Flashforward Conference and Film Festival...Inspiration and Creativity with Adobe Flash

Need inspiration? Need samples of creativity? Need to show your students some of the AMAZING examples of Adobe Flash that is available on the Web?

Then you need to go to the FlashForward 2007 website.

Boston will host Flashforward 2007 September 19-21, 2007 . 3 days of "intensive education, inspiration, community, and networking. Live, breathe, eat, and sleep Flash®, Flex, ActionScript and Apollo. Learn how Flash integrates with other Adobe® applications to create Flash video, rich Internet applications in and out of the browser, animation, audio, games, data visualization, database integration, mashups, and much more." Flashforward is produced by lynda.com and sponsored by Adobe Systems.

I attended this conference in San Francisco in 2005 and it was absolutely amazing! The quality of presenters and conference was top notch!

The FlashForward Film Festival features 16 categories that Flash designers can compete in:

1. Art / 2. Cartoon / 3. Commerce / 4. Experience / 5. Game / 6. Instructional / 7. Motion Graphics / 8. Narrative / 9. Navigation / 10. Online Application / 11. Original Sound / 12. Technical Merit / 13. 3D / 14. Typography / 15. Video / 16. People's Choice Award (people were able to log onto the website and vote for their favourite from the above categories)

View the categories and the top 4 Flash websites for each category that are up for awards. You can also see past winners in the archive website.

Creative Competitions - 2007 and 2008

I have been involved in competitions and festivals both personally and professionally since I was a young student. The journey that lead to the final moment of the competition was always the part that had the biggest impact on me....the part of the process that I always remembered....even years later. This I found to be true of my students as well. Whether it was sports or digital competitions the journey for my students was always the huge "learning moment."

Below are a couple of competitions to look at competing in. There are many available for students of all ages.......just get involved you won't regret it :)

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Competition 1 - SIGGRAPH

The SpaceTime competition is an international juried exhibition for students currently enrolled in school who are working in computer graphics and digital arts. The exhibition captures the state of creative computer-based student work and acts as an annual slice of the computer graphics continuum. Primary, secondary, and college or university students are encouraged to apply and the submissions will be handled separately.

Space Time flyer [pdf]

The exhibition will encompass three general areas:

• print
• linear animation
• interactive works

Submission Deadline: May 15th,2008

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Competition 2 - The 10th Annual Independent Games Festival

Student Showcase finalists receive:
$500 allowance per team for travel expensesOne Giga Pass or Two Classic Passes to the 2007 GDCMention in Game Developer magazineMention on Gamasutra.comA one-year limited use license to use a version of the official Independent Games Festival name and IGF Student Showcase finalist logo in promotional materials relating to their Game Entry.

IGF Student Showcase Winner ($500)
Best Student Game ($2,500)

Competition Winners receive:
Cash prizeAward PlaqueA one-year limited use license to use a version of the official Independent Games Festival name and IGF Winner logo in promotional materials relating to their game entry.

Submission Deadline: October 15th, 2007
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Competition 3 - Vicon Film Festival

"A celebration of of all things motion capture and animation"

The Vicon Film Festival is an international competition to find the most creative and entertaining use of a series of captured movements in a short animated movie...which will earn one filmmaker the grand prize of $10,000.

Submission Deadline: 31st January 2008
Public Voting Will Begin: March 1, 2008
Winners Announced: June, 2008

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Competition 4 - Marksman Design Awards 2007 - 2008

Design the Perfect Pen!

A new Marksman Design Award will start in September 2007. The challenge of the Marksman Design Award 2007-2008 is to ‘design the perfect pen’. Students around the world will be challenged to give the pen a new lease of life.

Competition Dates:
1 September 2007 - opening of online registration by students
31 January 2008 - closure of registration by students
7 March 2008 - deadline for submission of designs
March 2008 - judging of entries by expert international jury
May 2008 - announcement of winners

Imagination Cup - The World’s Premier Student Technology Competition

This seems to be a week for competitions........

"The Imagine Cup is one way Microsoft is encouraging young people to apply their imagination, their passion and their creativity to technology innovations that can make a difference in the world – today. Now in its fifth year, the Imagine Cup has grown to be a truly global competition focused on finding solutions to real world issues."

View the world 07 winners slideshow.

The theme for 2008 is the environment - "imagine a world where technology enables a sustainable environment."

Online registration will open on August 25, 2007 for the 2008 competition. Check out the forum area for the 9 categories. The Nine different categories:

• software design


• embedded development
  
• game development
  
• Project Hoshimi
  
• IT Challenge
  
• Algorithm
  
• Photography
  
• Short Film
  
• Interface Design

There is also a Innovation Accelerator Program that is in its 3rd year. Teams from the winning categories are selected for the Innovation Accelerator program . They receive technical support and business coaching to create the must-have technology and communications applications of the future. Over an intensive 2 week period, students further develop their designs and viable business plans with close guidance from some of the best minds at Microsoft and BT.

Requirements for competition:

• You are 16 years of age or older at the time of entry.
• You are actively enrolled as a student at an accredited educational institution that grants high-school or college/university (or equivalent) degrees any time between January 1st, 2008 and May 31st, 2008.

Get your students involved!

MacArthur Foundation Announces $2 Million Digital Media and Learning Competition

The MacArthur Foundation just announced a public competition that will award $2 million in funding to emerging leaders, communicators, and innovators shaping the field of digital media and learning. The competition is part of MacArthur's $50 million digital media and learning initiative that aims to help determine how digital technologies are changing the way young people learn, play, socialize, and participate in civic life.

Visit the competition website at http://www.dmlcompetition.net/ELIGIBILITY

Age: The primary applicant must be at least 21 years of age when the application is submitted; however, personnel working on the project may include students and others under the age of 21.

Residency: The primary applicant must be a U.S. citizen or resident with a work permit for the duration of the grant term. Other members of a team need not meet this requirement and can reside in other countries. Only English-language applications will be accepted this year. Current MacArthur Foundation grantees are welcome to apply.

The Competition encourages applications from individuals as well as nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, and corporations. Applicants are strongly encouraged to include a partnership with formal or informal learning or community-serving institutions, when relevant to the proposal.