Creativity Annual Awards

What kind of competition is Creativity Annual Awards?

Unlike newer competitions, Creativity Annual Awards has the tradition, respect and international reach that makes winning our award meaningful. The Creativity Awards Annual was one of the first books to showcase leading-edge design not just from New York, but from across America and all points of the globe. Over the years, the book has grown in size, scope and style. The Creativity Annual Awards is judged by a panel of advertising and design professionals who volunteer their time and knowledge without personal agenda or bias. To provide fresh perspectives, new judges are selected from year to year.

You may be asking yourself, "What kind of competition is Creativity Annual Awards?" Well, Creativity Annual Awards is one of the longest running international advertising and graphic design competitions. We are a print design competition, a web design competition, and an advertising design competition. You will find we have categories in Print, Publications, New Media, TV, Radio and more. Our categories run the gamut from Annual Reports to Sales Films, from Magazine Photography to Consumer Websites, from Logos and Trademarks to Ambient Media. And each year the judges choose the best designs, advertisements, websites, and commercials from all over the world to be reproduced in the 400-page Creativity Awards Annual.

Who enters the Creativity Annual Awards?
Ad agencies, publishers, graphic designers, photographers, freelance designers, illustrators, producers, directors, web designers and corporate art departments may submit original design or art pieces created between June 1, 2007 and May 31, 2008 (void where prohibited). We receive entries from firms of all sizes and specialties, in the United States and nearly everywhere else!

Last year's competition brought in entries from 29 different countries and 38 states of the US. From MTV and Publicis Dialog to independent designers and photographers, we receive entries from a diverse group with everyone winning their fair share of trophies. Click here to view the Winners list.

Student work must have been created during the 2007-2008 school year. Instructors and professors may submit work on behalf of a student. Student work will be evaluated seperately from professional work.

Anyone involved with the creation of the advertisement or design work may submit the entry.
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Who judges the Creativity Annual Awards?
A panel of advertising and graphic design professionals who meet deadlines and budgets on a daily basis judges the Creativity Annual Awards in the middle of August They understand your challenges and the lengths to which you go to overcome them.
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How are the winners chosen?
All entrant information is removed to prevent bias. The scores are computer tabulated to prevent error, and Creativity Annual Awards will contact winners within 60 days after judging concludes. Our most prestigious honor, the Platinum Award, is reserved for the Best of Category--except in the case of a tie, only one trophy will be awarded per category.
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How can I save money on entering the competition?
You can save money by entering online. Click here to enter the Creativity Annual Awards. The upload system allows for you to upload six files of 10MB each.

You can save money when you ship your entries by not having to mount them. Please send the entry or entries in a sturdy box or pack. Sending actual samples of your work is the best way for the judges to fairly evaluate the quality and workmanship of your entry. However, you can save your postage and your samples by uploading the digital images or audio/video files. All physical entries must be accompanied by a hi-res digital file.
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What method should I use to submit my entry?
Entering the Creativity 38 competition is easy. Entrants can submit entries online through a secure account that can be accessed anywhere in the world, anytime.

The online system will allow you to input data and upload digital files, create entry forms, entry labels, and an invoice, should you choose to ship your entries. You can check on the status of your account anytime until the Call for Entries expires in August.
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How do I use the online system?
The first step is to set up a user account using your e-mail--click this link to enter the Creativity Annual Awards. After entering your contact information, you can log in anytime using your e-mail address and password. There are five steps in the Main Menu:
Step 1: Complete/Update Contact Info
Step 2: Add an Entry
Step 3: Edit Entries/Print Entry Forms
Step 4: Print Entry Labels
Step 5: Pay Invoice/Print Master Form

Check out the complete walk-through of the online competition system.
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How do I pay the entry fees?
Credit card payments are accepted through our online system or through the mail. Checks may be mailed with an entry if accompanied by the Master Form. Please make checks payable to Creativity Annual Awards.

International advertisers and designers can pay using wire-transfer. There is a charge of $20 to cover bank fees. Wire transfer information is as follows:
Account #: 0082233747
Account Name: Four Color Imports, Ltd.
Address: 38 Fountain Square Plaza Cincinnati, OH 45263
ABA Routing #: 042000314
Swift Code: FTBCUS3C
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What if I don't want to enter or register online?
You may ship your entries using the manual entry form. Please include a high-resolution digital RGB, 350dpi image for reproduction in the Creativity Awards Annual.
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What kinds of digital files are acceptable?
All entries must be submitted along with a high-resolution (350 dpi) .PDF, .TIF, .JPEG or .EPS file with all fonts embedded. This will ensure a quality reproduction in the 400-page, full color Creativity Awards Annual.

Please note that for judging purposes, uploaded entries will be output in color at 8 " x 11" size. Feel free to submit the sample copy for judging. Do not ship an entry in digital format only; include a tearsheet or proof.

We accept digital files in all standard graphic formats, such as .eps, .tif and .jpg files. A PDF document is less likely to corrupt during processing, and since it is considerably smaller than the original native file, you will find the upload time to be shorter. Do not send raw files.

For video, television and motion graphic entries, we accept .wav and mp3 files as well as DVD NTSC (viewable on standard DVD players in North America). Each single entry must be submitted on an individual cassette/disc. Campaigns should be edited together in one file with three seconds of black between each campaign piece. Uploaded campaigns may be in separate files if over 10MB. Beta format is not accepted. Computer-based formats such as Quicktime and Flash should have a maximum screen size of 1024 (h) x 768 (v). Radio commercials should be submitted as .wav or .aiff files on CD-ROM. Campaigns should be submitted as one file with at least three seconds of silence between each spot. We can accept many of the standard formats, including all those created by QuickTime, Windows Media, Real Audio, and Macromedia. File extensions include: .mov, .wav, .wmv, .wma, .avi, .asf, .mid, .aif, .mpg, .mp2, .mp3, .mpe, .m4A, .swf.
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What should I do with an entry in a language other than English?
Entries in a language other than English must be accompanied by a translation. The translation must not be a synopsis, but a direct translation of the text of an advertisement, brochure, poster, etc. For non-English video entries, please dub or provide subtitles. For non-English audio entries, please provide either a transcript in the form of a digital file or a video file format that provides subtitles while the audio is playing.
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How do I submit a campaign?
Each item within a campaign is not assigned an individual entry ID. You may submit up to six different pieces for each campaign entry. The entry labels generated from our online competition system will clearly show each piece as belonging to a campaign entry.
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How do I choose the best category for an entry?
Peruse the entire category list before selecting the proper category. While Collateral Materials might encompass your entry, for example, you may find a more specific category later in the list. Select the category that you feel best describes the work. If you have a campaign that spans print, new media and television, you can submit it to the Cross-Platform Campaign category in the Alternative Media division.

The administrator will reassign entries to a different category if appropriate.
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May I submit the same entry in different categories?
Yes, you may enter the same advertisement, brochure, self-promotion piece, etc. in more than one category; however, each entry that you enter into a different category will assess an additional entry fee. Whether the entry is submitted online or shipped, it will require duplicate uploaded digital files or a duplicate copy of the shipped entry.
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Are there categories that require a shipped sample?
No category requires you to ship a copy of your entry--however, it is wise to ship a sample because it is the best way for the judges to fairly evaluate the quality and workmanship of your entry. We do require that you still upload a high-resolution digital image for reproduction in the Creativity Awards Annual.
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Creativity Annual Awards
c/o Creativity 38 Competition
2410 Frankfort Avenue
Louisville, KY 40206

Please remember to submit each entry using our online system. This will allow you to print entry forms and labels prior to shipping.
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Can I edit or change my credit information?
While the Call for Entries is open from June through August, you can review and edit all credit information for each entry. If you did not register online, we will send you a username and password for access to your entries.

After the Call for Entries deadline all credit information--creative firm, client, and creative team--will be locked. This information will be printed in next year's Creativity Awards Annual exactly as entered in the online system. If mistakes are brought to our attention, we will deal with them on a case-by-case basis, and a charge for changes may apply.
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Will I see a proof before the book is printed?
Due to the large volume of entries received, winners will not be able to proof their winning entries prior to printing the Creativity Awards Annual. You can view all entry information using your secure, online account until the Call for Entries deadline.
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How are entries at desktop resolution printed in the book?
We recognize that many of our entries in the new media categories never reach print resolution. We capture each entry as large as we can and then reduce it for the book. In nearly every case this allows the entry to print well. If you have a screen capture of your entry at an improved resolution, please provide Creativity Annual Awards with this image.
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Watch your mail & e-mail for the Creativity 38 Call for Entries -
competition opens June 1, 2008.

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