It’s No Laughing Matter
Although Comic-Con sounds like a competition for comedians telling jokes, in reality it is the be-all and end-all of all comic book conventions.

But the love of comic books is only the beginning of this annual event. It has also expanded its scope to  include science fiction fans, movie fans, and virtually anything that has to do with the supernatural or weird science.

If you are an aficionado of the above and have always imagined yourself as the next Spielberg the Comic-Con International Independent Film Festival may be just the ticket to fame, fortune, and free tickets to the convention.
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What the Festival is About
Comic-Con has traditionally been an event where previews of science fiction movies or television shows are shown. But it also serves as a venue for aspiring film makers. writers, and artists.

This year’s Comic-Con film festival is seeking independently produced films that fall into the following categories:

* Action/Adventure
* Animation
* Comics-oriented
* Pop Culture-Related Documentary
* Horror/Suspense
* Humor
* Science Fiction/Fantasy

Entries must be fully edited. No in-progress projects or rough-cuts will be eligible. Do not submit trailers, test footage or scenes from upcoming film projects.

There will also be a Judge’s Choice Selection as well.

Film Festival Guidelines
In order to be eligible for this contest, the official rules state:

* All films must be appropriate for an all-ages audience. No nudity, excessive ….violence or swearing.
* All films must be no longer than 95 minutes in length.
* One submission per filmmaker.
* Films previously submitted to the CCI: IFF, whether accepted or denied, ….cannot be entered again.
* Films submitted must have a completion date within the last two (2) years ….(2009-2010).
* Four (4) copies of the submitted film must be sent.
* At least one member of the film-making crew should be in attendance at ….the CCI: IFF to introduce and discuss the film.
* Films submitted cannot have distribution deals or distribution deals pending.

How to Enter
All submissions must include the following items:

* A completed entry form.
* A written brief synopsis of your film (50 words or less).
* A brief bio of the director or film makers.
* One production still photograph for possible PR use.
* Four (4) DVD copies of your film in Region 1 format (No PAL).

Mail your finished entries to:

Comic-Con International Independent Film Festival
P.O. Box 128458
San Diego, CA
92112-8458

Prizes
Awards will be issued to the winners, plus film screenings of the winning entries during the 4-day Comic-Con event. Winners will also receive a free 4-day professional membership to the event.

Other Information and Contest Links
Please direct all question about this contest to: programs [at] comic-con.org.

The deadline for entries is February 15, 2011. Winners will be announced at the Comic-Con event on July 24, 2011 in San Diego, California.

There are no entry fees for this contest.

Follow these links for additional information:

Official Contest Site
Contest Rules and Entry Form (PDF file)

The Medium is the Message
When graphic designers create an image for a client, the media they use to express the artwork and graphics ranges from animation, video, packaging, posters and everything in between. But when all is said and done the final result is a successful message.

The Say Something Poster Project contest is held to give designers a chance to use their talents to create a poster that will say something to encourage, inspire, motivate and educate teenagers.

The sponsor states:

“Each year 10 winning posters are donated to a non-profit organization and permanently installed in their facility. Posters are used to transform space with engaging imagery that amplifies the organization’s missions.”

This year’s recipient of proceeds from sales of posters will go to The Home for Little Wanderers, a private, non-profit help organization for children and families.

What to Submit
The contest rules and guidelines state that all entries should be submitted digitally to the official contest website. The following specifications for posters are:

Print Specifications
Orientation: landscape or portrait
File format: TIFF
Resolution: 300 dpi
Dimensions: 24″x 36″

Upload Specifications
Orientation: landscape or portrait
File format: JPEG
Resolution: 72 dpi
Dimensions: 480 x 720
Max file size: 3mb

Poster entries must also have a brief write-up (250 characters or less) explaining the inspiration, message, intent or thoughts about your design.

Judging and Awards
There are three phases in determining the winners:

Stage 1: The 100 posters with the highest votes by the public are selected
Stage 2: A five-panel judging board will select 25 semifinalists from the pool of 100.
Stage 3: 10 winners will be selected from the 25 semifinalists.

The 25 semifinalists receive a full sized print of their poster. (25″x36″)

The 10 winners will receive a copy of Autodesk Sketchbook Pro plus free subscriptions to design magazines, free design books, and credits and gift certificates for graphic design products.

Contest Links and Other Information

Official Contest Site (Note: This website is slow to load its content.)
Complete Contest Rules (Downloadable PDF file)

There are no entry fees for this contest. The deadline for submissions is December 31, 2010. Winners will be announced in March 2011.

Look, Up In the Sky!
The town of Roswell, New Mexico is known for its connection to the well publicized UFO sighting that occurred there in 1947.

The Roswell Incident has spawned numerous conspiracy theories regarding the possible cover up of extraterrestrials crashing on Earth.

But Roswell also has another claim to fame as well; it is host to one of the longest artist residency programs offered in the US. The Roswell Artist in Residence Program is now open for applications.

What the Program is About
This residence opportunity is also known by artists as the “Gift of Time.” The program was first started in 1967 in order to provide visual artists with the opportunity to freely concentrate on their work for an entire year.

Those who are accepted into the program will work in a collegiate atmosphere that will help them to grow and realize personal artistic goals.

The residence grants are available to those who are involved in the visual arts such as painting, sculpture, drawing, photography, printmaking and other fine art media. These grants exclude performance art or production crafts.

Residency Details
The sponsors of this in-residency program strongly urge applicants to thoroughly understand the commitment needed to stay with this residency for an entire year. They recommend that you do not apply if:

* You will have a number of exhibitions opening during the period ….of your residency.
* You find the idea of the residency just a flattering notion.
* Your spouse or partner is not committed to the entire length of ….the residency.
* You have unusual heath issues or heavy debt.
* You are uncomfortable living alone or often find yourself having ….issues with acquaintances, neighbors or friends. (Lack of people ….skills)
* You have no means transportation.
* You cannot live without your dog or other beloved pet for a whole year.

According to the Board of Trustees of this residency program:

“For over forty years the Roswell Artist-in-Residence Program has provided talented artists a long-term opportunity to free themselves from the entanglements of their jobs, careers and other responsibilities, to focus on their creative imaginations.

“Roswell is remotely located, away from the trends and noise of our cultural capitals and provides the artist an opportunity to look inwardly, over an entire year, at the sources of their vision and the reach of their talent.”

Residency Grant Details
Those who qualify and are accepted into the RAIR program will be offered a monthly stipend of $800 plus $100 per dependent living with the grantee. (No pets allowed)

Artists will live in a housing complex consisting of six house/studios. Rent, utilities, repairs and maintenance are included.

What to Submit
Artists are required to send in their portfolios via photographic transparencies (35mm) or through digital means on a CD/DVD. The specifics of what is needed are detailed in the application .pdf file found in the link below.

Important Links and Other Information

Official Website for RAIR Program
Application Information and FAQs
Full Submission Guidelines and Application Form (PDF Document)

The deadline for applications is December 1, 2010. Send your submission packet to:

Roswell Artist-in-Residence Program
c/o RAIR Foundation
P.O. Drawer 1497
Roswell, NM 88202

There is a $25 application fee for this residency. For questions call the residency office at (575) 622-6037 weekdays during the hours of 1-5 p.m. US mountain time.

Art and Your SketchBook
Any student of the illustrative arts, graphic design or drawing has used a sketch book at one time or another to doodle or chisel out ideas.

In the case of the Autodesk SketchBook your canvas becomes your computer or one of the iApple devices for drawing and painting digital images.

Autodesk is announcing its SketchBook Hero Image Contest and is seeking entries created on any Autodesk SketchBook software application programs. The idea is simple; create a knockout image.

The Contest Rules
In order to qualify for this competition you must be 18 years or older and make your primary residence in one of the eligible countries as stated in the official contest rules.

Submissions must be created by using one of Autodesk’s following products:

* SketchBook Pro
* SketchBook Pro for the iPad
* Sketchbook Mobile for iPhone and iTouch
* SketchBook Express

Each contestant may only submit one entry to this competition. All submissions are to be uploaded to the official Autodesk contest site.

Judging and Prizes
A judging panel will select the best candidates for the final voting stage. The winner will be determined by the general public; the entry with the most votes wins.

The criteria and total possible points for scoring for entries that move on to the final round are as follows:

30 points - Creativity and Originality
30 points - Technical Expertise
20 points - Composition and Design
20 points - Reflection of the Autodesk Brand
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100 points - Total

The winning entry will be used as the “splash screen” for the Autodesk SketchBook Mobile application used by all iTouch devices. This app is one of the most popular ones on the iTunes store. The winner’s art may be seen by millions of users of this program.

Contest Links and Additional Information
Follow these important links for contest information:

Official Contest Site
Complete Rules and Contest Guidelines
Online Entry and Registration Form

There are no entry fees for this contest. The deadline for submissions is November 14, 2010. Voting by the public will be from November 30 to December 14, 2010. The winners will be announced on December 15, 2010 via email.

Make a Brit Grin
Or to be more specific, make a Londoner smile. The Meme Partnership, a company which is a “socially focused creative enterprise merging public art with contemporary design,” is sponsoring the Smile for London contest.

The Contest
Many people commute daily by using the London Underground rail system.

The trains provide an important transportation service, while the various stops provide numerous digital display screens to inform the passengers.

The Smile for London contest is seeking entertaining 20 second video clips to display on the digital display screens located throughout the London Underground. The sponsors state:

“Create a twenty second piece of animation, moving image or film for the digital screens with the ultimate aim of inspiring, exciting or amusing Londoners as they make their way into work.

“We want you to really push the boundaries of this exciting and underexploited medium. Keep the message positive, inoffensive and remember commuters are looking for an escape from their Tube journey.”

Submission Guidelines
Please note that there is no sound needed for submissions as the video clips will be run without audio on the display screens. The rules state that all videos entered in this contest must follow these criteria:

* Resolution of 1280 x 720
* 16:9 aspect ratio
* QuickTime file format
* Video codecs allowed: Animation, Uncompressed 8-bit 4:2:2
* File size no larger than 2GB
* Containing a silent digital audio stream at 48KHz (2 Channel)
* Should be 20 seconds long.

Video titles and text should follow standard action and title safe parameters: Action safe - 10%; Title safe - 20%.

Judging and Awards
Submitted videos will be eligible for online voting by the general public. The top 50 entries with the most votes will be deemed winners of the contest.

Winners of the contest will have their videos displayed on the London Underground monitors for two weeks in January 2011 and will be invited to the launch event at the Museum of London where the winning videos will be showcased.

Contest Links and Related Contest Information
Because the London Underground stations are brightly lit, videos that are dark or dim will look washed out or be very difficult to view.

Take this into consideration when producing your videos and make adjustments to color and contrast to compensate for these viewing areas.

The contest deadline is December 10, 2010. There is no entry fee for this contest and no limit to the number of entries you wish to submit.

Follow these links for more contest information:

Contest Site and Announcement
Contest Rules and Guidelines (pdf document)
Smile for London Video Submission Site

Enter for Fame, Not Fortune
KUCI-89.9FM is a non-profit public radio station broadcasting from the college campus of U.C. Irvine in Southern California. The is run by the student volunteers and members of the Orange County community.

KUCI is asking for designs from artistic individuals or graphic artists for a radio station  t-shirt or  program guide cover.

You may enter in one or both categories. The winners will be announced on the air and will also receive free copies of the final products.

What the Contest is About
According to the sponsors regarding the artwork for program guides:

“We print four Program Guides each year where we list that quarter’s schedule of radio shows plus articles and other writing. We love to have the front cover be something an up and coming artist creates.”

As far as t-shirts design requests KUCI says:

“We have a long history of printing t-shirts for the station and are proud to continue the tradition with your help. They will be screen-printed in a small quantity and given to people who donate to the station.”

Contest Guidelines
This contest is open to anyone in the world and there is no entry fee for entrants.

If you are submitting a t-shirt design for KUCI:
* The design must be black graphics on a white background only. No ….additional colors.
* The design should only be created for the front of the t-shirt.
* Maximum size of the graphic is 8.5 x 11.0 inches in height.

If you are submitting an entry for the program guide:
* Enter any graphic, design, or illustration that will fit in an area of 5.5 ….inches wide and 8.5 inches tall.
* The graphic should be printable in gray-scale only. No additional ….colors.

Important Links and Deadline Date
The deadline for submitting entries is November 5, 2010. You may submit more than one entry.

Contest Website
KUCI Mission Statement
History of KUCI
Gallery of Past Winning Entries
Radio Station Logos (Use is optional)

Email all entries to designcontest [at] kuci.org.