Rules

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  1. The competition is open to all film production companies, media consultancies photographers, design studios, local and multinational advertising agencies operating in Europe and the EMEA region (Europe, Middle East & Africa). Only advertising and other forms of communication used, published or broadcast since July 1st, 2007 are eligible as entries.
• 2. The official deadline for receipt of entries is Tuesday, September 30th, 2008.
• 3. The purpose of the competition is to reward outstanding creativity. Entries will be judged on the originality of the creative ideas and on the quality of their execution. In the case of categories 31 (Advertising Photography) and 32 (Illustration & Graphics), only art direction and executional quality will be taken into account.
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  4. Category winners (gold) and finalists (bronze and silver) will be determined by a numerical scoring system. Winners will receive trophies and certificates; silver and bronze finalists will receive certificates only. Both film and print winners will be named in categories 1 through 23. For the purpose of identifying winners and finalists a single award and/or certificate will be attributed to individual entries that form part of the same campaign.
• 5. Four Epica d’Or (grand prix) will be chosen from the highest-scoring film, press, outdoor and interactive entries in each category, with the exception of category 10 (Public Interest). They will be attributed by majority vote of the entire jury after a process of progressive elimination.
• 6. In the designation of category winners, judges will abstain from voting on entries from their own country. Their scores will be equal to the average of the other judges’ scores. All jury members may vote for the four Epica d’Or.
• 7. In the designation of category winners, judges will abstain from voting on entries from their own country. Their scores will be equal to the average of the other judges’ scores. All jury members may vote for the four Epica d’Or.
• 8. The decision of the judges is final and awards may be withheld at the discretion of the jury or if no entry in a category achieves a score that qualifies it as a winner.
• 9. Entries should be submitted online. Print entries must be provided as high resolution jpegs (300dpi). Film entries can be uploaded (Mpeg2), sent in via Beam.tv or on individual Beta SP cassettes (see rule 15). Radio entries must be uploaded in MP3 format and a script, in English, must also be provided.
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  10. Entrants may submit physical samples of Direct Marketing, Media Innovation and Technique entries in addition to the images uploaded online (categories 25-34). Samples must be sent to the Epica office in France with the appropriate entry numbers attached and will not be returned.
• 11. Individual film entries may not exceed 180 seconds. Video clips illustrating Direct Marketing, Media Innovation and Promotional entries (categories 25-29) will not be accepted unless preceded by an introductory presentation board that describes the operation. These clips must be uploaded as film entries (Mpeg2) and may not exceed 180 seconds. Explanatory video clips will not be accepted in other categories.
• 12. All Interactive and Integrated Campaign entries (categories 35-40) will be judged online and must include a current URL address that the jury may visit.
• 13. The organisers reserve the right to change the categories selected by entrants if they consider that the category chosen is incorrect or to ensure that all entries on a common theme are judged together.
• 14. Each company taking part in the awards will pay a basic registration fee of €200.
• 15. The entry fee for each film, print or radio submission is €210; this applies to each execution whether it is judged individually or as part of a campaign. The entry fee for multi-media Integrated Campaigns (category 40) is €500. There is an additional digital encoding fee of €20 for each film entered on Beta SP.
  
• 16. Entry fees must be paid by cheque or bank transfer (see Payment Instructions below). Cheques should be drawn on a bank in France and transfers should include all bank charges.
• 17. By uploading and submitting entries to the competition online, entrants undertake to pay the corresponding registration and entry fees. All entries submitted to the competition will be judged, and the payment of fees will be due, unless the entries are withdrawn, in writing, before October 31st, 2008.
• 18. Professional photographers may enter up to 3 ads in the Advertising Photography category free of charge (category 31 only). Their fee for each additional entry in this category is €100. Photographers must contact Epica directly before taking advantage of these conditions (closing date: October 31st, 2008).
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  19. The organisers will not be held responsible for lost material or for any import or delivery charges.
• 20. All entrants authorise the organisers and other third-party companies to copy, scan, digitalise and otherwise duplicate their entries in whatever form and to use such material for exhibitions, screenings, publications, broadcasts, DVDs and on the Internet in order to promote the Epica awards and to propagate the results of the competition. Under no circumstances shall the organisers, or their authorised representatives, be held responsible for the payment of royalties or other charges in connection with the aforementioned activities. Each entrant
  agrees to hold the organisers, and/or their authorised representatives, harmless against any claims concerning the material in this respect.