Professional Division

Thank you for your question Hy,

We have been discussing this very thing, as we see very few submissions entered in the professional division up to this point.

Our goal with the minimum number of entries per division rule is to try to ensure a healthy competition. We want to make sure that we receive entries of a high caliber – we don’t want to give a prize to an inferior entry by default because there are too few entries for a real competition in a division. Although we likely will revise or waive the minimum number of entries, provided there are several qualifying entries.   

We certainly see many WIP threads now that absolutely would qualify for the professional division. We also have no plans to merge those divisions for this competition, and with respect to our sponsors' generous donations, we cannot combine prizes if one of the divisions doesn’t proceed.

For future competitions, we may consider using only one division, or we may specify more clearly the distinction. Professional means creating a finished polished entry that could be used in either a game or film project. It is not a distinction of a specific amount of time in the industry.  Novice means work that is perhaps less polished than professional level entries. This would be the ideal category if you are new to 3D and still learning the tools. Ultimately you are competing against the other entries in your division, but if everyone chooses the novice division then no awards will be given in the professional division.  

We hope everyone that participates has had fun, learned a lot, and hopefully improved their skills.  

Thanks Jesse for the answer and additional clarification.

I submitted my entry into the novice pool based on the part in the initial contest guideline which said that it was for early professionals. This is how I would classify myself as I'm still trying to break into the industry. Now that I understand that it is geared more for those who are new to 3D then I feel like it's less applicable to me (I have about a year's worth of experience). Would it be possible to move my entry over to the professional division? Just to throw my hat into that ring.

The prizes are enticing but like you said, there's more to get out of the contest beyond that. I personally got a lot out of participating as it gave me a project goal that helped me push myself as well as an opportunity to connect with other 3D artists. In the end I get a portfolio piece out of it, which was my main goal from the start. 🙂