The new website will launch December 1 and feature towns, cities and housing developments. Entries must be postmarked on or before December 5 to be eligible.
"Our new website is the first all-video relocation and retirement community site, so we want to give everybody a chance to prove to the world that they live in the best community in America," said Dan Owens, director of www.movetomytown.com. "The ultimate goal of the website is to help people get a better understanding of a community in the United States before they even travel there to investigate it," he said.
"There are many publications that strive to rank towns and communities in terms of livability for young people, families and retirees," Owens added. "In reality, there is no one utopia, and a lot of very, very nice places to live in America. We want to showcase them better than anyone can graphically."
All United States municipalities are eligible and there is no fee to enter the contest. Suitable video formats are DVD, windows media, Quicktime or other web-ready file. Videos must be no more than five minutes. A panel of judges will make the final determination of winners. Top videos will get a three-month spotlight on the website. A cash prize of $1000 will go to the winning videographer. Two second-place videographers will each receive a $500 prize.
Rules:
* Each video must be submitted in DVD, windows media, Quicktime or other web-ready file.
* Each video must be no longer than five minutes in length.
* Any person of any age is eligible to enter the www.movetomytown.com contest.
* Videos must be original material and must have release forms (attached) accompanying the videos from any person who appears on the video. Videographers must sign a statement that guarantees that the video has been totally created by the videographer.
* Topics each video should touch on are: climate, historical sites, housing opportunities, arts, sports and recreation, landmarks, population and medical care. Videos should be designed to be educational and should accurately portray the town/community. A good video will show a community's attributes from the view of all ages. The use of humor is acceptable, but this should not be the main focus of the video. Appearances or testimonials by residents and/or city officials is acceptable and encouraged.
* Judges will make their final decision on winners by December 15. Winners will be featured on www.movetomytown.com. All video entries remain the property of Senior Living Associates/www.movetomytown.com. Entries will be judged on originality, quality of video, quality of content and success in communicating the flavor of the town/community.
* A sample video release form is available on this page. Please mail your video, statement of originality and signed video release forms (videos will not be accepted without signed forms) by December 5 to:
EyeBenders
Attn: Move to My Town Video
2562 Windsor Chase Dr.
Matthews, NC 28105
Love Your Town Prove it Through a Homemade Video Contest Seeks Amateur Video Entries From Across the U.S.


