PORTCONMAINE 2008

Cosplay - Art Contest - Anime Music Video Contest

Cosplay Rules:

Cosplay Judging Information

Hey, Portcon Cosplayers! Welcome to another year of the Cosplay Masquerade. For those of you out there who have competed in it before, you will notice a few changes in the following set of rules, which have been made in an attempt to make our cosplay competition run more smoothly than ever. ^^

There are two separate cosplay competitions which are run during this part of the con. The first is the Cosplay Crafstmanship Competition, and information and rules for that may be found below. The following rules are for the Cosplay Masquerade only. Participation in the Crafstmanship Competition is not automatic upon entering the Masquerade, but requires a separate sign-up and is judged at a separate time.

Portcon Cosplay Masquerade:
There are several categories in which participants in the Masquerade may win a special Portcon-style prize. They are:
- Best group
- Best skit
- Best female
- Best male
- Best in show
- OMGWTFBBQ (^^) - -Judge’s Awards

Individual cosplayers or groups may enter themselves into the Masquerade with either a Skit or a Walk-on.

Sign-ups for Skits begin at the end of April, and will continue either until our slots are filled, or until June 23rd, 2008. Due to time constraints, we can allow a maximum of twenty-five skits this year. Those wishing to sign-up for a skit should send an e-mail to portconcosplay@gmail.com after April 30, 2008. The e-mail should include the names of the Cosplayers, the names of the Cosplayers’ Characters, the show or shows which the characters are from, whether they will need music, and a copy of the script for their skit.

Any music should be precut to two minutes or less, with a description within the script of when it should be cued. Applications received before April 30th will not be considered, and will need to be resubmitted after that time. Sign-ups will be first come, first serve, though if needs be there will be a waiting list. We ask that skit groups check-in with Cosplay HQ at the Info Desk as soon as possible after arrival at the Con. They must check in by eleven o’clock on Saturday, July 5th, or they will be counted as a no-show. No-show spots will be given away, either to those on the waiting list, or to create more walk-on space.

A “Skit” is a polished performance involving two or more persons from any number of shows, running between one and two minutes in length. Though songs and music may be a part of your skit, we request that it not be its entirety. (Example of good song: Jiggly-puff singing the Jiggly-puff Song. Bad song: Random Opening Song #4, which is five minutes long and has nothing to do with your character.) Though exceptions may be made, we would like to direct those desiring to sing in competition towards American J-idol and “Say-What?” Karaoke.

A walk-on space will be reserved for those on the skit waiting list, so that your participation in the masquerade is guaranteed. Those on the waiting list should also check in upon arrival, and check back by noon on Saturday at the latest, in order to discover how they will be able to participate.

Once again, please be sure that your skit is polished- that is, something which has been thought about and practiced prior to arrival at the con. Also, be sure that your act is appropriate to all ages, and follows the guidelines for pg-13 events, not just in language, but also in content.

A “Walk-on” is a short presentation of your costume and character. Though speaking and acting are not requirements (feel free to just look pretty!), some element which showcases your character is encouraged, such as a special pose, catch phrase, etc. Walk-ons MUST be less than a minute long; those looking for more space should examine the rules for Skits above. However, this still leaves plenty of time for one or two lines, a few jokes, a short song or an extremely short skit: feel free to be creative. ^^ Walk-ons may be done individually or as a group.

Walk-on sign-ups will occur at the con itself, and will run from 3:00-4:00 p.m. on Friday and from 12:00-1:00 on Saturday, unless we hit our limit, at which point they will close early. Please keep in mind that our limits are due to time constraints, and that each group shares a time slot; those who are unable to sign-up individually should consider forming or joining a group in order to conserve space.

Regardless of whether or not a group or cosplayer is listed for the program, those who do not arrive in time to line-up will be considered no-shows. This goes for Skits and Walk-ons, so please be aware of when to show up. All cosplayers must attend the Cosplay Green Room, which will begin before the event itself, in order to participate.
Music: Music as an accompaniment to a Skit, or even a Walk-on, is acceptable. Please e-mail music with the skit application, or bring walk-on music (pre-cut to less than one minute and as number one on the cd or flashdrive) to the sign-ups, labeled with your name and your character’s name.

Microphones will be provided.

Again, this is a pg-13 event. We reserve the right to refuse or ask for corrections in those skit applications which forget this rule in their script, as well as to remove from the stage those who forget it come the actual masquerade.

Please keep in mind that the con will be crowded, and that PortconMaine requires Safety First. This means that none of your cosplay props or effects should be dangerous. All props will have to pass security’s inspection upon arrival at the con. If at any time they feel that your prop has become dangerous or is being used in a dangerous or inappropriate manner, they have the right to take it into custody. Also, please keep in mind while creating skits that the stage will be quite small, and that falling off would be in no one’s best interests.

Beyond these rules, please be aware that we reserve the right to modify these rules as issues come up, and that what is said by Cosplay Staff at the con itself will be the final word.

Any and all questions may be directed to portconcosplay@gmail.com.

Weapon/Prop Policy Link

Art Contest Rules:

Before You Submit Your Work:
The PortConMaine art show is open to all convention attendees, and awards will be given based on The Grand Art Staff's judgement. Due to the popularity of this contest, we must require that submissions are no bigger than tabloid size (11 x 17 inches). We have a limited space in which we can display people's work, and we also do not wish that anybody's work is overshadowed by the scale of another piece.

It is highly recommended that you make a reproduction of your work to display in the art contest, as the convention staff cannot patrol the art gallery at all times. We will try to be as careful with your work as we possibly can while displaying it.

Fan-art will be accepted, but we stress that all art work is original. This essentially means that the images must be hand drawn/crafted using either traditional media or digital media. The art staff will have zero tolerence for plagiarism. Entries will be disqualified if necessary.

Entries may not include pornographic imagery. When creating an entry, please be considerate of the "all-ages" nature of the convention itself. Art staff reserves the right to reject an entry because of inappropriate content.

Convention Procedures:
The art contest will be judged by the Art Staff. Winners will be announced on the Gallery wall on Sunday of the convention. All entries must be recieved by Saturday Night for judging. Entries will be judged at Artists' Alley closing time on Saturday night.

We can only accept a maximum of 2 entry pieces per artist.

PM Archimer on the forums with any questions.

Anime Music Video Contest Rules:

DUE DATE: April 20th, 2008

PortConMaine 2008 will be holding an Anime Music Video (AMV) contest. If you want to send us a submission for our convention, PLEASE read and use these guidelines. These guidelines were created to both help each video be treated equally as well as avoiding technical problems. Anything not adhering to these guidelines will either not be shown, or might end up backwards or with inverted fields or something equally random.

In an attempt to fairly and accurately judge winners for our contest, the winners will be decided both by attendee ballots and impartial judges. We will use a ranking system rather than a simple “one vote” system to try to be fair to each video. Prizes will be announced at the convention.

Part I. AMV Submission Rules

01. Mailing Your Submission
All submissions can be made by mail and sent to the following address. We only accept submissions on DVD or CD-Rs (as .mov, .mpg, or .avi please!) OR you can email a link to a URL where we can download the file, again! As a .Mov, .Mpg or .Avi PLEASE! Do not encode you submission into a video DVD. Less conversions from the format you send in equals a better looking final product. If you have a choice, .MOV is my personal preferred format. Links to uploaded video sights,such as youtube, will NOT be accepted. Not only is it difficult to verify the owner but, they just look bad on the big screen.

ALL entries MUST be accompanied by a completed submission form! (Downloadable Entry Form) Entries without one will NOT be shown!

Mail all entries to:

Reuben Mahar
ATTN: AMV Contest
PO BOX 391
Port Clyde, ME 04855

All submissions must be RECEIVED by April 20th, 2008 . PortConMaine (or me) is not responsible for submissions delayed or lost in the mail. It’s a good idea to send me (portcontech@gmail.com) an e-mail letting me know that your submission is coming so that I can let you know if it doesn’t arrive. If you include an e-mail address on your submission form (see how handy it is?), I’ll let you know when I receive it, and if there are any problems. If there ARE any problems I’ll do my best to fix them, but without an e-mail address I won’t be able to contact you which would make that VERY difficult.

02. Labeling Your Disc
Please label your submission disc with your REAL name, mailing address, and (optionally) telephone number & e-mail. I’ll have a big pile of entries and if yours isn’t labeled, I’ll have no way of knowing what’s what. Also, if you're sending in a CD-R or DVD, use a marker to write on the top side of the disc instead of putting an adhesive label on it. Labels tend to fall off, usually in my computer’s drive, which makes me sad.

Number of Submissions
We’re a small con, so we can accept a maximum of three videos from either an individual or group. This means that if you’re a part of a group, make sure that you are submitting no more than three videos TOTAL that you’ve worked on. IE: don’t send in two of your own videos, and two that you worked on as part of a group. That would count as FOUR videos from one person. This may result in ALL of the videos being disqualified.

Basic Submission Guidelines
We will be combining all videos into one long contest DVD for screening at PortConMaine. This compilation will be created digitally, so we’ll need to convert ALL videos to one standard digital format. So please be extra careful in creating your actual submission. Send us the highest quality video possible, and if you’re sending it digitally, please adhere EXACTLY to the guidelines to avoid technical problems.

All submissions become property of PortConMaine and can not be returned, so please don’t send us your masters. Send us the best possible copy.

Submission Guidelines
To avoid clipping off the beginning and end of your AMV submission, have fifteen seconds of silent, black leader recorded before *and* after your AMV. Submission tapes and discs become the property of PortConMaine and can't be returned, so DON'T send in your only master tape: send a first- generation copy of the master tape instead.

Filling Out the Submission Form
All submissions must be accompanied by a filled-out copy of the submission form at the end of these rules.

Anonymous submissions, or submissions without a real name, cannot be accepted. However, if you do have a name other than your normal one that you would like your video to be attributed to during the screenings (and potentially on the contest voting ballot), please include it on your submission form in the space provided.

Your anime music video submission must be your own work and no one else's. You must identify the artist & title of any music used in your AMV as well as the title or titles of any anime footage used.

You must fill out the part where you give PortConMaine permission to use your video. If you don't give us permission, we can’t show it.

No Trolling For Prizes
Submit only music videos that have not already won awards or prizes at other PortConMaine' AMV contests. Period. Also- please be respectful and mindful of entries that have won at other conventions. We won't mind a video that won one contest at a convention three years ago, but if your video has won more than ten awards, etc, please use your discretion although we'd appreciate it if we could get something new.

How to Get a Copy of the Contest
We do not make copies of the contest currently, period. Sorry!

Part II. CONTENT RULES

01. Components/Ingredients of Submissions

Music Videos:

Anime Music Videos, they must have at least two things:

· Music: Your AMV must be set predominantly to music.

· Anime: Your AMV must use predominantly anime footage. Either anime or computer generated (video games) footage is allowed, as long as it's japanese.

Also, AMVs must NOT have the following:

· Titles: As we will include our own title screens for each video on the compilation tape, please do NOT include any intro screens or animations before your video, or credits afterwards, and do NOT “burn in” information about your video or website or whatever within the video. These will be removed.

Any sound effects/narration of your own creation, added during the creation of the AMV, are perfectly okay. Similarly, sound from the original Japanese soundtrack is okay by us.

02.Length of Submissions
Videos may not be shorter than 30 seconds, or longer than 6 minutes.

03. Age of Submissions
To keep the screenings at the convention fresh, we ask that you submit only anime music videos completed within the last three years. Include on the submission form the approximate date your video was completed.

04. No Objectionable Content
Content of videos must be suitable for viewing by our under-21 members (or worse, their parents). We may have problems with songs that are too explicit for radio airplay, or footage that is too extreme for general broadcast. We are going to maintain a PG-13 or lower rating for these AMVs.

05. Because We Say So
Screening coordinators reserve the right to reject any video. We cannot show videos which do not adhere to the contest rules.

* * *

Any questions should be sent to PortConMaine's Anime Music Video Contest coordinator Reuben Mahar.

Special thanks to Matt Pyson & Duane Johnson for allowing me to use their Otakon AMV submission guidelines as a template. Also to Scott Meltzer- who wrote everything here for us to use as guidelines.