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AtomFilms, Spike TV and Lucasfilm Ltd. Join Forces for the 'Star Wars(TM) Fan Movie Challenge'
Annual Awards Program Honors Fan Made Videos and Animations Online, On-Air
And At Star Wars CELEBRATION IV May 24-28 in Los Angeles
To View The 'Star Wars Fan Movie Challenge' Log-On to
http://starwars.atomfilms.com
SAN FRANCISCO and NEW YORK, March 14 -- Lucasfilm Ltd. has
teamed up with AtomFilms and Spike TV -- divisions of MTV Networks, a unit
of Viacom (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B) -- for the launch of the "Star Wars Fan Movie
Challenge." The trio unveiled details today at the Challenge's Website
http://starwars.atomfilms.com and issued an immediate call for submissions.
Challenge award recipients will be unveiled online, on-air on Spike TV and
at the massive Star Wars Celebration IV fan event in Los Angeles May 24 to
28, 2007.
The "Star Wars Fan Movie Challenge" is a new phase in a long-running
partnership between Lucasfilm and AtomFilms to celebrate the best in fan
made videos and animations. Past programs have produced such Internet
classics as "Star Wars Gangsta Rap," "Pink Five" and "Pitching Lucas."
(Links to these films can be found at the end of this news release.) This
year, Spike TV comes aboard as a television partner to provide on-air
exposure for the Challenge's top submissions, as judged by George Lucas,
staffers at Lucasfilm and AtomFilms, as well as the voting of online
viewers. This Challenge also demonstrates the emerging collaborations
between the MTVN Entertainment Group's digital and television properties.
"I'm very happy we're continuing this event, which we began in 2002,
because out of the current crop of young moviemakers it's quite possible
we'll find some of tomorrow's best writers, producers and directors," said
Star Wars creator George Lucas.
"Star Wars is an institution and Spike TV is thrilled to join forces
with Lucasfilm and AtomFilms," said Kevin Kay, GM, Spike TV. "As television
partner for the Challenge, Spike will extend Star Wars fans' devotion
beyond the digital arena by celebrating on-air this incredible movie
franchise and showcasing content from its passionate fans."
"Our long-running user-generated-content partnership with Lucasfilm has
been a great success for Star Wars fans and moviemakers alike," said Scott
Roesch, GM, AtomFilms. "This year, we're excited to present the Fan Movie
Challenge, an expanded program that offers several new elements including
great on-air exposure from our new partners at Spike TV."
The initial phase of the Challenge culminates May 24-28 at Lucasfilm's
Star Wars CELEBRATION IV convention in Los Angeles, which commemorates the
30th anniversary of the release of Star Wars. Challenge award recipients
will be announced and screened during the five days of CELEBRATION IV
festivities. Spike TV will give viewers a front-row seat to all the action
with on-air programming partially featuring some of the Fan Movie
Challenge's best entries. Further details will be announced later this
spring.
Previously called the Star Wars Fan Film Awards, the name of this
long-running program was changed to reflect the fact that most of the
submissions are shot, edited and even submitted, digitally. Steve Sansweet,
director of fan relations for Lucasfilm Ltd., noted, "There really isn't
any 'film' being reviewed anymore. Just as with the Star Wars movies
themselves, our annual competition has proudly entered the digital age."
I n addition to the introduction of Spike TV as television partner,
there are several new elements to the Challenge that fans will find
appealing:
-- An award category for "fan fiction" will be offered for the first
time, in addition to parody, documentary, and other categories.
-- Fan movies also will be available for viewing at the official Star
Wars site http://starwars.com beginning later this spring
SPIKE TV is available in more than 91.6 million homes and is a division
of MTV Networks. A unit of VIACOM (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), MTV Networks is one
of the world's leading creators of programming and content across all media
platforms.
AtomFilms is a broadband entertainment network that is unique among
online video services, licensing and developing original content in
partnership with filmmakers and animators. Since pioneering the online
video category in 1998, AtomFilms has attracted a loyal audience of
millions of users with its consistently outstanding short-form programming.
The network compensates filmmakers and animators based on revenues
generated from its advertising and distribution businesses, and its
payments to creators have totaled millions of dollars. AtomFilms is a
service of MTV Networks, following MTV's September 2006 acquisition of Atom
Entertainment.
Lucasfilm Ltd. is one of the world's leading movie and entertainment
companies. Founded by George Lucas in 1971, it is a privately held, fully
integrated entertainment company. In addition to its motion-picture and
television production operations, the company's global activities include
Industrial Light & Magic and Skywalker Sound; LucasArts; Lucasfilm
Animation; and Lucas Licensing. Additionally, Lucas Online creates
Internet-based content for Lucasfilm's entertainment properties and
businesses.
For more information on the "Fan Movie Challenge," visit
http://starwars.atomfilms.com.
To see past fan-movie favorites:
"Star Wars Gangsta Rap": http://www.atomfilms.com/film/gangsta_rap_se.jsp
"Pink Five": http://www.atomfilms.com/film/pink5.jsp
"Pitching Lucas": http://www.atomfilms.com/film/pitching_lucas.jsp
SOURCE Spike TV
http://www.spiketv.com
http://starwars.atomfilms.com/
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