Democracy Video Challenge Competition

August 25, 2008

DVC Logo

The U.S. Embassy invites you to create, film and submit a democracy-themed video for your chance to win a trip to the United States and screen your winning entry at a gala event sponsored by the Motion Picture Association of America.

The Democracy Video Challenge, a public-private partnership initiated by the U.S. Department of State, seeks to engage filmmakers from around the world in a dialogue on democracy.  By creating and submitting a three-minute video (completing the phrase “Democracy is…”) in an online competition, contestants can have their work recognized globally and compete for a U.S. travel prize.

Starting September 15, you may submit your video to the Challenge’s contest site on YouTube (www.youtube.com/democracyvideo).  Prior to the video being publicly available, a review committee will prescreen all submissions to ensure conformance with Challenge rules:

• No incitement to violence.
• No profanity
• No pornography
• No commercial promotion

There will be one winning video from the Middle East/North Africa. The winning entry from each of the six geographic categories will be screened at a gala event hosted by the Motion Picture Association of America in September 2009. Additionally, these videos will be posted on YouTube.

Timeline:

• January 31, 2009: Submit your video
• February 2009: U.S. Embassy sponsors premier screening and selects semifinalists
• March 1, 2009 - April 30, 2009: Regional/global selections and public voting
• May 1, 2009: Winners announced
• September 2009: Winners travel to the United States

For additional information, please contact:

Edith Bitar
Public Diplomacy
U.S. Embassy
Awkar
bitarev@state.gov

Challenge partners include:

Center for International Private Enterprise
Directors Guild of America
International Republican Institute
International Youth Foundation
Motion Picture Association of America
National Democratic Institute
New York University, Tisch School of the Arts
Red Sea Institute
Tisch Asia
University of Southern California