MUMBAI: France-based Reed Midem, organiser of professional and International tradeshows and the official organiser of the 2004 Mipcom DVD Awards, yesterday announced the launch of the Mipcom DVD Awards to be presented on 6 October during the 20th edition of Mipcom, which would be held from 4 to 8 October 2004 in Palais des Festivals, Cannes, France.
According to a company release, Mipcom DVD Awards will reward creativity and innovation in DVD content and originality in DVDs that are related to the features enabled by DVD technology and not content or sales performance. The awards have been instituted in partnership with the DVD Association of the US (DVDA) and the International Video Federation of Belgium (IVF).
The release, quoting, Reed Midem director of television division, Paul Johnson, stated, "The DVD has established itself as a universally accepted format and is the success story of the audio-visual sector today. Apart from the high standard of picture and sound quality, we particularly want to pay
tribute to all those creative people who provide the additional DVD functions that make for such a wonderful viewing experience. Mipcom is the ideal International platform to pay tribute to the DVD creative community."
A six-member International jury, chaired by IVF president Jean-Paul Commin, will evaluate the original content of the selected DVDs according to a pre-defined set of criteria, including web features and interactivity, programme content restoration, special features, navigation and graphic design.
"These new awards will honour creativity in DVD as an art form not just a medium", DVDA president Bernie Mitchell said in the statement.
He further stated, "The members of the DVD Association are the experts in the field of DVD design, creation and implementation, and anxiously look forward to these new prestigious awards. The international forum of Mipcom will naturally bring world-wide attention to the accolades and will further enhance the incredible acceptance of DVD's."
The international trophies will represent a total of seven categories, including TV series (English language), TV series (original version non-English), children/youth fiction, children/youth animation, non-fiction (documentaries, sports and leisure excluding music), film (English-language) and film (original version other than English).
These categories exclude all titles containing adult content. In addition to the seven category winners, the Mipcom DVD Awards jury will also designate a Special Jury Prize, the release states.
According to jury chairman Jean-Paul Commin, "Because of the technical advantages and multiple content possibilities of the DVD, it has become a cultural asset which offers immense editorial possibilities and whose diversity can now be clearly measured."
He added, "The organisation of an event which aims to reward DVDs of all genres and from all origins at Mipcom, is in line with the growing status of the DVD as a medium for cinema and audiovisual works."
Submissions for the awards are open for companies wishing to participate for all categories, including DVD artists, developers, authors, designers, distributors, and publishers. A total of three titles per category per company can be sent for enrollment till 6 July 2004.
