Play Now Act Now
Microfiction Entry Guidelines 2010
1. Aims
Creative writing is one of the most democratic artistic medium – and in acknowledging this Play Now Act Now is embracing the changes to the way writing is consumed in the online environment. The Festival supports free, creative and innovative writing that pushes the boundaries of the form and takes or shows readers place they have never been before.
2. Eligibility of works
1. Microfiction can be submitted in any genre: prose, poems, journalism, autobiography, essay, etc.
2. Microfictions must be entirely produced by NSW residents aged 16-25.
3. The content of all microfictions must relate to the thematic ‘Signature Item’ of the Festival, as outlined below.
4. Microfictions must also address the ‘Monthly Theme’ the entry is being made for as outlined below.
5. Works must be no more than 250 words.
6. Entrants must create a WORDLE tag cloud (www.wordle.net) to submit along with their entry. Instructions on Wordle are outlined below.
7. Works must have been produced in the 18 months preceding the festival.
8. Works must not have been previously published, in whole or part anywhere else.
9. Works must be accompanied by appropriate documentation as outlined below.
10. Entries must conform to a MA15+ classification (see OLFC website for specifics)
2. Submission
Fill in the Play Now Act Now Entry Form, and copy and paste your Microfiction into the box provided in the entry form along with a brief description of the work. Participants are also invited into include an Avatar to go alongside their entry.
3. Wordle tag cloud
At Play Now Act Now the presentation of our entries matters greatly. The Festival is also sensitive that the our creative writing participants are presented in a way that prevents then from being overshadowed by the visual based mediums of short film and digital design. That is why we are asking microfictioneers to go that little bit further in the visual representation of their work by using WORDLE (www.wordle.net) to create a unique tag cloud of your story. These won’t form part of the judging process, however it will help your entry ‘pop’ off the category tile page and entice the public to read your entry.
What is Wordle? Basically Wordle is a toy for generating ‘word clouds’ from text that you provide. The clouds give greater prominence to words that appear more frequently in the source text. You can tweak your clouds with different fonts, layouts, color schemes, the maximum number of words that appear and more.
How to create your cloud: First cut and paste part or all of your entry along with your own name into the box provided on the ‘Create’ page on wordle.net then click ‘Go’. Wordle will automatically generate a cloud for you, but you will want to personalise this but adjusting the font, colour and overall presentation. Don’t forget to have fun while your creating your Wordle cloud.
Once completed choose the option to ‘Save To Public Gallery’. This will take you to a new page that shows your Wordle cloud, save the URL and paste it into the field requested on the Microfiction entry form.
4. Selection
Microfictions submitted via the Play Now Act Now will be vetted to ensure that content meets the eligibility requirements of Play Now Act Now by the Festival Director. Once cleared the microfiction will be embedded on the category competition page for online voting to commence.
5. Signature Item
Play Now Act Now’s signature item is that all entries must in some way make reference to drug and alcohol; it is a thematic bend through which you must approach your Short Film, Digital Design, or Microfiction. We want to hear your story, how you think drugs and alcohol fit into both youth culture and the greater Australian culture.
Play Now Act Now realises that many young people are exposed to alcohol and drugs in some way in their lives, we want you to engage with the issue that arise from that experience. That doesn’t mean taking the moral high ground or replicating government public service announcements, nor do we want to see entries simply about the act of drinking alcohol or taking drugs.
We believe the best stories are ones that approach our signature item with originality and offer something constructive to the debate surrounding the culture of alcohol and drugs. You decide how and the extent to which you integrate alcohol and drugs into your work, so long as they feature some reference that’s fine by us.
Remember, Play Now Act Now is more interested in what you have to say, not what you think we want to hear. So be creative, honest and find new and interesting ways to incorporate the signature theme into your work.
6. Monthly Themes
Play Now Act Now will run online between April and September 2010 and will comprise five calendar months of LIVE COMPETITION in each of the three categories. Each month will have a unique theme, which will be announced as we call for entries. How you interpret the theme is entirely up to you, but your entry will be judged on successfully and creatively you approach it. Our deadlines for entry can be found below, make sure you check to find out what the current monthly theme is:
MAY COMPETITION
Deadline: 29 April 2010
Theme: UNSOCIAL NETWORKING
JUNE COMPETITION
Deadline: 26 May 2010
Theme: HERO TO ZERO
JULY COMPETITION
Deadline: 25 June 2010 EXTENDED TO 9.00AM 29 JUNE
Theme: CRIME STORY
AUGUST COMPETITION
Deadline: 27 July 2010
Theme: OUT OF IT
SEPTEMBER COMPETITION
Deadline: 29 August 2010
Theme: THIS LIFE
7. Documentation
For each Microfiction entry, the Festival must receive the following documentation: completed entry form, a description of the work (max 50 words), and a brief (max 25 words) biography of the designer. Participants under the age of 18 will be asked to obtain a parental consent form to submit separately.
8. Online Voting
Online voting takes place only at the Play Now Act Now website and will be tabulated using the Bayesian average method. Voting will commence at 09.00 on the 1st of the month of competition and end at 23.59 on the last day of the month. The highest recorded mean will determine the People’s Choice Winner in the month of competition. Only one vote per entry is allowed, however voters may vote on as many entries as they like.
8. Official Selection
Every month Play Now Act Now judges will select one entry from each category to proceed to the grand final by official selection in addition to the People’s Choice Winner. Judges at this stage will be comprised of the Play Now Act Now Festival Director, one member of the Metro Screen Executive and a representative of NSW Health. Judges discussions remain confidential, even after the competition has ended and their decisions are final.
9. Awards
As outlined above every month two prizes will be awarded in the Microfiction category:
• People’s Choice Award
• Official Selection
Recipients each receive $100 and proceed to the grand final.
10. Grand final
The grand final will take place at the Play Now Act Now showcase even in October. Ten finalists, 2 from each month of competition, will be represented. Prizes will be awarded as follows:
• 1st place Microfiction Winner: $2,000
• 2nd place Microfiction Winner: $750
• 3rd place Microfiction Winner: $250
• Overall People’s Choice Microfiction Winner: $1,000
The Overall People’s Choice Microfiction Winner is also eligible to be awarded either 1st, 2nd, or 3rd place by the Play Now Act Now panel of judges.
Grand final judges will be comprised of a panel of industry members consisting of two young writers and at least one other member. The grand final jury will be announced in October. No person who has participated in the production or promotion of any film in the Festival may serve on the Jury.
For all further questions please contact the Festival Director:
C/O- Metro Screen Sydney,
Paddington Town Hall,
Cnr Oxford + Oatley Street
Paddington, NSW, 2021
(p) 02·93561818
(e) info@pnan.com.au
