AWA pro thoughts/followups?

[Lord Rae]

#47 was mine. The Xmen Interlaced one... I still don't know how I missed that on my computer... ugh. The video wasn't my best and I rushed it a bit, but it's embarrassing to have a technical glitch that bad.

[jingoro]

Thank you everyone for another great year.

I'll note in this thread a few announcements made during the VAT closing ceremonies regarding Pro for next year. Though I created Pro as a contest with just a different kind of judging, that isn't what it has become. Your feedback has made that clear to me and since Pro really is the creator's contest, that's critical. With that in mind, I am making the following changes. These will be included in the official rules as soon as time permits.

1) Entries to pro must be new content, exclusive to AWA, submitted to no other contest and not posted nor distributed publicly. This is exactly the same requirement as The Masters.
2) This will be verified using the "Google Rule". If one can Google any information about your video, or find it on The Org, or if it is found that your video or any identifying information regarding it is publicly available in some other fashion, the video will be disqualified from Pro and be moved to the Exposition.
3) Blinding will be strictly enforced. Any studio or editor identification may not appear anywhere in your submission. If you would like to submit an unblinded copy for inclusion in our contest archive, you may do so. If for any reason the blind is pierced, the video will be disqualified and moved to the Exposition.

As a consequence of these changes, The Masters has also been affected.

Since all entries to Pro will now meet Masters submission requirements in terms of new content and blindness, every entry in The Professional Awards will also be eligible for The Masters. This means I expect everyone to be bringing their "A" game to the Professional Awards since there's no reason your peers would expect you to be holding back your best work for another contest. If this works well, Masters may return to a yearly schedule in 2014.

At Anime Weekend Atlanta 19, the Video Art Track is pulling out all the stops. This year is going to be a memorable one, and I'm really looking forward to this!

[Ileia]

Interesting. Does that mean that Master's no longer requires you to have won an award? And, since Pro allows two videos and Master's only allows one, will both videos be eligible or do you choose which to enter?


(Also, rumors of my "boycotting" have been greatly exaggerated. It was more of a lack of interest/being otherwise occupied than a "rawr I demand exclusive!" stance. )

[jingoro]

Interesting. Does that mean that Master's no longer requires you to have won an award? And, since Pro allows two videos and Master's only allows one, will both videos be eligible or do you choose which to enter?

(Also, rumors of my "boycotting" have been greatly exaggerated. It was more of a lack of interest/being otherwise occupied than a "rawr I demand exclusive!" stance. )

Both videos will be eligible, and yes, Masters will become both generally open and 18+ because of this change. This shouldn't have any effect on the quality of entries, just now everyone will get to vote on them as well in Pro, and there is a chance that the Masters video may also win in Pro.

Remind me to create a "Most Likely To Win Masters" category for y'all in Pro, so you can second-guess me all you like.

I will add that I do consider strongly the ability to actually screen the Masters video during the main events awards ceremony. Thought Masters does not exclude mature content, the idea of helping someone into that jacket without screening their video... I'll admit, it affects my judgement.

[The Wired Knight]

Mine was #54. Time constraints kept me from fixing some of the aspect ratio problems sadly. I also made the commercial entry using Cromartie - though it appears what I suspected was right, nobody really remembers the original commercial that that was parodying. Meh, I made the video I wanted to make.

As for pro, I am somewhat confused as to its overlap with masters now. So basically is Masters just a sub-catagory of Pro that is entirely decided by you? So it basically has two best in show awards? The other rules I don't mind so much (though I am going to have to revise my editing schedule to compensate).

Secondly, what about identifying features of a video removing something being blind? You'll have to hear me out on this because it's a VERY awkward scenario that is something I've been considering doing in videos for a bit. In al my videos henceforth I've been planning on hiding a character from another show in all my videos. Somewhere really hidden in the backgorund, never front and center. But if someody catches it then it's clearly my video. This isn't to make the video identifiable as mine but it IS something I've been planning to do just for the kicks. So my name isn't attached but basically there is a signature on it by virtue of one particular thing I do in editing.

[jingoro]

As for pro, I am somewhat confused as to its overlap with masters now. So basically is Masters just a sub-catagory of Pro that is entirely decided by you? So it basically has two best in show awards? The other rules I don't mind so much (though I am going to have to revise my editing schedule to compensate).

This is one reason I was reluctant to do this at all. I did not want to end The Masters or lobotomize it, but I also did not want to ask editors to do two exclusive videos. This was the compromise I worked out... in order to "raise the bar" of The Professional Awards, I decided that Masters candidates would be selected from its videos.

The two contests remain distinct in my mind. Only the submission process has been streamlined, and Masters videos now gain the benefit of the peer recognition that is The Professional Awards.

Whatever anyone was planning for Masters, I encourage them to proceed as if nothing has changed. Whatever anyone was planning for Pro, I'm letting everyone know as soon as possible that they'll need to keep it secret, and that there's a chance they might also get a nifty green jacket, as well as a trophy next year.

Secondly, what about identifying features of a video removing something being blind? You'll have to hear me out on this because it's a VERY awkward scenario that is something I've been considering doing in videos for a bit. In al my videos henceforth I've been planning on hiding a character from another show in all my videos. Somewhere really hidden in the backgorund, never front and center. But if someody catches it then it's clearly my video. This isn't to make the video identifiable as mine but it IS something I've been planning to do just for the kicks. So my name isn't attached but basically there is a signature on it by virtue of one particular thing I do in editing.

Yes... I think you understood me perfectly and this is going to be a grey area that I'm going to hate to police. For example, nearly all my videos have a brief opening sequence followed by the title cards from the shows I used. This is so trademark for me that even my Iron Editor effort uses this gimmick. But this isn't exclusive to me... and though someone might suspect that a old-school fade/cut video with title cards is more likely to be mine than any other given video, they couldn't be certain, and it would be OK. However, if I digitally added Jingoro, the cat from Orange Road, to the background of my entries, I think it would remove all doubt (well, except for the abject shock that I'd be technically able to do that) and it would be grounds for disqualification. Um, well it would be grounds... except how much y'all like to troll and shit. If Mr. Pilkington decided to mimic your style, right down to putting your trademark character in the background of his next Lady Gaga video... well, let's say it was the first thing that came to mind when I thought about how I'd handle that.

I have never done such a broadly open blind competition before and I dread the moment I have to tell one of you one of your best efforts won't be in the contest because of something like this.

In the past, we've accepted self-censored videos in Masters. I will make sure our submission process would allow you to submit a "judging version" that, for example, does not include your name on a title card, or in this case does not have the signature character included. You can then submit a second "screening version" that we'll show at the convention that includes all your identifying elements, so long as the screening version does not change the character of the video the judges voted on (and as you've described this to me, it wouldn't, but I just know [name ommitted] would send me a Studio Ghibli judging copy and something like Bible Black for the screening copy, so it has to be said).

[Rider4Z]

hey sean if it's hardly noticeable can't you just leave it out for the AWA version?

and i'm still a bit confused about Pro vs Masters even after your thorough explanation. just my brain, i beg your pardon - so next year you may enter Expo or Pro, and the top group from Pro (decided by judges?) will be pulled to create a Masters category, while still being eligible for awards in Pro due to peer judging?

[l33tmeatwad]

I don't really like Masters being chosen from the Pro pool of videos. I would rather make a new video for both contests...

[BasharOfTheAges]

hey sean if it's hardly noticeable can't you just leave it out for the AWA version?

and i'm still a bit confused about Pro vs Masters even after your thorough explanation. just my brain, i beg your pardon - so next ear you may enter Expo or Pro, and the top group from Pro (decided by judges?) will be pulled to create a Masters category, while still being eligible for awards in Pro due to peer judging?

From what I'm reading... One video from Pro will be crowned the winner of Masters. It's the ultimate in guest awards.

[jingoro]

i beg your pardon

No need to beg, I was given my pope card at the wrap party, so your sins are hereby forgiven.

so next year you may enter Expo or Pro, and the top group from Pro (decided by judges?) will be pulled to create a Masters category, while still being eligible for awards in Pro due to peer judging?

Not quite. Yes, next year you may submit to Expo or Pro. They work like they always have save for the changes in Pro we've already discussed (and which seem pretty clear).

Now, because not everyone would be willing, like you, to make two extremely high quality videos and keep them a secret until AWA, my change to Masters is intended to make it a little easier on them. They may make one high quality video like (I assume) they were already going to, and it will compete in both contests, Pro and Masters. I wasn't changing anything else. I was just trying to keep it simple.

So, can you tell me why you don't like it coming from Pro? If you were going to make two videos, you could submit them both to Pro and both would also compete in Masters... nothing else would change?

I'm willing to undo what I did for Masters... As I said, my intent was that since (a) everything in Pro, according to the new rules, would be eligible for Masters and (b) I don't judge Pro, it made sense for me to just review everything in Pro and give out the jacket.... but if that takes away from your desire to create awesome videos, then perhaps I've made a mistake...