Comikaze '08 - last minute Q & A thread

[maggie]

Ask any Comikaze related questions here and Troy and our lovely organizers will do their best to respond.

[Troy Kealley]

To get started...

Starting times: this year the comp will officially start on Saturday at 11am Australian Eastern Standard Time. At that time we will issue the 'words' which you must use in that 24 hour period to be eligible for prizes. You can start any time after this - as long as you finish exactly 24 hours later.
We will post new words 11am Sunday for people who want to start then.

If anyone wants to start Friday night please let me know now so we can organise a moderator.

Prizes:
The prize pool consists so far of:
1) Supanova table thanks to Daniel at Supanova
1) DoujiCon premium table package thanks to Avi
1) OzTAKU hoodie or visa card (again from Avi)
2) $100 redbubble vouchers from Jacen Carpenter
1) Comic pack from Siberian Productions
Form Caanan's Zuda Entry support team:
1) Making Comics
1) How To Draw Comics The Marvel Way
1) Original artwork by Canaan
From Local Act
1) $100 comics prize pack, plus for a publishing deal for the winner of the 24 page category.
From Me
1) Copy Sin City (the original GN plus the DVD)
1) 30 Days of Night DVD plus Comic pack
The exact split-up of the prizes will be sorted once we know how many entries we have

Judges:
The Zuda winning Caanan Graal
The All Knowing and Most Gracious Liz Argall
The Retiring Queen of Pulp Faction Maggie McFee

Any other questions feel free to ask away!

[markymark]

*Trepidaciously posts in unspoiled thread.

Alrighty, I have a question regarding rule 3:

"Entries should be preferably 24 pages long. However, if this is not be possible, consider joining forces with a friend or someone from Pulp Faction to produce 24 pages."

Does this mean that me and a friend create a story together, draw 12 pages each, and them submit them as one entry? Or are the entries restricted to a single artist?

Just curious because me and a mate are thinking this is the way we would like to go this year and don't want to get to the end only to discover that we're disqualified for some reason

[Troy Kealley]

Heya Mark! It's fine to work as a team - dynamic duos have won in the past. Can't wait to see what you guys come up with

[markymark]

Sweeeeeet

For some reason teaming up seems to feel like cheating. Good to hear it's not

[Troy Kealley]

No - but your entry must be TWICE AS GOOD

[Timothy Merks]

Hey Troy,
I've tried to sign up some of the hobart guys I worked with, plus Rose might give it a go aswell.

One question about the no pre planning thing. Are you allowed to use a character you have already created? It seems obvious that you would be able to since the comp is about shaping your story around the three words, but I'd rather find out for sure.

cheers
Tim
http://merks-art.blogspot.com/

[antains]

I can field this one, he says, trying to feel important.

Quoth the rules, "2. Preparation can include the organising of resources, tools, food, music, etc but can not include designs, sketches, story notes or plots."

Quoth Ant, "How'd I do, Spike? Huh? Huh? How'd I do?"

Edit: So, my interpretation of this is a pre-existing character is a design. I ain't no big-city lawyer though. Jacen?

[maggie]

It has happened that people have used characters that they'd previously drawn before, but the general feeling has been, and someone correct me if I'm off track here, that using those characters is OK as long as A)it was a decision you made at the start of the challeneg (i.e - not planned - if someone's already thinking of using a character, that's planning) and B) they're not going to give you 'instant story' advantage. So, Jason Paulos coming in and doing a Hairbutt story is not gonna be eligible for prizes.

Plus keep in mind that the judges are likely to take all this into account. The popular vote may be more lenient if they really dig the story, but it depends on if they see it as an unfair advantage.

So... shorter answer... you can (within reason), but be aware that it may hurt your prize winning chances.
If you don't care about prizes and just want to do it anyway, go for it (but, please be courteous and warn people off the bat so that they don't waste their popular vote on an ineligible entry).

^^^^^^^^ - All of that is contingent on if I'm not totally off base. Troy should probably weigh in on this as the final arbiter.

[jacen_c]

Edit: So, my interpretation of this is a pre-existing character is a design. I ain't no big-city lawyer though. Jacen?

Well, I'm big and I'm a lawyer....but Longreach is far from being a city. Two out of three ain't bad. Based on the rules, I think pre-existing characters that have been used elsewhere make you ineligible for a prize. I think Maggie sums it up nicely. In the past I've used pre-existing characters...but I was never in the running for prizes and I only do this for giggles! But remember, sometimes characters get their start in the 24hr challenge...just look at Bones O'Brien and Sawyer from the webcomic "Sawbones" or Marty McFly [insert sound of crickets]....

[antains]

[insert sound of crickets]....

http://freesound.iua.upf.edu/samplesViewSingle.php?id=420

[Troy Kealley]

hmm the internets ate my big response so i'll try again!

We have three levels in the competition - the Judges Categories - where winners are determined by a panel of Aussie Comic Gurus. To be eligible for prizes at this level your comic must be 'strictly to the rules'. So no pre-existing characters, storylines; must use all the words; etc.

Then there's the popular choice category, which is a bit more open. As long as you finish in 24 hours, it's a bit more relaxed, but you'll find people will favour fresh ideas and entries that honour the spirit of the challenge.

And of course there's the 'just for fun' element, people not up for prizes but in it just to challenge themselves, in which case almost anything goes (rule 8 on acceptable content still applies though!)

So short answer Tim is we'd rather see new characters; but don't let us hold you back!

[Troy Kealley]

PRIZES UPDATE: Manga arts again have sponsored the contest with a $100 gift voucher for thier store (and they've got some great stuff!) - thank you again!

[amooka]

ok, question... How do i organize registration if i am engaging in the challenge with a partner?

Should i just stick his name on the regestration form nest to mine? or...

cheers

[Troy Kealley]

Yes thats fine - for a team entry put the team name or just the individuals names eg "Team Rocket" or "Mickey and Minnie Mouse" (obviously use your real names!) - but just give us the primary contact's email address thanks.