-maker you are, you'll have a chance to participate, and you are very welcome to submit one entry in both categories.

1 -"SW Music Vids": We want to see the very best SmallWorlds music videos ever. Whether it's your favourite holiday classic or the latest dance hit.

2 - "Holiday Films": Get creative! Maybe you'll create a SmallWorlds original production of a holiday tale, or perhaps do a SmallWorlds version of your favourite Christmas movie... or maybe a hilarious parody!

Deadline for these two contests is 11.59pm (SWT), 18th December.

January 2012 - 'New Years Resolutions'

"New Years Resolutions" -  Maybe you'll create a show to help people to achieve their resolutions? Perhaps an educational documentary, or some other innovative interpretation on the theme.

Deadline for entries, 11.59pm (SWT), January 15th 2012.

February 2012 - 'What I Love Most About SmallWorlds'

"What I Love Most About SmallWorlds": Just in time for Valentines Day, this is where you can wax lyrical about your favourite virtual game, and tell us all what you love about SmallWorlds!

Deadline for entries: 11.59pm (SWT), 14th February 2011.

How to enter each movie contest

Once you have created your movie and uploaded it to YouTube, please use this link to email us your entry direct through YouTube email.

1 - Click here to open the YouTube Email form.

2 - Put individual contest name in the subject line of the email - ie: "Thanksgiving Movie Contest".

3 - Include your SmallWorlds avatar name in the body of the email.

We will then add your movie to the SmallWorlds Cinema Channel, onto the relevant contest playlist.

The Swoscars!

It's the biggest event in the history of SmallWorlds film (drumroll)... The first ever SmallWorlds Oscars!

These will be awarded by a panel of SmallWorlds' judges, and any film submitted from the Fright Nite film festival contest onwards will be eligible, and will be considered by the judges!

Even if your film didn't make it through to the finals in any contest, if our judges feel that it is something special, you'll now get another opportunity for selection.

We'll come back to you soon with more information on categories and prizes, and on the awards ceremony itself.  This is going to be one fantastic red-carpet event that you are not going to want to miss!

Guidelines for *all* Movie Contests

Please follow these guidelines for all Movie contests listed above. Watch the Competitions and Events forum for the threads announcing each contest as it opens up.

Length of Your Movie

We understand that people sometimes need to have a little more time to tell their stories effectively, so we've decided that the fairest way to deal with this is to go wth the "points deducted for going overtime" policy.

This way, you as director can make the decision if the extra time is really worth it. We'd like to encourage you to try and keep to an optimal length of 4 minutes or less per movie. If you absolutely need to go over this limit, this polocy does allow you to do so, but we recommend that you instead take a hard look at all of your scenes and try to edit it down to under 4 minutes instead of losing points.

Judging Criteria

Some of the criteria that our judges will be looking at will include:

• Time: Is the length of the film appropriate to the story being told? ie: would it have been much more effective if it had only been 2 minutes, when in fact it has been stretched out with a bunch of filler that wasn't necessary?
• Flow: Was it well paced or did it start dragging at the end?
• Narrative/script: Was it an original story? Was the story compelling? Was the script innovative?
• Editing: Was the editing appropriate for the film feeling/style?
• Sound & visual effects, Use of music, etc.(if applicable)
• Sets/locations: Props & costumes, space decoration
  
• Technical achievement: Editing, shooting, scene set up, effects
  

We're so looking forward to seeing your entries; remember, you can enter any movie at any time, just follow the entry instructions above and get your entry in before the relevant contest end date. We'll be announcing the winners from each contest one week after each contest closes.

Good luck to you all!

~ Kent Kronkite