The mission of the Shakespeare Oxford Fellowship's “Who Wrote Shakespeare?” Video Contest is to promote evidence that supports reasonable doubt about the Shakespeare Authorship and encourages its discussion.

Videos must be a maximum of 3 minutes in length and must present an issue that promotes discussion of the Shakespeare authorship question in a format that is entertaining, engaging, and witty.

This is the first annual “Who Wrote Shakespeare?” Video Contest.

Although English professors insist that a man from a rural English town was the author of such plays as Hamlet, King Lear, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, over the years many people have proposed that someone else, such as Francis Bacon, Christopher Marlowe, or the Earl of Oxford, must have written the plays. Is there any basis to these theories, and will they ever go away? We want you to make a 3-minute video demonstrating your “take” on the authorship question, and you could win the $1,000 grand prize or $500 second place prize.

Don’t know much about the authorship question? You may visit the Authorship 101 page on the Shakespeare Oxford Fellowship website at http://shakespeareoxfordfellowship.org/discover-shakespeare/. From that page, you can check out “A Summary of the Doubts,” the FAQs, the hilarious video on Mark Twain’s “Is Shakespeare Dead?”, and links to additional articles under “Learn More.” You can also visit our Authorship Videos page at http://shakespeareoxfordfellowship.org/authorship-videos/ if you wish. You may consult any source, online or off, it’s up to you—whatever you need to do to make an entertaining video about “Who Wrote Shakespeare?”

You are encouraged, but not required, to subscribe to the Shakespeare Oxford Fellowship’s FREE E-newsletter at http://shakespeareoxfordfellowship.org/contact/ to keep up-to-date on the latest Shakespeare authorship news.

There is no fee for submission. Submissions must be made through FilmFreeway and made available for contest organizers to download and post on the Shakespeare Oxford Fellowship YouTube channel for public voting.

Submissions of up to 16 Finalists selected by our Judges will be posted on the Shakespeare Oxford Fellowship YouTube Channel and website. The Best of Festival Winning Entry will receive an award of $1,000 and Second Place winner will receive $500. In addition, each Finalist will receive a free one-year membership in the Shakespeare Oxford Fellowship and receive the SOF’s quarterly newsletter in the mail (a $69 value).

This offer is valid only for residents of the United States of America. You must be at least 18 years of age to be eligible to participate.

Members of the Shakespeare Oxford Fellowship Board of Trustees and Outreach Committee, persons who have received any form of compensation, including grants, from the Shakespeare Oxford Fellowship since January 1, 2016, and the parents, spouses, siblings, and children of any of the aforementioned are ineligible to enter.

There is NO FEE for submitting a video. No purchase is necessary.
The contest schedule is as follows:
The contest is open for submissions on May 1, 2017.
DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS JULY 31, 2017.
Finalists will be announced on September 1, 2017 and their videos will be available for public viewing and voting on the SOF website from September 1, 2017 to October 1, 2017.
The winners will be announced publicly on the SOF website on October 15, 2017.

Subject matter must address the Shakespeare authorship in an innovative and original way. Videos must not be more than three minutes in length.

The applicant must be authorized to submit the video to the Who Wrote Shakespeare? Video Contest and have read, understood, and agreed to all entry requirements.

All rights and permissions must be in place for the submission. It is the sole responsibility of all applicants to obtain any and all rights and permissions.

By submitting a video for consideration, the applicant grants permission to the Shakespeare Oxford Fellowship (SOF) to use any portion of the video and related materials for promotion in all media, including SOF catalogues, flyers, private You Tube and Vimeo accounts, and on the SOF website.

This contest is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook. By entering this contest, you agree to release Facebook from any and all liability concerning this contest

Entries Must:

1. Be original works for this competition.
2. Be under 3 minutes in duration (entries that exceed 3 minutes by even one second will be disqualified).
3. Only use authorized content—including music, images, film clips, and other intellectual or copyrighted property and does not contain defamatory or otherwise unlawful matter.
4. Be appropriate for viewing by the general public (to be determined by the judges).
5. Warrant that the submission is an original work, not copied from others, and does not violate the rights of any other person or entity.
6. Not have been entered into any other previously held video contest regardless of contest results.
7. Submissions must be made through FilmFreeway and made available for contest organizers to download and post on the Shakespeare Oxford Fellowship YouTube channel and website for public voting.

Judging
• Entries will be evaluated based equally on (1) creativity, (2) originality, (3) message, (4) production quality, and (5) overall presentation. In the event of a tie, the highest score for overall presentation wins.
• Videos recorded on iphones and other smartphones are acceptable, as well as other methods of video recording.
• All entries will be initially reviewed by the Shakespeare Oxford Fellowship, with the consultation of technical experts throughout the decision-making process. Judges will be persons who have demonstrated their knowledge of and familiarity with the Shakespeare authorship question.
• The winner will receive $1,000. Second place winner will receive $500. Their videos will be posted on the Shakespeare Oxford Fellowship website.

Ownership & Use
The ownership of any submission remains the property of the filmmaker, but entry into the competition constitutes the entrant’s permission and consent, without compensation, with or without attribution, for the Shakespeare Oxford Fellowship, its affiliates, and affiliated third party marketing organizations, to use, reproduce, transmit, post, distribute, adapt, edit, or display the submission.

Cash prize winners will be required to submit a release and affidavit of eligibility before receiving their prizes. Cash prizes are taxable income. Contest winners are solely responsible for any taxes on the prize. Winners will receive federal 1099 forms from the contest organizers. Unclaimed prizes will not be awarded. This Contest is held only where permissible by law and is governed by the laws of the state of Massachusetts, with venue in Boston, MA, and all claims must be resolved in the federal or state courts located in Boston, MA.