Contest Guidelines For all

Entrants may submit in multiple areas, but only one entry per person in each area.

Contest Area guidelines and criteria

Short film

Guidelines:

• Film must be 7 minutes or less,
• Must be uploaded to a video-sharing site like YouTube:  attach the link; do not send the video as an attachment

Criteria for judgment: 

• Creative elements
• Technical elements
• Theme/storytelling

Coordinator: Prof. Frances Roberson (froberson@atu.edu)

 

Newspaper article

Guidelines:

• Article can be news, sports, feature or opinion

Criteria for judgment:

• Lead: Lead is original and fits well with the rest of the article. It invites readers into the article and does not mislead readers.
• Focus: Focus of article is clear. Everything contributes to the article’s overall angle.
• Organization: Article is strongly organized with clear transitions and logical connections that create a sense of being tightly woven together.
• Writing style: Writing is strong and effective with a variety of sentence structures. Article is tightly written and utilizes active verbs and vivid word choice. Article demonstrates original writing. 
• Mechanics: Article is free of grammatical, spelling, word usage and punctuation errors.

Coordinator: Prof. Tommy Mumert (tmumert@atu.edu)

 

Photograph

Guidelines:

• Photos can be color or black & white.
• Image size limited to 5MB (physical photo size is at the discretion of the photographer)
• Photo must be shot during the current academic year.
• Editing and image cropping are not allowed:  the image must be presented as it was originally taken with the camera.

Criteria for judgement:

• Focus
• Composure
• Creative approach to subject

Coordinator: Dr. Hanna Norton (hnorton@atu.edu)

 

Short play

Guidelines:

• Plays should be 10 pages or fewer

Criteria for judgment:

• Structure
  • Is there a beginning, middle, and end?  Does the main character change in some way?
• Creativity
  • How is this play somehow unique?
• Stageability
  • Could this play be acted out at most high school or college theatres?

Coordinator:  Dr. David J. Eshelman (deshelman@atu.edu)

 

Short speech

Guidelines:

• This speech will have a “Tell Us About Your Hobby” theme. 
• Write and present a short (2 – 3 minute) speech about your favorite hobby.

Your speech should have:

• An introduction where you tell us your name, what grade you’re in, your school, your hobby, and how long you’ve done this hobby.
• A body where you tell us what your hobby entails and why you like it.
• A conclusion where you sum up your speech.
• You should practice lots so that you sound poised, confident, and enthusiastic about your hobby.

Criteria for judgement:

• Organization of your speech
• Verbal Delivery (enthusiasm, volume, articulation, and rate)
• Non-Verbal Delivery (gestures, facial expressions, and how well you use a prop that relates to your hobby)

Coordinator:  Dr. Virginia Jones (vjones7@atu.edu)

 

TV News Package

Guidelines:

• Package length must be :45 to 1:30
• Package must include voice-overs, soundbites, and b-roll
• Must be uploaded to a video-sharing site like YouTube:  attach the link; do not send the video as an attachment

Criteria for judgement:

• Camera:
  • Focus, white balance, exposure, framing, audio, shoots b-roll from varying angels and focal lengths.  
• Script Writing:
  • Reporter tracks include a lead (current situation or problem), background information (the “why”), supporting facts or details, and future developments (what’s next). Clear story angle. Soundbites are short and give perspective or opinion.
• Editing: 
  • Uses b-roll that matches script. Uses Nat sound. Avoids jump cuts and frames of black. 

Coordinator:  Prof. Christie Kellar (ckellar1@atu.edu)

 

Yearbook Spread

Guidelines: 

• Spreads should be 1-2 pages from a previous or upcoming yearbook, all the student’s own work.

Criteria for judgement: 

• Layout and design
• Photography
• Headlines/captions
• Relation to yearbook theme

Coordinator:  Prof. Megan Toland (mtoland1@atu.edu)

** Prizes will be awarded to the entries that meet criteria, as determined in the sole discretion of the competition organizers.  The organizers reserve the right not to award a prize in any category if, in their judgment, no entry meets the criteria for award in that category.