Rookie Awards 2023 (Sponsors)
Everything you need to know as a contest sponsor for our premiere event for 2023. Learn about your obligations, important dates, social media items you can share and more.
Quick Links:
- Important Information
- Categories
- Key Dates
- Obligations: Prize Sponsors
- Obligations - Studios
- Candidate Selection - Studios
- Improvements for 2023 - Studios
- Press Kit
- F.A.Q
The Rookie Awards is an annual contest for aspiring creatives in games, animation, visual effects, immersive media, motion graphics, and 3d visualization.
The goal of the contest is to provide an opportunity for young creatives to share their work with industry heavyweights and influencers, receive badges and certificates, connect with other young artists and potentially launch their creative careers!
We’re excited to have you on this journey with our entrants. Everything you need to know about sponsoring the Awards is on this page.
1. Important Information
Contest Site
Rookie Awards 2023 is hosted here:
Rookie Awards 2023
The 13th Annual Rookie Awards is open to young creatives in visual effects, animation, games, virtual reality, motion graphics and 3d visualisation. There is simply no better way to launch your career and start sharing your amazing work online.
Terminology
The contest is not called The Rookies or The Rookies Awards. The correct terminology is "We're a sponsor of the Rookie Awards 2023!"
When sharing content online, please make sure to use the right terminology. There is often confusion based on our legacy which we would like to prevent.
The Rookies: This is the company name. It is also the name of our website.
Rookie Awards: This is the contest that you are sponsoring.
Social Media & Hashtags
Facebook: TheRookiesCo
Twitter: TheRookiesCo
Instagram: therookiesco
YouTube: therookiesco
LinkedIn: therookiesco
#rookieawards2023 is the official hashtag for the Rookie Awards 2023. To help us track engagement, please remember to include this in any posts or announcements.
2. Categories
Rookie of the Year
Categories are 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 Visualization, and Virtual Fashion.
Film of the Year
Team-based and specialty categories for extra opportunities.
2D Animation, 3D Animation, Visual Effects.
Game of the Year
Team-based and specialty categories for extra opportunities.
Immersive Media, Mobile, PC & Console
Specialty
Additional categories are open to younger audiences and schools.
Young Guns, School of the Year
3. Key Dates
As a sponsor, we would love your help to share announcements during the course of the contest. To help make it easy for you, here is a schedule that lists out some of the key milestones to add to your calendar.
Each announcement below links to official collateral you can use as part of your posts. You can download it directly from the link.
Tip: Please make sure to use the official hashtag #rookieawards2023 with all social media posts and tag us where appropriate. It really helps us reply to comments and build engagement for everyone involved.
10th January - General Announcement
Suggested copy: The Rookie Awards starts again in March and we are excited to be a sponsor for 2023. The contest is open to young creatives in visual effects, animation, games, virtual reality, motion graphics, and 3d visualization. There really is no better way to launch your career and start sharing your amazing work online. #rookieawards2023
7th February - Important Dates
Suggested copy: Before you do anything else, quickly open up your calendar and drop these dates in for the 13th Annual Rookie Awards. We are proud to support this amazing initiative designed to help encourage aspiring artists to share their creative media skills with the world. #rookieawards2023
February 21st - Official Categories
Suggested copy: The official categories have been announced for the Rookie Awards. The contest is open to young creatives in visual effects, animation, games, virtual reality, motion graphics, and 3d visualization. There really is no better way to launch your career and start sharing your amazing work online. #rookieawards2023
March 7th - Open for Submissions
Suggested copy: "The 13th Annual Rookie Awards are open for submissions! The contest is open to young creatives in visual effects, animation, games, virtual reality, motion graphics, and 3d visualization. We are proud to sponsor this contest and can't wait to see the amazing work you have been creating. Entries close June 1st, but don't leave it until the last minute to enter otherwise you might miss out on this incredible opportunity. #rookieawards2023"
N.B. Submissions are open from March 7 - June 1: Eligible entrants are asked to create an entry page and upload their best work for the judges to review.
May 1st - 30 Days to Enter
Suggested copy: Time flies when you are trying to create an entry for the Rookie Awards 2023. With only 30 days remaining to get your entry submitted to the judging panel, it's time to take things to the next level. We have been amazed at the quality of submissions so far and know there is plenty of amazing work left to come.
If you haven't done so already you can actually start your entry and 'Save as Draft'. This way you can make sure you fully understand what's involved with the submission process. #rookieawards2023
May 23rd - 10 Days to Enter
Suggested copy: We hope you don't have too much left to render and that you've allowed enough time to focus on the presentation. With only ten days to go, we really are down to the wire now. For those of you who are intimidated by all the other amazing entries, don't give up. There are countless success stories from people just like you who previously entered and triggered a career-changing chain of reactions. #rookieawards2023
June 1 - Entries closed NOTE ONLY
Entries for the Rookie Awards close on this day. We now have the task of judging all the entries we have received. If you have nominated judges from your team, they will now be receiving all the information they need to get the judging process underway!
June 30 - Finalists Announced
Suggested copy: The finalists for the 13th Annual Rookie Awards have been announced! The suspense has been killing us and we can't believe how incredible the entries are across all categories. To find out if you are a Finalist, head directly to the contest main page right now - #rookieawards2023
N.b. Finalists are the top entries in each category as selected by the judging panel. Categories can have anywhere between 10-40 finalists depending on their size and complexity.
July 1 - 8 - Finalist Judging will occur NOTE ONLY
At this point, our judging panel is asked to review all the finalists for each category. Once reviewed, the judges nominate their Top 5 entrants. This data is used to help us determine the overall winners. Studio partners must make sure their judges are available during this time to review finalists, especially if deciding on placement for your internship.
July 16 - Winners Announced
Suggested copy: The official judging panel for the Annual Rookie Awards has been deliberating intensely behind closed doors for the last month now. As sponsors of the awards, we are overwhelmed by the quality and diversity of entries this year. Congratulations to everyone who took a chance to share their work and got involved with the community. #rookieawards2023
N.b. Category winners are announced and publicly shared. At this point, sponsors are required to help send out prizes and arrange Internship details. Our team will be on hand to make sure you are fully aware of the next steps and what is needed.
4. Obligations: Prize Sponsors
1) Confirm your company details
To make sure we have the correct information for promoting your company, please make sure you have completed this online form.
2) Provide Details of the Prize
Please provide us with detailed information about the prizes that you are offering to entrants to the contest. Please make sure to include a key contact point person that will handle awarding prizes to winners.
3) Nominate Judge (Not required)
We ask that you nominate a judge that can be involved in the final judging stage. This is usually somebody in high standing within the company, a Supervisor or somebody of a similar level.
The nominated judge will be provided with a shortlist of around 20-40 candidates. The Rookies platform has a built-in judging system which makes the whole process really fast. They are not giving feedback, it's purely a ranking system so it won't take too much of their time.
The nominated judge will be promoted on our social campaign as part of our official judging panel. We will need their email address, profile pic, and a short bio. Please make sure they have added their information to this online form by the 15th of January.
4) Provide Banner Advertising Information
Depending on your sponsor level, you will be eligible for banner advertising throughout the contest platform. Please complete this online form to make sure we have the correct information.
5) Add a blog post with a Backlink
The best way to provide support to The Rookies is to share a blog post that links directly to our website. This helps build our reputation and also increases our outreach to potential entrants.
Please contact us if you would like help writing a post to share.
6) Share Regular Social Media Updates
The social media team at The Rookies will provide regular content to share via your own channels. Please make sure to repost, share or create your own content to help bring attention to your support. Every little bit helps.
Need some inspiration? Head over to our Rookie Awards Kit and grab the latest posts and logos. This page is updated regularly with content so make sure to check back regularly.
5. Obligations - Studios
As a Studio Sponsor, we need your help to source the perfect candidate for your Internship or Studio Placement Scheme. Please check the following list to make sure we have everything that is needed.
1) Confirm your company details
To make sure we have the correct information for promoting your company, please make sure you have completed this online form.
2) Confirm Candidate Requirements
A basic contract will be sent to formalise the agreement between the Studio and The Rookies on the type of position being offered. This can be an internship, entry-level position, short-term contract, apprenticeship or even an interview. You will need to sign the contract and return it back to us before the 1st of February 2023.
3) Provide Details of the Position
Please use this online form to provide us with a basic overview of the position your company is wanting to offer. It's up to the individual studio to determine their own guidelines. Here are some examples:
Internship:
Location: Washington, United States.
Duration: 9-month Junior Associate Position.
Accommodation: None provided.
Salary: Fully paid position.
Mentorship:
Location: Online
Duration: 1 hour a week for 4 weeks
Salary: Unpaid
4) Studio Internships - Nominate Studio Judge(s)
We ask that you nominate Studio judge(s) that can be involved in the final judging stage. This is usually somebody in high standing within the company, a Supervisor, or somebody of a similar level.
The Studio judge will be provided with a shortlist of around 20-40 candidates. The Rookies platform has a built-in judging system which makes the whole process really fast. They are not giving feedback, it's purely a ranking system so it won't take too much of their time.
The nominated Studio judge will be promoted on our social campaign as part of our official judging panel. We will need their email address, profile pic, and a short bio. Please make sure they have added their information to this online form by the 15th of January.
Studio Judges will be required during the final judging process which happens from the 1st July until the 8th July. These are hard dates and no extension will be allowed.
Here is a link to a page that explains the judging process and what is required for studio judges.
5) Provide Banner Advertising Information
Depending on your sponsor level, you will be eligible for banner advertising throughout the contest platform. Please add your banners and tracking URL to the sponsor form to make sure we have the correct information.
6) Add a blog post with a Backlink
The best way to provide support to The Rookies is to share a blog post that links directly to our website. This helps build our reputation and also increases our outreach to potential entrants.
Please contact us if you would like help writing a post to share.
7) Share Regular Social Media Updates
The social media team at The Rookies will provide regular content to share via your own channels. Please make sure to repost, share or create your own content to help bring attention to your support. Every little bit helps.
Need some inspiration? Head over to our Rookie Awards Kit and grab the latest posts and logos. This page is updated regularly with content so make sure to check back regularly.
6. Candidate Selection - Studios
Sourcing and selecting perfectly matched candidates for Studios is our top priority. To help you better understand the process involved, please refer to the following information.
1. Studio Brief
At this point, we should already have received a solid brief from your team about what roles you are looking to find talent for. Please contact us immediately if this has not been completed.
2. Category Setup
Studio Internship contests are created and promoted to entrants based on region and category. This helps us track and manage entrants to make sure they are only applying to Internships in countries they are eligible to work without Visa applications. Entrants can elect to submit an official entry for review to the eligible Studio Internship category eg: Studio Internship > Visual Effects - Canada
3. Judging Process
Lead Judges do a lot of the heavy lifting and are involved from the moment submissions open. These judges are tasked with helping shortlist finalists for each category.
Finalist Judges (Traditionally Studio staff members) are invited to the platform to review finalists for each category that they have nominated. Once each finalist has been reviewed, the judge selects their Top 5 entrants in order of preference.
As a Studio sponsor, you will be asked to nominate judges to be involved in the Finalist judging process. This will allow your team to nominate the entrants that you feel are suitable for your team and production needs.
4. Winners Announced
Once we receive your official nominations for your Internship, we will announce winners publicly. At this point in time, we will formally introduce you to the category winners and make sure the handover is clear for all parties.
7. Improvements for 2023 - Studios
Over the years we've had instances where Studios have missed out on amazing talent because applicants have not been eligible to work in the nominated country, have accepted other work contracts or simply are not a good fit for your company.
This year we are implementing the following improvements to make sure your Studio finds the best possible candidate without any of these problems.
Fast-Tracked Selection
Selecting finalists for Studio Internships will be our number one priority once entries close. Our goal is to make sure that you gain access to applicants asap so you can secure talent before they even have a chance to be poached.
To enable this speed, we will fast-track a Google Spreadsheet with Finalist information even before it's announced on the website publicly.
Applicant Contracts and Documents
Our platform requires entrants to manually select checkboxes to confirm their eligibility for Studio Internships. The problem is that many people just click without reading thoroughly.
So this year, we are taking things a step further and sending all Studio Internship applicants an additional online form to complete before they will be officially reviewed Applicants will be required to sign a contract specifying the exact countries they are eligible to work in requiring a Work Visa. Applicants will also be required to provide digital scans of passports to confirm region eligibility.
Video Applications
We know that impressive technical and creative skills are not the only thing that makes a perfect candidate. This is why we are asking all applicants to record a video answer to an interview question and upload it for your review.
Early Selection
We understand that production schedules can change quickly. This is why we are allowing Studios to request Early Selection. This request will allow your team to gain access to all applicant data at any point during the contest. If you find someone that is perfect for your open position, we will disable further entries to your category and explain that the position has been filled. The winner's details will only be shared on July 16th.
8. Press Kit
- Logos
- Social Media Assets
- Announcements
- Prizes
- Career Opportunities
F.A.Q
How do I find the category I sponsored?
The quickest way to find your category in the Rookies Awards 2023 is to visit the main contest portal: https://www.therookies.co/contests/groups/rookie-awards-2023
Scroll down the page and you will find all the categories on offer. Select the one(s) that you are involved with and you will be taken to the category entry page.
How do I view entries submitted to different categories?
The fastest way to do this is to go here: https://www.therookies.co/contests
On this page, you will find a yellow search bar where you can select Rookie Awards 2020. Select this and it will load all the entries for the contest. You can then filter more accurately by selecting the Contest Category eg: Rookie Awards 2023 > Rookie of the Year > Visual Effects.
Another tip is to add keywords to the Search field. This field accepts everything from tags, software, countries, schools, and more.