Democracy. Your Voice, Your Video.
CALL FOR ENTRY!! It’s Simple: You need to be over 18 and have an opinion on democracy… Your video needs to complete the phrase ‘Democracy is…’, it needs to be no longer than 3 minutes and it must be submitted before the 31 January 2009 onto the Youtube documentary challenge site. It can be in animation, documentary, live action, fiction or narrative style, it must be in English or with English subtitles and you can only submit ONE entry. HOW SIMPLE IS THAT??? Excited? And you don’t even know who it’s for yet or what the (amazing) prize is? (read all the smallprint/rules here and some more info below and… get going…)
The Prize:
* An all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C., New York and Hollywood.
* Gala screenings of the winning videos in Hollywood, New York and Washington
* Exposure to filmmakers and the U.S. film and television industry.
* Meetings with democracy advocates from government, media and civil society.
The Winners:
# Seven winners – one each from the Western Hemisphere, Europe, Middle East/North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, South & Central Asia, East Asia/Pacific and one anonymous winner – will be announced in mid-June 2009.
# In October 2009, the six publicly identified winners, one from each of the six geographic regions, will travel to the United States to claim their prize.
How will my video be judged?
Your video will be judged on overall impact, creativity and production values. If your video is selected as a finalist, it will compete against other videos from your region in a global online vote to determine the winner. A full explanation of the judging process can be found in the contest rules.
Who is running the competition?
It’s run by the United States Department’s Bureau of International Information Programs, supported by numerous partners including the United Nations…
SO get thinking… AND GET FILMING…
More info:
The Democracy Video Challenge, a global call to action celebrating democracy, launched today during International Democracy Day at the United Nations. The Challenge invites citizens from around the world to create short videos that complete the phrase: “Democracy is…” in an effort to enhance the global dialogue on democracy.
The Democracy Video Challenge is a new effort supported by a unique partnership comprised of democracy and youth organizations, the film and entertainment industry, academia, and the U.S. government. Richard Engel, NBC’s chief foreign affairs correspondent, served as Master of Ceremonies for the contest’s global launch. (Partners represented at the launch are listed below.)
“Film is a window into our common humanity – the challenges and joys that make up the universal human experience – no matter what language we speak or where we were born. The young filmmakers taking part in this challenge will harness the magic of this powerful art form to connect to people around the world in a global discussion on democracy,” said Michael Apted, President of the Directors Guild of America, a partner in the Democracy Video Challenge.
The Challenge will honor seven winning videos: one each from Sub-Saharan Africa, East Asia and the Pacific, Europe, the Near East and North Africa, South and Central Asia, and the Western Hemisphere, and one anonymous video. The winning videos will be selected by global online voting. The video platform is being provided by YouTube (www.youtube.com/democracychallenge).
The Challenge breaks fresh ground for the use of new media in public diplomacy. We in the State Department and our partners are not trying to define democracy for young people around the world. Rather, the Challenge asks participants to share their visions of what democracy means. If the Challenge can generate thought and debate about democracy, on the medium of choice for young people, we’ll have achieved success,” Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs James K. Glassman said.
The winners will participate in screenings of their videos in Hollywood, New York, and Washington, D.C., hosted by the Directors Guild of America and the Motion Picture Association of America. In New York and Hollywood, the winners will spend time on TV/film sets, and will meet with directors, film technicians, professional talent agents, and new media experts. They will also receive tickets to the Universal Studios theme park in Los Angeles. In Washington, D.C., the winners will meet with democracy advocates, the media, and U.S. government officials.
Democracy Video Challenge Partners include: the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE), the International Republican Institute (IRI), the National Democratic Institute (NDI), the International Youth Foundation (IYF), the Directors Guild of America (DGA), the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), NBC Universal, NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, TakingITGlobal, USC’s School of Cinematic Arts, and the U.S. Department of State.
Partner representatives attending the launch event include:
Film/Media/Entertainment
NBC Universal – Paula Madison, Executive Vice President, Diversity & Chief Diversity Officer
DGA – Jean Frost, Assistant Eastern Executive Director
MPAA – Anissa Whitten, Vice President, International Affairs and Trade Policy
Democracy
CIPE – John Sullivan, Executive Director
IRI – Elizabeth Dugan, Vice President for Programs
NDI – Kathy Gest, Director of Public Affairs Youth
IYF – Jim Peirce, Vice President, Planning and Outreach
TIG – Natalie Rodic, Project Coordinator, Youth Media Exchange
Academia
NYU – Mary Schmidt Campbell, Dean of the Tisch School of the Arts
U.S. Government
Department of State – James K. Glassman, Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs
Department of State – Jeremy Curtin, Coordinator, Bureau of International Information Programs
