Rookie Awards 2022 - The 12th annual contest for aspiring creative media artists is open

Rookie Awards 2022 - The 12th annual contest for aspiring creative media artists is open

It's time to show the world your skills, as entries are now open for Rookie Awards 2022. In its 12th year, the contest is for aspiring artists who want to give their careers a boost in the fields of visual effects, animation, games, VR, motion graphics, concept art and design.

It's time to show the world your skills, as entries are now open for Rookie Awards 2022. In its 12th year, the contest is for aspiring artists who want to give their careers a boost in the fields of visual effects, animation, games, VR, motion graphics, concept art and design.


Supported by the World's Leading Companies

We are fortunate to have three major sponsors this year - Autodesk, Unreal Engine, and Lenovo. It means the world to us that they continue to support the Rookie Awards after all these years, and are so passionate about helping creative industries grow.

To all our other sponsors, your support means no less, and we are honored to have you joining us again this year. Thank you Adobe, SideFX, Teradici, Chaos, Dell Technologies, Epic Games, Foundry, GridMarkets, Marmoset, Marvelous Designer, Maxon, NVIDIA, Ninja Theory, Wacom, Weta FX, 2G Studio, 3D World, BVN, Crystal Dynamics, DNEG, Dr.Reel, Flipped Normals, GRAPH, INDG, IO Interactive, Kilograph, On Animation Studio, Outpost VFX, Sini Software, That's No Moon, Unity, Unsigned Studio, beloFX, realworld one.


Why should I enter the Rookie Awards?

If you are an aspiring artist trying to break into creative media industries then this is one of the best opportunities out there for you. All you need to do is create an entry page that demonstrates your skills to our judging panel of over 150 Industry Professionals. Once you enter, you will instantly go in the running to win prizes and career opportunities that will launch your career in unimaginable ways.

For those of you that are not quite ready to apply for jobs, the Awards are a great opportunity for you to gain exposure, build confidence, and get your work reviewed and ranked by some of the biggest names in the creative media and entertainment industries.

Some of the incredible work submitted last year by aspiring artists

Who can enter the Rookie Awards?

The Rookie Awards is open to all aspiring young artists. You can be a student, a self-taught artist, or even a hobbyist.

Please note that you are only eligible to enter if you have less than 12 months of professional experience in any related field.

Please contact our support team if you are not sure about your eligibility by using the yellow live chat located bottom-right of every page of our platform.


Everyone has a chance to win prizes

15 Career Opportunities

There is simply no better way to launch your career with opportunities at our partner studios.

100+ Software & Hardware

Industry-leading software and hardware can hurt the bank account which is why we've got you covered.

$25K Random Giveaway

Every single person that shares their work has a chance to win our amazing Creative Media Starter Kit prize valued at US$25,000.

As always, we have far too many prizes to mention, so please use the link below to visit the contest prize page and check out what is on offer by our incredible sponsors.

View all Prizes

Important Dates

Please refer to the following dates to make sure you don't miss out on this great opportunity.

March 7, 2022: OPEN
Eligible entrants are asked to create an entry page and upload their best work for the judges to review.

June 1, 2022: CLOSED
No extensions are ever allowed. This is a solid date, just like a production deadline.

July 9th, 2022: FINALISTS
Our Judging panel reviews every entry, awarding them an industry ranking and selecting top people per category.

July 27th, 2022: WINNERS
All judging completed and winners of jobs, internships, scholarships and People’s Choice are announced.


Contest Groups & Categories

Depending on your interests, you can submit more than 1 entry into the following categories. Just choose the ones that best match your skills, and the industry you want to work in.

Rookie of the Year

Categories open to individual artists to showcase their skills.
2D Animation, 3D Animation, Visual Effects, Concept Art, Game Development, Immersive Media, Motion Graphics, Product Design, Architectural Visualisation, Virtual Fashion

Film of the Year

Categories open to individual artists and teams to show their films.
2D Animation, 3D Animation, Visual Effects.

Game of the Year

Categories open to individual artists and teams to show their games.
Immersive Media, Mobile, PC & Console

Career Opportunities

This category is open to individuals looking to launch their careers right now. Opportunities from studio internship, professional mentoring and more.

Specialty

Additional categories open to younger audiences and schools.
Young Guns, School of the Year

*Schools don't actually enter, winners of this category are calculated based on the performance of entries submitted to Rookie of the Year Categories.


Why should my school get involved?

The Rookie Awards 2022 is open to hobbyists, self-taught artists and students. However, one of the core reasons we started the Rookie Awards was to help promote the amazing work that schools around the world are doing to help aspiring artists. There are so many great programs out there, but there are also some that should be avoided.

This is why we encourage both students and schools to get involved and show your skills. We want to see the projects that you have created, both individually and as teams. Not only is this an incredible opportunity to promote how good your curriculum is, but it also gives students a free location on the web to share their work with other aspiring artists - and not be intimidated by the professional focused industries out there just yet.

If you are looking to start your education and need some help selecting the right school for your budget, location and career goals please contact our team here at The Rookies as we can help.


Success Stories

Some of our biggest success stories are from entrants that were just like you! They thought they didn't have any chance of winning. But they were discovered just by showing their work on The Rookies website.


Join our Webinar Information Sessions

To help bring you up to speed with all things Rookie Awards, we are running regular webinar information sessions hosted by Alwyn Hunt. The webinars will explain how to create an impressive entry, ways to impress the judging panel, and why you should enter even if you think you're not going to win. There will be a Q&A session at the end so come prepared with your questions.

Select Webinar Session

Tips & Advice

  • Read our F.A.Q article to clear up any common confusion.
  • Create an entry page that shows off your best work for the selected category.
  • Explain how you created your project, include extra images, video, and text to help.
  • Create more than 1 entry if your skills cover multiple categories.
  • Watch our introduction video to make sure you create the best entry possible.
  • Review entries from last year and use them as inspiration.
  • Ask questions on our Discord Channel and network with pros and entrants.
  • Follow us @therookiesco
  • Stay updated with #rookieawards2022.

Social Media and Hashtags

To make sure you don't miss any announcements make sure to follow us on any of our social media pages:

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#rookieawards2022

This is the official hashtag. To help us track engagement, please remember to include this in any posts or announcements.