Rules
1. Forum rules, of course, apply!
2. Sims 2 and Sims 3 Machinima will be accepted! Voice overs, subtitle short films, and music videos are accepted as well! NO CONTINUING SERIES. (See Filming Rules for more Info!)
3. Custom Content is allowed (with an appropriate link to all content featured)
4. Only one entry per contestant! Entries may be edited before the round ends, just make note of it once you have finished the edit.
5. No eliminations, though, there may be a time you go bankrupt which may cause you to miss out on certain events until you can be rewarded again by the judges or take out a loan from the Bank, which will be owed in the end.
6. Photoshop is allowed.. but not in the casting round! (Round 1)
7. Your cast, set, photos, promotion, and film must be entirely made by you! This means it must be original! No stealing stories or clips from other people!
8. You will have a budget every round on how much you may spend of your funds.
9. You will be supplied with funds in the beginning of the round and will loose/raise more as the contest progresses. A film produced with a low remaining budget but produced and promoted their film very well is better than a film with a high remaining budget and barely promoted their film at all. Just don't get too crazy.
10. You may NOT include any type of explicit detail in your film. This includes items from SexySims or other various places and must not contain mature adult situations. They must remain PG-13. (Cursing, blood, action is fine, just no sexual themes).
11. Each contestant will have an account to refer to before spending any funds.
12. Each round will not have the same budget system, and will be explained. So, read closely when that time comes.
13. Loans are available! Ranging from $10,000 to $1,000,000 but must be payed back in full at the final round.

Filming Rules
1. Once your film is ready to premiere in the final round, upload it to YouTube and paste the full link in the post to avoid any problems. (This means not TinyURLs or Short Youtube Links.
2. The video will have a time limit.
3. There are no themes to choose from, but you must have one.
4. Your film MUST have a title!
5. You must also have a cast. Sims or animals are fine.
6. They MUST be edited in a video editor! Doesn't matter which one!
7. They must also have audio.
8. If filming a multi-part film, the parts can only be up to 10 minutes and in only 4 parts or less!
9. May not be shared until the final round!

Bank Rules
1. You can take out a loan any time you need to!
2. You may store any money you want in the bank that is no higher than $250,000
3. In order to input/output money, you can post a post anytime in the contest requesting to do so. Same with loans!
4. Pay your loans back at the end of the contest, before the final round is recommended. If you do not have enough to pay back you will automatically have to file bankruptcy and have points taken off your final round score.
5. The bank is not a requirement! It is entirely optional!
6. Whenever you put money in the bank, remember that it cannot be spent unless you take it out! So, keep an eye out on your remaining funds!
7. Loans will not update the amount you have in the bank, but the amount you have in the account.
8. Once you choose to make a loan, it cannot be reversed unless you pay back the money.
9. Loan prices do not rise once bought. You will pay back the same amount you took. Not any higher or lower.

Account Rules (Not the bank!)
1. The account is used to refer to before spending any funds.
2. The account will be updated after each round. If you choose to put the money in the bank or get a loan, the account will be updated whenever you do so.

Time
Each round will last 2 weeks (Extensions are allowed only with an excuses that is relevant to why you couldn't finish in time).

The Bank
Available Loans:
$5,000 $25,000 $500,000
$10,000 $100,000 $1,000,000
loans can be added together for the desired amount

Contestant	Input Amount	Output Amount	Total Funds Available	Loan Taken	Load Paid|When
King_Deadly	-	-	-	-	-
kikiavicenna	-	-	-	-	-
eyelleenn	-	-	$1000000	$1M | Round 3	Unpaid | Bankrupt
PunkyBreester	-	-	$1000000	$1M | Round 3	Paid | Broke
Jaguwar	-	-	$250000	250K | Round 3	Paid | Good Management
naiyasfury	-	-	$700000	700K | Round 3	Unpaid | Bankrupt
Sulyuki	-	-	$1000000	$1M | Round 3	Paid | Bankrupt
Bread Pit	-	-	-	-	-
GrayLeeStudios	-	-	-	-	-
lauratje86	-	-	-	-	-
Sparklycookie	-	-	-	-	-

The Account
Updated after every round unless with exceptions

Contestant	Round 1 Amount	Round 2 Amount	Round 3 Amount	Round 4 Amount	Round 5 Amount
King_Deadly	$275500	$102025	$0	$0	$0
kikiavicenna	$274500	$186200	$0	$0	$0
eyelleenn	$260500	$1078675	$533399	$0	$0
PunkyBreester	$274500	$138550	$1055257	$999923	$70
Jaguwar	$270500	$133950	$290211	$503211	$253211
naiyasfury	$271000	$119475	$659677	$0	$0
Sulyuki	$265000	$171750	$854589	$826589	$(-)173411
Bread Pit	$273500	$280850	$0	$0	$0
GrayLeeStudios	$276000	$280800	$0	$0	$0
lauratje86	$274000	$282157	$0	$0	$0
SparklyCookie	$276000	$281950	$0	$0	$0

Scores/Rounds
Must have at least 10 Contestants!

Contestant	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Round 4	Round 5
King_Deadly	Round 1 | 69.25	Round 2 | 58.67	Withdrawn	Withdrawn	Withdrawn
kikiavicenna	Round 1 | 70.75	Round 2 | 80.00	Withdrawn	Withdrawn	Withdrawn
eyelleenn	Round 1 | 87.25	Round 2 | 95.33	Round 3 | 80.33	Withdrawn	Withdrawn
PunkyBreester	Round 1 | 94	Round 2 | 96.33	Round 3 | 95.33	Round 4 | 87.00	Round 5 | (+25)
Jaguwar	Round 1 | 94.25	Round 2 | 90.00	Round 3 | 83.00	Round 4 | 83.66	No Entry | 0.0
naiyasfury	Round 1 | 87.5	Round 2 | 83.33	Round 3 | 84.33	Withdrawn	Withdrawn
Sulyuki	Round 1 | 75.25	Round 2 | 82.33	Round 3 | 87.33	Round 4 | 80.33	Round 5 | (+25)
Bread Pit	Round 1 | 82.5	No Entry | 0.0	Withdrawn	Withdrawn	Withdrawn
GrayLeeStudios	Round 1 | 56.5	No Entry | 0.0	No Entry | 0.0	Disqualified	Disqualified
lauratje86	Round 1 | 84.5	Withdrawn	Withdrawn	Withdrawn	Withdrawn
Sparklycookie	Round 1 | 64.25	No Entry | 0.0	No Entry | 0.0	Disqualified	Disqualified

Round Scores

• Round 1 Scores
• Round 2 Scores
• Round 3 Scores
• Round 4 Scores
• Final Results

What we are Judging
Originality (20 Points):
Is the way you presented your entry original? Does it stand out? Has it been seen before? Is it too familiar with something, or is it completely new?
Popularity Rates (1-10 Points):
Did their dedication truly work on the crowd? Are people becoming more familiar with their film? (This is all based on how well your entry is).
Emotional Aspect (10 Points):
Is your cast bland, or are they unique? Does their dialogue describe their past or is it just bleak words?
Apparel (10 Points):
Is your cast up to date with the latest trends? Do they have an original, but yet beautiful taste of fashion? Or could they be compared to slobs?
Setting (20 Points):
Is the area around the cast, set, promotional items, bland or does it have some sort of kick to it? Does it contain some type of life? Or does it contain no emotion?
Dedication (20 Points):
Was this entry well presented? Could you tell that the contestant really wants this? Was the overall quality beautiful, or was is thrown together?
Storyline [Final Round] (20 Points):
Is the storyline something that is worth watching? Or is it something that contains no emotion? Could it really be a film?
BONUS (5 Points): Each round will have a bonus worth 5 points!
[Extra] Money Well Spent/Maintained (10 Points):
Did the contestant maintain their funds well? Did their spendings pay out, or backlash?

Total Goal Amount: 115
Best amount you could go for: 90 or above.
Total Goal Amount for Final Round: 135

Helpful Resources!
Step-to-Step Guide to Directing a Machinima (Sims 3)
Sims 3 Camera Tutorial
How to make a Sims 2 Machinima

Judges
If you would like to judge, please ask below. The only requirement that I would like you to have (not truly required) is to have some type of experience with Sims Stories or Sims Movies. Be prepared to give lots of feedback, because that's what we are aiming for!
1. LadyAwesome
2. CreativeMommy1985
3. SlenderButt
4. GigaRevival

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Contest Approved

• Do not post replies and/or contest applications before the contest host has checked in on this thread, or your post will be deleted.
• DO NOT WRITE USELESS POSTS like "Hey cool contest, I think I might join." Reserve type posts and useless posts about coming back with an application will be deleted.

Host checking in! I'm ready to get this creative party started! Aren't you?! Feel free to ask any type of questions that you are wondering.. I will try to answer them to the best of my possibilities! I can't wait to see your entries! Helpful word of advice: you might want to use as much Package Sets as you can! This will earn you publicity points!

You can keep track of how long you have by this timer ! Deadline is October 11th at 12am EST!

ETA: Updated timer and deadline date.

So it says a minimum of 4 cast members, does that mean that you can have more than four if you want to? If you can, and you also purchase the extra group shots option, do you still have to do individual photos of each cast member + four group shots even though that could mean you had tons of pictures in your entry?

@lauratje86 Yes, you can have more than four.. but you must at least have four cast members! If you are not purchasing any extra packages, you must only have a white background and no photoshopped photos. Now, if you purchase one of the extra packages (i.e. Wallpaper), then you would use that in every photo you have.. so, with extra group photos, you must have the required screenshots and then 3 extra photos of the group in any style you'd like. So yes, the individual photos are still required.

Hey! I'm interested in being a judge, if you'll have me. :P

Let me know!

(Just in case you need to know - I didn't see it in the requirements for judging, but I'll leave it here just in case - I write legacy stories and I have judged three contests here at MTS prior to this one; two of which were heaven's story time contests.)

@GigaRevival Of course you can be a judge! There are no real requirements other than being able to point of creativity, even in the rough spots But I think you can handle it!

Great! Then count me in.

Let the games begin! Uh - contest, whatever.

Hey, Seemyu. I’m gutted that I can’t compete in this, I just have stuff going on that means I can’t commit for the duration of the contest without missing a couple of deadlines. I think I’m gonna try to play along just for fun though then I can catch up at my own pace when I miss deadlines Just had a quick question;

Got any recommendations? I’ve briefly played with windows live movie maker in the past but IIRC I was only able to add audio as one big lump, I didn’t have control over cutting and editing it together to match the scenes...is that standard or do you know of a free editor that would do that? ...or maybe I just need to read the instructions for movie maker >_<

Erm. Windows Movie Maker is good.. but shitty when it comes to more than one audio track. When the filming round comes into play, you can always download the trial version of Sony Vegas (Which is a video editor I highly recommend). And I am perfectly fine with you joining just for the sake of it I appreciate it!

Count me in!! im gonnna go right now on a little download spree so i can do the wonderfull cast

Deadline Update

Due to a limited two weeks until the contest is official, I am in need of at least 10 contestants. So, I had to discard the extra week I thought I could give. Please, do not rush your entries.. take your time. Just know that I will need your entries by the 11th of October. Others that may miss the deadline can submit late entries, but will have 5 points deducted; and that is if the contest becomes official. So, please. Try your hardest to get your entries in. I'm counting on you guys!

DUN DUN DUN!
Ladies and gentlemens ill proudly present you MY CAST!

Hi, i never ever did a contest before but i would like to be a judge. i've created many stories on the sims 2. i also created a story on the sims 3, but my game crashed and i could not finish it . but if not, thats ok. i just really thought it would be cool to be a judge!

@SlenderButt Heya! I have no problem with you being judge! Just please make sure to read the judging rules since you have never been a judge before: http://www.modthesims.info/showthread.php?t=341258 . Also, feel free to PM me if you have any further questions so we can save space for other applicants.

Thanks Seemyu! im looking forward to judging! . i'll read the rules right away!

Hey, I would Love to be a judge. I've made sims 2 movies for about a year now. I've just recently started posting my stories though. I also have been a part of a MEP before. I've never actually been a judge though, but it looks like a fin thing to do, and i love having an excuse to give constructive critism. It's fun to help people become the best filmer they can be! thanks for your time :D

Hey, I'm thinking of joining as a contestant, but the qualifications thing is confusing me. Am I supposed to have participated in those to be able to join?

The Qualifications at the top are what SeeMyu has participated in - when creating/hosting a contest, you're asked to include it to show that you have prior experience/meet the requirements.

However, it's not necessary to have participated in anything prior to this in order to join the contest as a contestant.

Good luck! And I can't wait to see your entry.

@pandapurple Heya. Unfortunately, all of the judging positions have been filled, but I am still in need of 9 more contestants for this contest to be official. I would love for you guys to join, though!

JOIN PEOPLE! i want to see the creative juice spill out your guts and land all over my computerrr!!

Cool well count me in, I'll go get started on my entry

Quick question, does this require voice overs? Because I'm not too sure if I'll be able to get that :p

Another question :p
Are the traits and relations for the character? Or cast member?

No it does not. You can make any type of film you'd like (that avoids explicit content).

Also, if you have another question.. just add it to your previous post to avoid double posting It's easier to read and navigate that way.

I'm a little confused on the format, is round 1 just casting like an application and then rounds 2-5 will be movie clips? Or is there only one round that does the final movie. So confused! So interested, but so confused! >.<