Siff march 2014 rules and tips

Rules and Tips for Spring - March 2014

Films premiering March 2014 IMPORTANT NOTE Read through carefully as some of the information has changed since previous rounds

OF SPECIAL NOTE Series, Foreign and Sims2 submissions are invited and welcome!

SUBMISSIONS FOR Spring 2014 will not be accepted until February 1st so stay tuned for details.

Contents of this document Entering SIFF in 3 easy steps Guidelines for Machinima Makers Submission Categories Awards Structure Important and Helpful Links Tips for Newbies

Three Steps to Entering SIFF WE WILL NOT BE REVIEWING SUBMISSIONS UNTIL February 2014

Step ONE - Read through the information here very carefully to be sure that you don't miss anything important and miss your chance to have your film accepted.

Step TWO - Email your submission form information to simatography@gmail.com Step THREE- Watch for an email from the Simatography gmail account which will confirm that your submission has been received. You can submit anytime, but we will not begin to reply to submissions until February1st.

SUBMISSION FORM Please follow exactly to avoid any confusion.

NOTE the subject line of your email MUST BE exactly as this your user name - film title example Minraed - The Day of the Druids

It is impossible to keep things organized in our mailbox without this. If you do not do this exactly you will be asked to resubmit.

In the body of the email include the following: Your user name here at Simatography.

The name you would like to see listed as the creator (director) of your film. For example: Gus Rockman uses Brainstrip Pictures, while Sylent Whysper uses her user name Sylent Whysper.

The title of your film.

The category that your film will be entered in (see the categories below).

If it is Sims3 or Sims2 machinima.

How much machinima experience you have.

Where are you from?

Include the link to your YouTube page - if you use another site rather than YouTube for hosting your videos your submission will not be able to be shown on our YouTube page so keep this in mind.

email your submission to simatography@gmail.com If you have any questions you can email us at this email address.

If you really want a quick answer get in touch with Minraed Arzhel on Facebook or on the Simatography website mailbox

Guidelines for Machinima Makers SUBMISSION GUIDELINES  Your SIFF submission must be a NEW machinima project that has NOT been previously released or seen by the public with the exception of advertisements and SIFF promotional vids which can be released during the SIFF buzz leading up to the film premieres.  Submissions will be accepted until March 1st - no film submissions will be accepted after this date. This does not mean that the film is due then, just the form must be submitted on time so that your film will be on the Playbill listing.  Release date for SIFF film viewing is March 15th, 2014. This means that films must NOT be released prior to this date - we want to build a lot of suspense and anticipation before your BIG premiere.  Each entry should be a stand alone story. See guidelines below for those entering the new Series category.  Your film may be in two or more parts, but be warned that this option is not best for all films so consider this carefully.  You may choose to submit films to any of the categories with no limitations on the number of entries, but please be realistic. It is not often possible to complete more than one or two. Submitting many and not completing creates quite a bit of confusion and extra work for us when we are trying to track down submissions.  Refer to the IMPORTANT LINKS below to direct you to everything you might need to make your SIFF release successful.

Submitting a film trailer, just like you see for real movies, is very strongly suggested. We also encourage creating a film poster for our film promo poster challenge too. All of this helps your film get more exposure.

ADDITIONAL NOTES  This official SIFF site will host and display all trailers (please upload to YouTube or other host site first), photos, interviews and movie posters to help you advertise - let us know if you need help posting anything.  It is your responsibility to share your trailers or other items to promote your film - refer to the HELPFUL LINKS below to guide you on where to promote.  CENSORSHIP - we will not accept films that in any way glorify or promote rape, racism, pornography, hate or any similar topics. We will not censor tasteful nudity or adult themes, but we do ask that you make a small note just like you see in real films if there is "adult subject matter" just as a courtesy to those who may not want to see such things. 

Be sure to subscribe to us on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/user/Simatographers

Submission Categories Film Trailers Film trailers are a great way to promote your film and SIFF. You do NOT need to fill out a submission form for your film trailer. Viewer's Choice polls for this category will be posted about 1 week before the films premiere.

Advertisements and SIFF Promos Advertisements may be released anytime during the SIFF Buzz leading up to the film premieres in March. Post your advertisement submissions in our Video section and be sure to share them with us on our YouTube channel and on Facebook to be sure to get the most exposure. These short submissions will also be eligible for voting by our fans. you must complete a submission form for ads and promos Advertisements might include: a promo your Sims website or challenge a fashion ad a promo for your Sims machinima series an ad for a build or other content that you are sharing Or a Sims version of a real type of advertisement for a Sims3 object, cars, furnishings etc.

SIFF promotional ads.

Let your imagination run wild! And check out these excellent examples: watch the WOOHOOIUM commercial HERE watch the Rib-it Froggy Slide ad HERE

Film - Music Video - Series - Foreign Films - Other Machinima You MUST identify if your submission is a FILM, MUSIC VIDEO, SERIES or OTHER. In the past there has been some confusion about which category your submission falls into so please consider the following:

FILM - A unique story either taken from a real life film or story, or something you came up with yourself. It may be set to music, it may include voice acting, and it may be set to a single song. The key here is that the focus is on the story and the characters.

MUSIC VIDEO - Think about the music videos you see on television, they often tell a story, but are presented in a more abstract or artistic way, often showing the band playing. Check out the YouTube channel of the Sims3 band NOISE HERE to see a variety of styles of music video to inspire you. In a music video the focus is on the band and the song and if there is a storyline it will usually be an interpretation of the lyrics.

SERIES - We are now opening up to Sims Series machinima. If you are entering your series you have two choices: you can enter a first episode to a new series you are launching (a great way to use SIFF to help build up hype) OR you can submit your next episode of your series, but it must NOT have been previously released, this next episode will release on September 15th along with the rest of the films.

OTHER MACHINIMA - If you have another machinima creation that you want to showcase this is where it will be categorized. This is the category for public service announcements, art or abstract films, fashion videos, home tours, or anything else you can think of that isn't really a film, music video or series. Here are some examples: 5 Facts videos Tea: Instant JN's Mocumentary Occam's Razor Home Tour

FOREIGN FILMS - Films in other languages with English subtitles are welcome. Ask in our forums if you need help translating. We have a number of members of various nationalities who are willing to help.

Machinima Masters Machinima Masters is a special category for highly experienced machinima makers. All previously showcased Featured Machinima Makers or Machinima Masters that return to SIFF will be placed in this category. Criteria for selection is listed below, just so you are aware of what we are looking for when we invite people to participate in this category. Machinima Masters are those machinima makers that inspire us all to learn more and create even more amazing machinima and who wow us with their technical skills.

What makes a Machinima Master?

The staff have debated this behind the scenes for quite some time, and while we don't agree 100% on every point, these are some of the things we have decided make a Master: 

Previous machinimas that make us say "wow" and are a true inspiration to us.

 Excellence in editing skills including film edting, but also music and sound editing, and voice editing if used. 

Interesting and unique camera work.



Good lighting techniques on ingame filming.



Attention to detail in set design and wardrobe.



Interesting and unique story lines.

 While special effects are not a necessity, if they are used they are used with top notch skill.

Separating some machinima makers into this category was started mainly for one reason, and that is to help newcomers to SIFF and newbie or less experienced film makers feel less intimidated and more welcome. We want to be sure that you feel comfortable and that you don’t feel that your machinima skills are “not as good as him” or “I can’t compete with her!” SIFF is not about competing or winning, it is about being proud of your creativity, sharing and showcasing talent.

It’s Time for

Awards Structure The prestigious SIFF Golden Clapboard Award Special Recognition Badges Just for Fun Awards - SIFF Golden Star These awards will be chosen by a select panel of judges. Judges who are also participants will not judge any category that they have submitted to.

Best of the Masters - selected by the SIFF staff to recognize outstanding machinima achievement.

Best NEW Director - selected from those identified as new directors and who is clearly a beginner with potentia.

Best Overall WOW pick - one machinima will be selected for demonstrating excellence in machinima making.

Special Recognition Badges for various accomplishments may include - Voice Acting, Editing, Special Effects, Set Design, Costume and more and will be deterimined by the SIFF staff as we identify outstanding skills that deserve to be recognized, whether you are a beginner or an experienced machinima maker.

Viewer's Choice A chance for the fans to vote for their faves.       

Best Advertisement or SIFF Promo.

Best Film Trailer.

1st, 2nd and 3rd place for Masters (if the number of submissions allows).

1st, 2nd, and 3rd place in the music video category.

1st, 2nd and 3rd place in the films category.

1st, 2nd and 3rd place in series category.

1st, 2nd and 3rd place in OTHER category.

NOTE ON VIEWER'S CHOICE AWARDS - the number of awards up for voting will depend on the number of submissions and may change at the time of poll creation. We will identify these changes at that time if needed.

The Golden Star awards will be chosen by the panel of judges to award outstanding creative contributions that help make SIFF a huge success and may include:  Best Red Carpet Photographer.  Red Carpet Fashion Sense.  Best Film Promotion Poster.  Best Paparazzi reporting (using story and photographs).  Best SIFF Personality.

Staff Submissions Our SIFF staff also enjoy participating in the challenges, but we also feel that it would be unfair to compete in the challenges that we ourselves are running. At the same time, many of the SIFF fans have demanded the chance to vote for staff submissions so we have a dilemna.

Minraed, as the executive director, will consider staff submissions based on the category of the submission and the machinima experience level of the staff submission so that it is placed as fairly as possible for the fans to vote. Since the votes are based on open polls we feel that this is a fair way for the staff to contribute. I hope you will agree.

Tips for Newbies To use cheats hit Ctrl+C and a bar will show up on the top of your game screen where you can type this Always use the cheat "HideHeadlineEffects on" this takes away the thought bubbles and plumbobs from over your sims heads.

Don't film with your walls down, it doesn't look realistic to see homes with no walls.

Learn to use camera controls properly - there is a good tutorial HERE. If you have the Generations EP then test out the cheat "MovieMakerCheatsEnabled on" - read information about this cheat HERE.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED - Watch the How to Make Machinima Series by Nittens HERE

http://www.cafepress.com/simatographystuff