Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

REGION ONE

Alaska, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Wyoming.

*Submit all Region One films and entry forms to:

Mr. Thomas Phillipson
Northwest Film Center
1219 S.W. Park Avenue
Portland, Oregon 97205
(503) 221-1156, extension 13

REGION TWO

Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin.

*Submit all Region Two films and entry forms to:

Mr. Dan Ladely
Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
313 North 13th Street
Lincoln, NE 68588-0253
(402) 472-9100

Questions and entry information for Region 2 only:

Ms. Barbara Scharres
Gene Siskel Film Center of the School of
The Art Institute of Chicago
164 N. State Street
Chicago, IL 60601
(312) 846-2070

REGION THREE

New York State, Puerto Rico.

*Submit Region Three films and entry forms to:

Mr. John Fahr
Academy Theater, Lighthouse International
111 East 59th Street
New York, NY 10022
(212) 821-9250

The purpose of the Student Academy Awards competition is to support and encourage filmmakers with no previous professional experience who are enrolled in degree-granting programs and accredited colleges and universities as full-time students. While professional advice may be requested and given during the making of student films, the Academy believes that professional camera persons, directors, editors, and writers should not play any major role in the production of such motion pictures. The Academy reserves the right to disqualify from competition any entry in which such professionals have had undue influence.

1. Gold, Silver, and Bronze Medal Awards (which include cash grants of $5000, $3000 and $2000, respectively) may be given by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in recognition of outstanding achievements in student filmmaking in the following categories.
   1. ANIMATION – Animated films may present an original narrative story, an existing story or fable, or an exploration of a mood or thought. Either comical or serious, they usually fall into one of two general fields -- character animation or abstract animation. Various techniques include cel animation, computer animation, clay animation, pixilation, cut-out pins, camera multiple-pass imagery, kaleidoscope effects, and the film frame itself. Winning animation films are chosen by judging the product as a whole, as well as the artistic and technical skill of the animator in whatever motif or animation technique the student has chosen.
   2. DOCUMENTARY – Documentary films are visual essays that seek to present historical subjects, current social or political issues, or specific human experiences in such a way as to have a dramatic impact upon the viewing audience. Documentaries may be filmed in the cinéma vérité style where camera and microphone merely record the event without injecting the comments or subjective conclusions of the filmmaker, or may be a reenactment. In the latter case, the distinction between dramatic and documentary film lies in the fact that while dramatic film is fictional, documentary film deals with real, factual situations and circumstances. Winning films in this category are chosen on the basis of artistic technique, as well as the ability of the documentarian to fashion reality into a film essay which leaves the audience better informed and/or moved.
   3. NARRATIVE – Narrative films strive to portray life, a character or a narrative story much the same way a novel does, but within the context of an audiovisual medium. Past narrative films by students have ranged from those that are serious in tone to films that are comic, as well as the familiar and uniquely American "movie musical." Winning entries in this and all other categories reflect the merit of the film when viewed as a whole, as well as the professional execution of its component parts, such as script, dialogue, direction, cinematography, lighting, acting, editing and scoring. Narrative category films may be adaptations of existing pieces of literature, or, as has often been the case, original stories written by the student filmmaker.
   4. ALTERNATIVE – Films submitted in this category must not be obvious candidates for any other category. Alternative films extend current boundaries or conventions of expression and rely on unconventional aesthetic and technical elements. Through the re-examination, and re-presentation of structural components such as story, imagery, words, time, space, motion, sound, light and color, ways may be discovered to refresh the filmmaking experience and expand the language of cinema. This type of film may sidestep traditional methods employed in more mainstream filmmaking, however, it is not a "catch all" category for the film that is lacking structure and craftsmanship.
2. To be eligible, the filmmaker must be a full-time student in a degree-granting program at an accredited U.S. college or university. The film must have been made in a teacher-student relationship within the curricular structure of that institution. If the filmmaker has graduated or left such a program, the film may be submitted no later than one year from the filmmaker's date of departure. Entries must be films which were completed after April 1, 2009 and before April 1, 2010 (works-in-progress should not be entered as they may not be altered during the competition once initial judging has occurred and will be disqualified from submission into subsequent Student Academy Awards competitions.)
3. All original entries must be submitted for consideration on DVD-R format only (original DVD entries will not be returned). However, should an entry be selected to compete in the Regional final screenings (held in late April), the filmmaker must, within 7 days of notification, supply the Regional Coordinator with a 16mm or larger format film print -- OR -- an NTSC Digital Betacam version of the entry. BetaSP format is not acceptable. This film print or digital videotape will be used for the final judging in the Regional competition and may be needed for the subsequent National judging at the Academy's Beverly Hills headquarters in May. Failure to provide this film print or digi-beta of the entry within the allotted time will result in disqualification. Film prints or digi-beta tapes provided, will be returned to the entrant at the conclusion of the competition. No entry may be longer than 40 minutes. All film prints must be composite in 16mm gauge or larger, with optical or magnetic soundtracks.
4. Films entered into the Academy Awards competition (regardless of the outcome) are not eligible for entry into any subsequent Student Academy Awards competition. However, Gold Medal award-winning films from the Student Academy Awards competition may be eligible for entry into the following year's Academy Awards competition, provided that they satisfy all other criteria for the category in which they are entered.
5. ENTRY FORMS MUST LIST THE PERSON OR PERSONS (BUT NO MORE THAN TWO) MOST RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CREATIVE PRODUCTION OF THE PICTURE. IF THERE ARE ANY CREDIT DISCREPANCIES OR CONTROVERSIES, THE ACADEMY WILL INSIST THAT CREDITS BE SETTLED BEFORE THE FILM MAY BE CONSIDERED FOR AN AWARD.
6. Preliminary eligibility and classification shall be determined in accordance with procedures and judging recommended by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to organizations in three regions of the United States. Regional juries have sole responsibility for the determination of final selections for submission to the Academy. Each regional jury may consider only films from schools within its own region. Regional judging will be completed by April 30, 2010.
7. If the eligibility and final classification of any entry is questioned, the Student Academy Awards Executive Committee shall be authorized to make a determination.
8. The entries shall be judged on the basis of resourcefulness, originality, entertainment, and production quality, without regard to cost of production or subject matter. Advertising films, promotional films, and films previously submitted for Academy Awards consideration shall be excluded.
   
9. After all regional competitions are held and resulting selections of student entries are submitted for Academy consideration, final voting shall be restricted to active Academy members and the ballots shall be tabulated by the accounting firm of PricewaterhouseCoopers.
10. The Academy assumes no responsibility for entry materials submitted by schools or individuals for regional judging. The Academy shall be responsible only for those entries it receives for final judging from the Regional Coordinators. The Academy will return films by June 30, 2010, insured via UPS, to the address the student indicates on the entry form.
11. Final judging by the Academy shall be completed by May 20, 2010. National finalists in each category shall be notified promptly. Announcement of the Gold, Silver and Bronze Medal Award winners in each category will be made at the Student Academy Awards Presentations on June 12, 2010, in Beverly Hills, California.
12. To be eligible, all entries must be RECEIVED (not postmarked) by the Regional Coordinator on or before 5:00 p.m., APRIL 1, 2010.
13. Such other rules as may be considered necessary for the proper conduct of these awards shall be adopted by the Academy, subject to the approval of the Academy Board of Governors.

The purpose of the Honorary Foreign Student Academy Awards competition is to support and encourage filmmakers with no previous professional experience who are enrolled in CILECT-affiliated colleges and universities outside the borders of the United States. While professional advice may be requested and given in the making of student films, the Academy believes that professional camera persons, directors, editors and writers should not play any major role in the production of such films. The Academy reserves the right to disqualify from competition any film in which such professionals have had undue influence.

1. Each school entering must be a recognized non-U.S. member of CILECT (www.cilect.org) as of January 1, 2010.
2. Each CILECT school may submit only one entry.
3. All entries submitted must be in English, subtitled in English or dubbed in English.
4. Entries will be accepted in the 16mm, 35mm and 70mm format --OR-- in the Digital Betacam format. Film prints submitted must be composite, with optical or magnetic soundtracks. Films with a separate magnetic sound track will not be accepted.
5. Entries may not to exceed 40 minutes in length.
6. Entries must be works completed after January 31, 2009.
7. Entries must be received by the Academy (not postmarked) by Thursday, March 25, 2010.