A FILM CHALLENGE TO SAVE THE OCEAN

Prizes for the top films total $10,000 including a 7-day all-inclusive resort stay in Fiji, 2 round-trip tickets on Singapore Airlines, $3,000 in cash and more.

Why the Ocean Film Challenge? Because filmmakers have the power to change the trajectory of human life on our water planet — from destruction to revitalization. 

ABOUT BLUE OUT DAY: “How we treat the oceans in the next 10 years will determine the fate of our planet for the next 10,000 years...There is no other planet. No water anywhere else. We have to save this." Dr. Sylvia Earle

The time is now to mobilize for the future of your planet.  Blue Out Day is a massive initiative to move a billion people to act, in support of our oceans.  It comes on World Oceans Day, June 8, 2018 where One Billion people will come together as One People on One Planet to take action for Our Oceans. 

FILMMAKER CALL TO ACTION: Submit a short film, 7 minutes or under, on the impact humans have on the ocean and the actions individuals can take to save the ocean ... and the humans who depend on it. The films will be juried by an industry panel and the top 8 films will be deemed the finalists films. The finalist films will premiere at DCEFF, the world's largest environmental film festival on Friday, March 23, at 7:00 PM at the Naval Heritage Center. Following the premiere, awards will be announced for Best Film: Jury Choice, Honorable Mention, Best in Score, Cinematography, Sound, and Editing. After DCEFF, the films will travel the festival circuit as “Dr. Sylvia Earle’s Ocean Film Challenge”. Additional screenings include (but not limited to) IWFF and AudFest. The films submitted to this challenge will be used across multiple distribution channels to move people to act in support of the ocean. The global audience will be allowed to vote for the finalist films between June 1-8, 2018. The top audience voted films will be announced on June 8 at the OFC screening at AudFest in LA.

The Ocean Film Challenge Goal: the creation of numerous short films that have the potential to go viral on social media to affect change, with positive content including all three of these elements:

• Inspiring love for the beauty of the ocean and the amazing variety of ocean creatures

• Identifying the impact that consumer choices have on the health of the ocean

• Encouraging viewers to take positive action, and offering concrete action steps

Your films should address at least one of the problems the ocean faces including:

• Overfishing

• Plastic Pollution

• Ocean Acidification

• Sea Temperature Rise

• Lack of Marine Protected Areas

Your film should address at least one action individuals and communities can take to mitigate the problem. Examples:

• Stop eating seafood. Or only eat sustainably farmed seafood.

• Stop the use of single-use plastics. Saying no to straws and plastic bags is good start.

• Reduce our carbon footprint and demand that our societies return to sustainable carbon levels.

• Support policies that fund climate change research.

• Create marine protected areas so that the ocean can recover.

Entries will be evaluated based on the following judging criteria:

* Creativity (45%)

* Technical Merit (30%)

* Adherence to the Assignment (25%)

PRIZE BREAKDOWN:

Best Film in Competition: Jury Choice wins $1,000 + 2-round trip tickets on Singapore Airlines* + a meeting with Dr. Sylvia Earle.

Best Film in Competition: Audience Choice wins $1,000 + an all-inclusive 7-day diving trip at VOLIVOLI Beach Resort Fiji for 2.

2nd place audience choice: $150

3rd place audience choice: $100

About the Best Film in Competition Jury Choice prizes: Includes 2 roundtrip airline tickets anywhere Singapore Air flies. Example: SFO to Bali. (One layover or less.) The Best Film in Competition Jury Choice also wins a meeting with Dr. Sylvia Earle (Time/Location TBD) and $1,000 cash.

About the Best Film in Competition Audience Choice: The most voted films wins an all-inclusive 7-day diving trip at VOLIVOLI Beach Resort Fiji for 2. The all-inclusive package includes 7 nights in their Premium Ocean View Studio Bure, two 10 tank diving packages and a 7-day meal plan for two. Check out the opportunity here: https://www.volivoli.com/

All 8 finalist filmmakers win: an autographed photography book by Dr. Earle and may win Force Fins autographed by Dr. Earle. The finalist filmmakers also receive two film festival passes to attend IWFF and two festival passes to attend AudFest. (DCEFF is free to attend and does not require a pass.)

HATCH, Mission Blue and Audience Awards are championing the ocean, the work of Dr. Sylvia Earle and Blue Out Day because no matter how far from the shore that you live, the ocean affects your life. The air that you breathe, the water you drink, the food you eat, the products that keep you warm, safe, informed and entertained — all circulate through, or are transported by the ocean. Yet, only about 5% of the ocean has any protection at all.

It’s our air:

◦ 50% of the oxygen we breathe comes from the ocean. It’s our lungs and our lifeblood. Without it, we will perish.

It’s our food:

◦ protein for 50% of the human race comes from the ocean — when we pollute the planet, we pollute our food supply.

It’s our home:

“99% of the habitable space on this planet, is in the ocean” (NASA). It’s the biosphere we humans depend on for survival.  

What happens to the ocean, happens to us.

DCEFF is the largest environmental film festival in the world and is honoring Dr. Earle with the Environmental Champion Award in 2018. The finalist films will also screen at the International Wildlife Film Festival in Missoula, April 2018 and AudFest in Los Angeles on June 8, 2018. We are building a coalition of distribution partners to have the finalist films screen across platforms on June 8, 2018.

ABOUT HATCH: Founded in 2004, HATCH is a global network, movement, and a series of experiences designed to catalyze CREATIVITY to HATCH a better world.  HATCH is anchored by:

• Three annual, invite-only HATCH experience summits (Big Sky, Latin America, and Europe). for carefully selected influencers, inventors, makers, technologists, CEOs, designers, artists, and more
• HATCH Labs – A series of salons, workshops, and activations throughout the year that activate the HATCH Network to work on solutions for global challenges.
• HATCH edu – A series of workshops and design thinking labs in high schools and with universities
• HATCH adventures – Immersive lifelong learning travel experiences for Alumni to experience diverse cultures, and unite to help improve on challenges being faced around the world.

With a focus on fostering and mentoring creativity and innovation in…

EDUCATION  |  ENTREPRENEURSHIP  |  ENERGY  |  ENVIRONMENT  | EMPOWERMENT | EQUALITY 

HATCH is an activated network of changemakers that is: creating highly catalytic experiences  (a selected chemistry set of extraordinary humans); facilitating peer to peer acceleration  (exponential collaborations where 1 + 1 = 11); designing solution-driven think tanks  (working on solutions for real world challenges); mentoring the next generation through educational programs  (to shape future leaders…. to HATCH a better world.

ABOUT DR. SYLVIA EARLE: Called “Her Deepness” by The New York Times and “Living Legend” by the Library of Congress, Sylvia was Time magazine’s first “Hero for the Planet.” She has led over 100 expeditions, logged more than 7,000 hours underwater, authored more than 200 publications and lectured in 90 countries. She is the founder of both Mission Blue and Deep Ocean Exploration and Research Inc. (DOER). She is an Ocean Elder, the Advisory Council Chair of the Harte Research Institute, and a former Chief Scientist of NOAA.

ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL FILM FESTIVAL IN THE NATION'S CAPITAL (DCEFF): The world's largest showcase of environmental films, the Environmental Film Festival in the Nation's Capital celebrates Earth and inspires stewardship of the planet through the power of film. Each March in Washington, D.C. the Festival presents a large and diverse selection of films -- documentaries, narratives, animations, shorts, and experimental films -- selected to provide fresh perspectives on our global environment. Filmmakers, scientists, and environmental experts enhance the Festival's impact through post-screening discussions. We also host film events throughout the year and the Festival’s website, dceff.org, serves as a global resource. 

SUBMISSIONS DUE BY

Submissions Closed

FINAL ROUND VOTING OPENS

Jun 01, 2018 at 12:00pm MDT (America/Denver)

FINAL ROUND VOTING CLOSES

Jun 08, 2018 at 12:00pm MDT (America/Denver)

FINAL TEAM AWARDS

1st Place Jury Award: $1000 + an all inclusive 7 day diving trip at VoliVoli Beach Resort Fiji for two

FINAL AudPop

1st Place Audience Award: $1000 + an all inclusive 7 day diving trip at VoliVoli Beach Resort Fiji for two

2nd Place Audience Award: $150

3rd Place Audience Award: $100

ENTRY FEE BREAKDOWN

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Extended Deadline:

Feb 14, 2018 11:59am (America/Denver)

Entry Fee: $20