Annie Awards Celebrate 40 Years, 2012 ‘Rules & Categories’ Announced

BURBANK, Calif. (August 6, 2012) — The International Animated Film Society, ASIFA-Hollywood, announces its new Rules & Categories for the 40th Annual Annie Awards. The Annie Awards are recognized by the entertainment industry as the highest and most prestigious honor given in animation by the animation industry.

This year’s ceremony is set for Saturday, January 26, 2013 at UCLA’s Royce Hall.

Changes to the Rules & Categories this year include:

– Achievement Awards for Television are now referred to as Television/Broadcast and include not only general television and cable programming, but also internet, mobile, home video, educational and other venues, excluding theatrical feature films;

– Individuals or Teams may be entered in all Achievement categories other than Character Animation (feature and television/broadcast) and Voice Acting (feature and television/broadcast);

– Digital submissions will be in QuickTime Movie format only and will be used, in whole or in part, both for the nomination judging and voting processes. Exceptions or additions to QuickTime submissions (i.e. paper submissions) will be noted for specific award categories with specific mechanical requirements. Digital submissions in other than QuickTime formats will be subject to additional conversion charges;

-  From the slate of eligible submissions, each Production and Achievement Category will be allowed a maximum of eight (8) to a minimum of three (3) nominated selections. If, during the nomination process, a category receives less than three (3) nominees, the category may, at the discretion of the ASIFA-Hollywood Board of Directors, be removed from the ballot;

– The “Member’s Favorite” feature film award has been replaced in favor of a new “Winsor McCay Member’s Choice Award.” All ASIFA members, worldwide, both professional and non-professional, shall be eligible to vote for the new McCay Award via a special ballot which will be made available on the Annie Awards website, www.annieawards.org. Other annual Winsor McCay Awards will continue to be chosen through the usual juried process;

– Projects that have either not been released to the public or screened for the membership of ASIFA-Hollywood by October 14, 2012, must be made available for screening by the members of the nominating committees or, if materials are not readily available for judging, late released productions may, at the production’s discretion, be held for judging during the 41st Award cycle;

– New Annie Award categories include: Best Student Production and the Winsor McCay Member’s Choice Award.

Entries submitted for consideration will be from productions that were released in the United States between January 1, 2012 and December 31, 2012. The official ‘Call for Entries’ will begin on Monday, September 3, 2012. Additional details and all key deadlines for the 40th Annual Annie Awards may be found at www.annieawards.org. The deadline to receive submissions and materials is Sunday, October 14, 2012 by

5 p.m. The deadline to join ASIFA-Hollywood or to renew membership in order to participate in the Annie Awards voting is Sunday, November 4, 2012. Membership information may be found at www.asifa-hollywood.org.