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We’ve been working hard with new clients, seen some great success with past contests and are currently running a couple of hot contests.  Here’s the 411:

Current contests:

1.  The YOUR PBS Video Contest

This video contest is currently closed for submissions, but is an open-range for voting.  After a bit of a slow start, we’re thrilled with number of video submissions, comments and votes the PBS Video contest has seen.  In total, there have been a total of 60 video entries, 240 comments, and 5977 votes to date. WOW.  The grand prize announcement is set for next week: One lucky winner will be heading to Austin for a behind-the-scenes view of insider-only previews of upcoming PBS programs. If thats not amazing enough, there is also a chance that the winning video will be airing on PBS.  Be sure to check out the current video leaders: “Jeramiah Mayhew – My PBS” and “Online To Explore.” Tell your friends and vote for your faves.

MINImemes:
A minimeme brings memelabs to the masses with turnkey-based competitions designed and administered by the company.

2. Victory Poker
Think you’re the next Victory Poker Pro?  The Grand Prize for this contest includes a fully furnished condo on the Las Vagas strip, $100K of tournament buy-in cash, a new car, new watch, and more. Maybe it’s beginners luck, but this recently launched minimeme contest already has 10 video entries and 215 votes. Submit your own video to win today!

3. Deb Yearbook Video Contest!
Whether you rock the street, the beat, or plan to rock this world, Deb Shops (www.debshops.com) want to see it!  For this video contest, show your best stuff in any or all of three categories pulled straight from your yearbook – Most Talented, Best Dressed, and Most Likely to Save the Earth! The prize for the “Most Talented” is a trip to NYC to see a Broadway show with Broadway Producer and Actor Ron Sharpe (includes airfare, one night hotel, 2 Broadway tickets, and $500 spending money).  The “Best Dressed” winner will win a wardrobe for every season!  Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter ($500 for each season), and a personal style consultation with Jay McCarroll.  If you win Most Likely to Save the Earth you’ll receive $1,500 to use in support of your own idea or project.  On now until June 28, 2010.

Closed:

Get Schooled

Ever wanted to ring the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange?!  In this essay contest, one lucky winner did just that, on April 28 in celebration of Financial Literacy Week.  Submitters nominated a student or teacher who they believed had gone above and beyond in math education.  The contest was  hosted by Viacom and by The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Coming soon:

Memelabs & Facebook, together at last!

Facebook, you’ve heard of it right? The behemoth of a social networking site continues to grow and grow – and so does memelabs! Just imagine: running an entire video contest in Facebook!  Your users are already there, the ability to share with your current contacts is easy and advanced search results help target specific demographics.  The amazing memelabs dev team is working hard to make the marriage of memelabs and Facebook a successful one – allowing people to enter the contest through Facebook and easily sharing contending videos with their friends on their own Facebook pages. If you would like more information on this hot new feature, please contact us.

They expect the unexpected. One of the key elements in making people laugh is surprise, and this is especially true in Web videos. When people click play on your funny video, they are expecting you to shock them in some way. If you don’t, they’re going to be disappointed.

They expect you to get to the joke quickly. When people watch a funny video, they want to laugh and want to laugh quickly. They don’t want to watch 30 seconds of credits roll by, and they don’t want to watch four minutes of buildup to a single punchline. In some ways, Web comedy videos are like standup comedy: If you can grab the viewer with a quick laugh in the first 10 seconds, the chances are they’ll stick around to watch the rest of your act.

They expect it to deliver on the promise of its title.Video titles not only entice people to watch your video, but they also frame the viewer’s expectations. If you title a video “Funniest Karaoke Performance Ever,” you’d better be sure that the video you’re posting can live up to that hype. Otherwise, you’re just asking for people to trash your video because it didn’t live up to the bar you set yourself. The expectations of a video titled “Funny Karaoke Performance” will be much lower — and therefore the viewer’s more likely to enjoy it in that context.

They expect it to make a point. With the exception of “viral” videos where somebody happened to shoot some footage of a guy falling off a skateboard or a drunk girl wiping out on a stripper pole, most funny videos that work are making some larger observation about the world. It’s become increasingly difficult for random sketch videos to gain much traction online, at least partly because audiences expect comedy creators to have something to say in their videos.

If you’re setting out to make a funny video, you should think about who or what target you’re going after: politicians, Justin Bieber fans, Myspace, “the man,” whatever. It doesn’t really matter what the target is, but people will be more likely to rally behind your video (and its humor) if they feel  it’s about something other than just making them laugh.
They expect to share it with their friends. There’s a reason that funny videos tend to go “viral” more than any other genre of video. It’s because laughing is a naturally communal experience; as soon as people see something funny, their instinct is to share it with their friends. When somebody presses play on a comedy video, they want to love it enough to send it to all their friends and share the laughs. It’s up to you to give them something worth sharing.

by Josh Spector – Video Insider

Memelabs contests of past and present have produced a wide range of “WTF” and “LOL” videos.  We have a soft spot for Josh’s last comment – if you have something or see something that is funny – share it. Laughter is infectious, that’s why they’re called viral videos. So, if you’ve submitted a video to a memelabs contest or are thinking about it, make sure to spread the sickness where ever you can.

Enter the contest today by nominating a student or teacher that has excelled in the field of math education.  This “excellence” can come in any form – either through achievement, dedication, innovation/creativity, or by setting an inspirational example to others.  Are you the student or teacher Get Schooled is looking for? Or do you know someone that fits the bill?

The winners of the Ring the Bell Contest will receive a number of awesome prizes including a trip to New York City for a once in a lifetime chance to ring the NYSE bell.

From the Get Schooled website:

At the beginning of this year President Obama pledged to improve American students’ performance in math and science. “Make no mistake: Our future is on the line,” he said. “The nation that out-educates us today is going to out-compete us tomorrow.” Each day the importance of educating the American People only grows. With a struggling economy and jobs increasingly moving overseas–improving our children’s math and science education is crucial to maintaining our competitive role in the world economy.

In recognition of the vital importance of math education to the future of our country’s workforce, Get Schooled and the New York Stock Exchange have teamed up to reward a student and teacher that are outstanding in the realm of math education.  On April 28^th as part of Financial Literacy Month, one amazing math teacher and one exceptional math student will get the chance to ring the bell to open trading on the New York Stock Exchange. They will be accompanied by Viacom CEO Philippe Dauman and a Get Schooled Celebrity Ambassador.

Visit the contest page now, sign up & get nominating.

PBS engaged memelabs to challenge filmmakers across the United States to be creative, showcase their talent and explain in 30 seconds what surprised them the most about discovering PBS online?

Check out the PBS website for inspiration and the information below to get started!

What Do I Win?

The Grand Prize winner will win a trip to Austin, TX to see insider-only previews of upcoming PBS programs and hear behind-the-scenes plans from PBS executives.

They’ll also receive a limited edition PBS-Designed flip camera and a PBS Gift Package.

The trip to Austin includes:

– 1 day attendance at the PBS annual meeting;

– coffee with a PBS programming executive;

– a tour of PBS station KLRU and the Austin City Limits set;

– round-trip airfare (within the United States);

– transportation to and from the airport to a hotel;

– two (2) nights in a hotel; and

– meals and pocket money to cover incidentals.

(Estimated prize value $3,000.00)

Top 10 Tips for Making Your Video

1. Your video must show something surprising about PBS on the web.

2. Be innovative, clever, engaging or cheeky.

3. Your video must be 30 seconds in length, including a 5-second PBS video logo resolve. Click the link to view the video resolve, or right click to save the file to your computer: (Right click to download the PBS video logo)

4. Your video must be under 32MB in size.

5. Video must be received by 11:59:59 p.m. EST April 18th. Register, login and click UPLOAD MEDIA from the menu bar to submit your video.

6. You can submit up to three entries.

7. You must live in the United States to be eligible.

8. You must be at least 18 to participate.

9. Check out the HOME short video for ideas and guidance before you get started.

10. Have Fun!

Whether you attended SXSW this year and LOVED IT, or are ridiculously jealous of those who did go – now’s your chance to giddy up.

No other media company does more to provide an independent voice in today’s media marketplace, and now, PBS is hosting a video contest to give YOU a voice. With the “YOUR PBS Video Contest,” PBS wants to know what has been the most surprising thing you’ve found at PBS.org? Was it the breadth of web content on PBS.org or a conversation you struck up through PBS’s Twitter or Facebook areas? Have you been floored by what you can do and discover with PBS on iTunes or elsewhere on the Web?  Be clever, engaging and don’t shy away from being innovative or cheeky!

What are participants shooting for? The Grand Prize winner will receive a trip to Austin, TX to see insider-only previews of upcoming PBS programs and hear behind-the-scenes plans from PBS executives, among other exciting treats, and possibly have his or her video air on PBS! Five contest runners-up will receive a limited edition PBS-designed Flip camera and PBS Gift Package, while one participant will receive the People’s Choice award: a PBS prize pack valued at an estimated $750. Contest open to US residents only.

Check out the PBS video contest and watch the introductory video to see how PBS wants you to learn more, share more, and be more.

If there’s one time of year when it’s acceptable to sport a flavour-saver, it’s Movember. This year, memelabs is proud to announce its partnership with the organizing body behind Movember, in a joint effort to raise funds for men’s health issues by launching a Mo inspired video contest.

Just what is Movember? It’s an annual, month-long event centered around the growing of moustaches, to raise awareness and funds for male health concerns such as prostate and testicular cancers. Started by a group of young men in Australia in 1999, Movember has quickly snowballed into a worldwide moustache phenomenon.

We want to see your mo-inspired videos. Here are some ideas to get those cameras rolling:

Every moustache makes a difference, so grow a mo and save a bro :{)

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This year, Chip’s Not Dead Yet is offering Vancouverites the chance to become part of the city’s history, by submitting an idea for your own theme wave. We are proud to be hosting the official event video contest!

Film and submit your idea, and you could win $1000, as well as a very satisfying 5 minutes of fame on event day–and help the BC Children’s Hospital at the same time.

As if this weren’t enough, the first 50 entrants to the contest will also receive a complimentary lululemon yoga mat, running hat, and foldin’ key cuff! Details on the site.

Are you still reading this? What are you waiting for? Get going!

The contest ran for two months and garnered over 10,000 submissions.

Congratulations to Evelyn from Sharon, MA. With a whopping 28,880 votes, she won $100,000 to make her Someday Stories dreams come true. Her daughter’s magazine now has the funding to continue inspiring young women everywhere. Second place went to Danny from Provo, Utah, who earned 24,071 votes.

As part of the contest, voters were prompted to vote for one of the three aforementioned charities before casting their ballot for their favourite Someday Story. It was a close race, but in the end Habitat for Humanity won the $250,000 prize with 25,542 votes. Second place winner Junior Achievement will receive a donation of $150,000, and Boys and Girls Clubs of America will receive a $50,000 donation. All the prize money was donated by Wells Fargo.

Memelabs would like to give a big thanks to everyone who participated in this campaign. It’s been a very satisfying project for us. We adore doing work which benefits non-profits and look forward to doing more of the same in the future.

Wells Fargo will hosting the Grand Prize event at the Wells Fargo History Museum in San Francisco. Details after the jump.

The Heart of Houston video contest has been launched to celebrate and elevate local artists asking the participants to submit one minute videos showcasing a favorite local artist in the category of theater, music, dance, visual arts, crafts or creative writing allowing for diverse and rich content. Following a huge launch party hosted at the creative hub in downtown Houston, many ongoing events will showcase local events giving participants and artists first-hand access to record their videos and meet the hottest artists in their city over the 3-month contest entry period.

The Houston Arts Alliance is a nonprofit charitable organization that seeks to advance the arts industry in Greater Houston. As a result they contribute to enhancing the region’s quality of life, economic competitiveness and attractiveness with a mission to nurture, fund and promote participation in the arts in Houston and Harris County. Active in Ike recovery, they have also provided resource information for artists and organizations on their blog to increase communication and leverage support which you can learn more about here.