Summer 48 Rules | A 48 Hour Film Race

A. Eligibility
In the United States, the Team Leader must be a legal resident or legal visitor of the United States or the District of Columbia. A team is not eligible if either the Team Leader or any Team Member is one of the following: employee, city producer, contractor, director or officer of Summer 48.

B. To Enter
Registration happens in two parts: Purchasing a reservation to confirm your team’s spot in the competition and then completing the registration packet that is emailed following your reservation.

Part 1 - Reservation: Purchase a reservation at https://summer48registration.eventbrite.com to confirm your team’s spot in Summer 48. Reservations are based on a first-come first-served basis and space is limited. Registration fees are paid at the time of reservation via eventrbrite. Fees are $20 per team (before fees and tax) or $30 per team (before fees and taxes) for late registration. The dateline for purchasing a reservation is August 10th at 11:59p. Teams that do no purchase a reservation before the deadline can pay for late registration and complete the necessary paperwork at the kick-off event from 6p - 8p (CDT) at the Liberty Theater in Murphysboro, IL on August 11th, 2023.

Part 2 - Registration Packet: The registration packet will be emailed to each entrant’s Team Leader as a follow-up to purchasing a reservation or provided in-person at the kick-off event for team's registering late. You can also find the Registration Packet HERE. The registration packet contains a Team Leader's Agreement that must be signed by the Team Leader turned in to Summer 48 prior to the beginning of the film race at 8:00p on August 11th, 2023. The completed Team Leader's Agreement can be emailed to cinemaclique.club@gmail.com with subject line “[Team Name] Registration” or submitted in-person at the kick-off event at the Liberty Theater on August 11th, 2023.

C. Withdrawing from the Summer 48
If a team (Entrant) must withdraw, refunds will be paid on the following schedule:

Notify the Summer 48 team prior to the competition weekend, receive a full refund minus a $5 administrative fee, within 30 days of the request.
No refunds during or after the competition weekend.

D. To Withdraw

To withdraw and, if eligible, request a refund, the team leader must email cinemaclique.club@gmail.com with the subject line “Withdrawal Request”.

E. Team Size
Teams must have no more than five members. Projects can work with non team-members as cast or crew but awards are only given to official team members. Finished projects are owned equally by all official team members.

F. Participation of Minors
Some of the events (e.g., Kickoff, Drop Off) may be held in "21 years of age or older" locations. Every effort will be made to ensure that any under 21 teams will not be affected adversely. Entrants may wish to consider having at least one member of its team be 21 years or older.

All entrants must be eighteen years of age or older, unless a parent or legal guardian can sign the relevant paperwork for them.

G. Team Leader's Agreement
Entrants will be required to sign the Summer 48 Team Leader's Agreement. If under the legal age of majority in Illinois, your parent or legal guardian must sign it on your behalf.

As a condition of entry, participants must agree to the Team Leader's Agreement, which sets forth the rights of Entrant and Summer 48 with respect to the use of Entries by Summer 48. Entries that do not include all required information and/or do not adhere to the foregoing and following requirements will be considered void and will not be considered in this Summer 48.

H. Production Costs
All costs associated with the production of the Entry are solely the responsibility of the Entrant.

I. Kickoff Event
At least one member of each team must be be present at the kick off event between 6:00pm and 8:00pm (CDT) at the Liberty Theater in Murphysboro, Illinois on August 11th, 2023.

J. Basic Requirements of the Project
Entrants must adhere to the official Summer 48 Filmmaking Rules. In addition, at the Kickoff Event, Entrants will receive an assignment and be given exactly 48 hours to make a video (an "Entry"). See www.cinemaclique.org/summer48 for details.

K. Designated Team Leader

If any group of individuals elects to collaborate on an Entry, they are required to designate one (1) person as the agent of the group to enter the Summer 48, agree to these Official Rules, and sign the Team Leader's Agreement. Neither Summer 48 nor any of the Project Parties are liable for any disputes between collaborators arising out of or related to the Project.

L. Selection of Winners
Entries will be judged by a process in which a panel of judges will evaluate the eligible entries based on the following judging criteria:

50% Entertainment/Storytelling
30% Technical Achievement
20% Execution of the Assignment (theme, length, produced in 48 hours)

M. General Conditions

By participating, Entrants agree to these Official Rules which are final and binding in all respects.

N. Winners
Winners will be posted online at www.cinemaclique.org/summer48

O. Project Organizer
Illinois Cinemaclique Association
PO BOX 1603,
Murphysboro, IL 62966-5103

A. Times
Summer 48, a 48 Hour Film Race will occur between a Friday, August 11th at 8pm (CDT) and the following Sunday, August 13th at 8pm (CDT). This is the Official Time Period.

The participating group/team must complete its film/video work in time to submit it on Sunday by 8:00pm.

Only works that meet the deadline will be officially part of the competition. All films received on Sunday (on-time and late) will be screened.

B. Creative Process
All creativity must take place during the Official Time Period. Any creative work in advance of the competition weekend is prohibited. Creative work includes, but is not limited to:

Writing the script
Casting (of roles)
Rehearsing
Costume/Set Design
Shooting
Editing
Sound Design
Rendering
Outputting to USB drive or other media

C. Preparation
The only work to begin prior to the Official Time Period is:

Organizing Crew
Organizing Cast
Securing Equipment
Scouting/Securing Locations

D. Footage
The majority of frames in your film MUST contain footage shot or created in the Official Time Period. This is "core footage”.

"Supporting footage”, or footage shot or created BEFORE the Official Time Period (including stock footage that is part of a special effect) may be used as long as more than 50% of the frames in your film are core footage.

Animation, titles, and special effects can be considered core footage if it is created during the Official Time Period. (see Rule X relating to footage created using Artificial Intelligence.)

Still photos are permitted as core footage. The still photos do not need to be created during the Official Time Period. Note: Still photos created outside of the Official Time Period being used in a sequence to create the illusion of motion are not acceptable as core footage, but are acceptable as supporting footage.

You must have rights to any footage or photos used in your film. A Summer 48 Materials Release is required for all materials, photos, and/or footage not created in the Official Time Period.

E. Kickoff Event
Each participating team must have a representative at the official Kickoff Event of Summer 48 at the Liberty Theater in Murphysboro, Illinois on August 11th, 2023 between 6:00p and 8:00p (CDT).

Each group must submit a completed Team Leader's Agreement, signed by the team leader, online prior to the Kick Off Event or in-person at the Kick Off Event A team may not participate without submitting this agreement.

Each group will receive a random element that must be included as the subject of their film at the kick-off event.

F. Required Elements
Each participating group will be assigned required elements that must appear in its film, such as a genre, a character, a prop and/or a line of dialogue.

To qualify as an Official Entry, each group's film must contain all required elements within the official time limit and prior to the credits.

G. Rating and Banned Content
Projects must only contain content that would be considered rated R, PG-13, PG, or G by the Motion Picture Association of America. Projects containing content featuring real or non-simulated violence will be disqualified. Projects containing content featuring nudity will be disqualified. Projects containing content that depicts graphic sexual assault or rape will be disqualified. Projects containing racist slurs, homophobic slurs, or hate speech will be disqualified.

H. Volunteers
All cast and crew must be volunteers.

I. Animal Safety
Animal safety, like cast and crew safety, is an important part of Summer 48. Films that result in the death or mutilation of an animal may be disqualified.

J. Cameras
Any type of video or film camera may be used. There is no limit to the number of cameras.

K. Music Rights
Participating groups are encouraged to work with a composer and/or musicians to write and record music for the films. It is permissible for a participating group to use pre-recorded music; however, the participating group must have the rights to any music used in its film and must provide releases or licenses for all music used. As with music, pre-recorded sound effects are allowed, but you must have rights to use them.

Note: Song parodies (i.e., use of identifiable pre-existing compositions with new or altered lyrics or music) may not be included in the film without a signed release from the composition's rights holder. This rule applies without regard to whether the song parody arguably constitutes fair use under US or international copyright law.

L. Total Running Time
The finished film must be a minimum of 2 minutes in duration, and a maximum of 7 minutes in duration—not including end credits. In other words, the official running time begins after the required Summer 48 slates and ends prior to the end credits. The required slates and the end credits do not count towards the minimum time of 2 minutes. The film story may not be longer than 7 minutes. Summer 48 reserves the right to shorten any film that exceeds the maximum length for screening purposes.

M. Credits

5 seconds of black.
The official Summer 48 animated opening -OR- a title card with: “This film was made for the Summer 48, 2023. www.cinemaclique.org/summer48"
A title card with: team name and the film title
2 seconds of black
Pre-film Required Slates
Before the finished film begins, the media should have in the following order:

Your film follows these opening credits.

N. Opening Credits
After the 2 seconds of black, some films start with opening credits. These are not encouraged, but if you use them, opening credits are considered to be part of the film, and therefore count against the seven-minute maximum. Additionally, if your film has opening credits other than simply the film's title (for example, the names of directors, actors, etc.), you must include one of the following:

The text “[YOUR TEAM NAME] presents” immediately followed by “a Summer 48 film”.
The text “a Summer 48 film” immediately following the title of your film. Note: “a Summer 48 film” may be entirely lowercase (i.e., a summer 48 film).

O. End Credits

Credits at the end of each film are limited to a maximum of 60 seconds. The 60 seconds is considered additional to the length of the film, as stated above. (That is, a film may be 7 minutes long, with an additional 60 seconds of credits, for a total running time of 8 minutes.) Summer 48 reserves the right to shorten any end credits that exceed the maximum length for screening purposes.

The end credits must include the words: “This film was made for Summer 48 film race, 2023. www.cinemaclique.org/summer48".

P. Slates And Credits After The Competition
For any future screenings, online or otherwise, films should retain the pre-film title card that says: “This film was made for the Summer 48 film race, 2023. www.cinemaclique.org/summer48”

Q. Required Media Formats
Maximum File Size: 2GB.
Filetype: .MOV or .MP4
Codec: H.264
Colorspace: Rec. 709

IMPORTANT: If your film does not conform to the submission requirements it may be disqualified. Also, if your film cannot be viewed on Summer 48 equipment, it may be disqualified.

R. Submitting Finished Films

Finished film must be submitted via email or in-person.

Submit online by emailing a link to a Google Drive folder to cinemaclique.club@gmail.com containing the finished film file as well as any relevant paperwork (see Rule S). The sharing settings of the Google Drive folder MUST be set to "Anyone with the link can view". If the sharing settings are not set as such we will not download your movie and it will not be screened.

Submit in-person by having a team member bring the finished film file on a USB drive to the Liberty Theater in Murphysboro, Illinois with the relevant paperwork (see Rule S) between 4:00pm and 8:00pm (CDT) on Sunday, August 13th, 2023.

R. Submission Notes
We recommend that you make sound levels relatively even throughout your film. (If your film has uneven sound or sound that peaks, it may be modified to protect the playback equipment).

If your film is very dark, it may be difficult to see when projected in the theater.

All films received on the evening of the deadline (on-time and late) will be screened, presuming they meet the eligibility requirements.

S. Production Documents
Each team must secure releases or licenses for talent, crew, music and private locations (and any other applicable releases), which must be turned in to the project organizers with the finished film/video. The film/video will not be screened before the Summer 48 Organizers receive the signed releases.

Release forms are included in the Registration Packet. See Rule B in the competition rules section. Release forms can also be found HERE.

Completed release forms shall be submitted to Summer 48 with finished films.

Both written and electronic signatures are allowed.

T. Eligibility
To be eligible for the Project, Entries must be the original work of the Entrant; must not infringe third-party's rights; must be suitable for publication (i.e., may not be obscene or indecent); must not contain obscene or pornographic material; may not contain defamatory statements about any person, company, organization or entity; may not invade privacy or other rights of any person, company or entity; may not in any other way violate applicable laws and regulations; and may not contain any copyrighted elements (other than as owned by the Entrant and/or Summer 48).

Entries containing prohibited or inappropriate content as determined by the Summer 48, in its sole discretion, to be inappropriate will be disqualified. Summer 48 reserves the right to make the final determination as to which Entries are eligible. Summer 48 reserves the right to refuse to screen a film or to make an announcement at the screening regarding the content of the film. Summer 48 reserves the right to alter a film in order to remove or delete offensive or defamatory content.

U. No Pre-Screening Distribution
The Entrant should not distribute their entry/video in any way prior to it receiving its official Summer 48 premiere screening on August 19th, 2023. This includes uploading the video to any website or screening the film for groups of anyone other than the team. The Entrant is encouraged to make a trailer of their film and distribute that instead. This trailer should be no longer than 60 seconds.

V. Entries Not Returned
No Entries (media or documents) will be returned.

W. Disqualification
Summer 48 and Project Parties may, in their sole discretion, disqualify Entries deemed to be inappropriate or otherwise non-compliant.

X. Using AI (Artificial Intelligence) in Your 48 Entry
You may use AI (Artificial Intelligence) in the creation of your film, subject to the following guidelines:

You may only use AI in ways that are legal in your jurisdiction.
You may not use AI to create any part of your entry prior to the Official Time Period.
You must have the rights to all work including work created with AI. In other words, any AI generated material that uses copyrighted material for which the filmmaker does not have a release is not permitted. (As an example, using a screenshot from the movie Pulp Fiction to create a new image is prohibited.)
Any footage created using AI is subject to both: copyright requirements and Rule D regarding footage (above). That is, not only must the filmmaker have rights to the footage, but any footage shot prior to the competition weekend, may only be used as outlined in Rule D.