Let's talk contests.
- Jan, July: Voting Cycle Set #1 (Max Ride, Uglies, M14)
- March, Aug: Voting Cycle Set #2 (GONE, TBA, TBA)
- May, Nov: Voting Cycle Set #3 (TID, TBA, TBA)
- April, Aug: Original Web Series Content
- Feb, June, Oct, Dec: Scene Contest
Here's what each contest will entail.
ORIGINAL WEB SERIES PITCH CONTEST
The Original Web Series Pitch Contest will take place in April and August. To participate, users must first critique fifteen BTFA audition videos during the month the contest takes place*. (You will need to verify this when submitting your entry; a simple "I critiqued fifteen videos prior to sending you my submission" would be fine.)
Users will write and submit a 250-word pitch for an original web series. The pitch with the highest number of votes will win the following:
- A featured video on our main Youtube channel that will include your pitch, an interview, and any information you wish to include about casting and deadlines;
- Your own group on User Based Casting to aid in the development of your web series;
- Shout-outs on our social media accounts for casting calls and whenever a new episode is available;
- Discount code for UBC merch;
- A custom logo and Youtube intro provided and chosen by me. (Not sure if this is really a reward or not—ha!)
By winning, you will have full access to all of our actors on UBC. Using your group, you can hold auditions, share ideas, keep track of deadlines, and ultimately begin putting out regular episodes. You can have as many or as few episodes as you would like; either way, User Based Casting will feature interviews with snippets from each episode on our Youtube Channel for a full six months after your first episode debuts. (Note that it will be your responsibility to remind your cast about filming and sending me their interview responses.)
Anyone can vote in this contest. Unlike our Voting Cycles, this will be based entirely on popularity. Ask your friends and family to vote often!
BTFA SCENE COLLABORATION CONTEST
BTFA scene contests will take place in February, June, October, and December. The premise is simple: collaborate on a scene from one of our featured BTFAs with at least one other UBC member. Voting will consist of two rounds:
- Round #1: Submissions are categorized by adaptation (i.e. Maximum Ride, Uglies, etc). Voters go on to determine the Finalist for each category.
- Round #2: Finalists from each category compete with one another. The submission with the most votes is declared the winner.
The overall winner will receive the following:
- A video on our main Youtube channel that will include snippets of your winning submission, an interview with you and your cast-mates, and a link to view the full submission on your channel;
- Your video featured on our main page;
- Special still-frame edits for use on Tumblr and Pinterest;
- Discount code for UBC merch;
- Shout-outs on our social media accounts.
Runners up will be briefly featured in our Finalist Results video (wherein I'll reveal the nine entries that are moving on to the second round). As with the collaboration contest, this will be a popularity contest—ask friends and family to vote often.
Well, there you have it! That's the plan. If you have any objections or suggestions, let me know.
*So back in, oh, '11 or '12, we had an interesting "problem" emerge: web series.
As far as site activity went, things were actually at an all-time high. I won't deny that. There were people online at all hours posting audition videos for each other's web series, writing scripts and filming scenes in their free time. It's that level of dedication that became the problem, though: it was at the expense of everything else. UBC had slowly come to revolve around original web series instead of Voting Cycles—and that sure as hell wasn't what I signed up for. To keep the situation from getting any worse, I banned original web series from User Based Casting and haven't looked back since...until now.
Don't get me wrong: I've always thought web series are awesome, and I will be happy to start allowing them again as long as we don't lose sight of UBC's goal. Ok? Ok.
