On Saturday August 1st, 2015, the University of Western Australia (UWA) announced the opening of their 2015 Grand Art and MachinimUWA Challenges. Jointly entitled Pursue Impossible, between them, they feature an opening prize pool in excess of L$400,000.
The Challenges are sponsored by Tom Papas & SciFi Film Festival, Reign Congrejo & BOSL, LaPiscean Liberty & SL Artist, AviewTV, Pixel Bits, Virtlantis, Phillip Vought, Carolyn Steele & York University (Canada), Taralyn Gravois, UWA Marketing & Communications, as well as the UWA Virtual Worlds Project.
Pursue Impossible invites entrants to consider what their “impossible” might be. Is it the goal they have achieved or which they’ve seen achieved by their loved ones, friends, family or heroes achieved and which has sought to inspire them? What have they overcome which they once thought to be impossible? How do virtual environments empower people to visualise, create and push the boundaries of the possible? What are those things we deem to be impossible, but which we may still pursue and conquer as individuals or collectively? What are the impossibilities of the mind or heart or soul? Do we see the seemingly impossible and try to overcome it, or do we allow it to overpower us?
“Those who pursue what may at first seem impossible are the ones who keep the world turning,” UWA’s Jayjay Zifanwe, Manager of the School of Physics at the university states of the theme. “What if Ghandhi did not believe he could overcome the impossible for his country? What if Dr Fiona Wood did not believe in second skin for burn victims? What if Professor Barry Marshall did not believe in himself and use himself as a human guinea pig for the benefit of mankind?”
The theme is also a reflection of a new brand launched by UWA in May 2015, which featured Jayjay’s work in developing a UWA presence in Second Life, and which is promoted by the university in video which may help get entrants to the Challenge thinking as well.
Please refer to the official UWA blog post for the major rules and considerations in entering the Challenge, and to find out about the prizes in the art and machinima categories. However, in summary:
- Each category (art and machinima) currently has a prize pool of L$195,000, with a L$50,000 first place prize, and 11 prizes overall
- Entrants are free to submit entries to either the art or the machinima categories, or to both if they wish
- Art entry notes:
- Art entries are limited to one per entrant, should preferably by submitted with COPY permissions, and must not exceed 150 LI, and must be free from any copyright issues – if third-party content is used in an entry, permission must and been sought and granted from the creator for its inclusion in the Challenge
- Sounds, lighting, particle effects, etc., should be scripted to turn off when not in use. You may be asked to provide a revised entry if it is too intrusive or interferes with the display of other works
- Exceptionally large or complex builds will be placed on platforms above the gallery with a teleport (TP) device and poster on the gallery floor and a return TP on the platform. You may provide a TP object and/or poster (no more than 2 LI) or we can place one for you. TP objects should be set to copy/mod and given to FreeWee Ling to add scripts and to place
- Machinima entry notes:
- There is no limit to the number of machinima pieces an entrant might submit; and while not a “hard” rule, machinima entries should preferably be no more than 4 minutes and 30 seconds in length, although this is not a “hard” rule
- All submitted machinima must be made specifically for this challenge, and must include “For The University of Western Australia’s MachinimUWA VIII: Pursue Impossible” in the opening credits
- Machinima entries do not have to be filmed within the UWA’s Second Life regions, but there will be a special prize available for a film which starts at the Winthrop Clock Tower and Reflection Pond, the starting pond for the UWA’s own Pursue Impossible video (above)
- All entries to the challenge should be able to be interpreted by the casual viewer as representative of the theme.If the link is difficult to ascertain within a piece of art, it should be referenced in a note card accompanying the work; if it is difficult to ascertain in a video, it should be referenced in the notes accompanying the film on the web.
Art submissions should be made via the art entry receiver at the UWA Art Challenge Platform in Second Life, accompanied by a note card which includes your name, city, name of artwork and a description of artwork.
Machinima entries should be uploaded to any publicly accessible location, preferably YouTube or Vimeo, and the details of the entry (name, creator, location, etc.) supplied to Jayjay Zifanwe and LaPiscean Liberty in-world or by e-mailing the details to Jayjay (jayjayaustralia@hotmail.com).
The closing date for entries is midnight SLT, on October 31st, 2015. Winners will be announced in December 2015.
When entering, do please note that as with all the UWA’s public programmes, an entry may not be accepted if it is deemed to be excessively abusive, violent, offensive, bullying, harmful, insulting, or contains inappropriate material or excessively foul language. Depictions of explicit sexual activity, as well as material deemed offensive based on race, religion, gender, or sexual orientation are not appropriate for the Challenge, and may be rejected. Final decisions in these matters will be made by the UWA Cultural Precinct.
As with the UWA’s Grand Challenges, there will also be a set of audience participation prizes available. The pool for this currently stands at L$15,000 apiece for the two categories (art and machinima), and I’ll have more details on how you can enter this aspect of the challenge in due course.
Above: Tutsy Navarathna’s Grand prize winner in the Machinima category 2014 Grand Art and MachinimUWA Challenge
Over the last few years, it has been a delight and pleasure for me, through these pages, to help showcase the UWA’s work benefiting the arts in Second Life. Entries to their Challenges a special arts programmes have always been of an incredible standard, and I’ve enjoyed viewing them as a both a member of the public and more recently as a member of the judging panel. It is in this latter capacity that I’m looking forward to seeing the diversity of entries submitted in both categories this year, and would like to offer all those who do enter, the very best of luck!
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