Welcome to Student Nature Vids!

A University-wide student video competition showcasing beautiful vistas, wildlife, and outdoor adventure with a chance to earn recognition (including CA$H prizes) for creativity and love for nature at the SNV Film Festival in April!

Submissions are OPEN

for the 2023-2024 competition!

Category Overviews

Filmmakers must self-select the category they feel best fits their short video. Footage can be raw or purposely edited and must be below 2GB in size and < 3 min in length. The winner in each category will receive a prize of $1,000!!

Adventure

Videos which emphasize humans enjoying the outdoors. Examples include:

  • Cultural tourism (e.g., food, study tours, performing arts, festivals/cultural events, ethnic/indigenous tourism, sites and monuments, folklore/art, pilgrimages, etc.)
  • Extreme sports/adaptive extreme sports
  • Canoeing/kayaking
  • Camping / hiking
  • Ecotourism
  • Skiing / snowboarding
  • World travel (e.g., international adventure, cultural exchange, etc.; this category reminds us that humans are part of nature, not separated from it)
  • Climbing

Natural Wonder

Videos which emphasize the natural world, including human effort to protect it. Examples include:

  • Sustainability (e.g., climate change mitigation)
  • Nature conservation
  • Protected areas (e.g., National Parks)
  • Flora / fauna
  • Landscapes / seascapes
  • Environmental communication (e.g., outdoor educational programs, interpretive signage, etc.)

Humor

Videos which emphasize any occurrence in nature giving us a chuckle. These can be prepared in advance or random occurrences, and human involvement is optional. Examples include:

  • Gaffes
  • Surprises
  • Satire
  • Singing/Dance routines
  • Jokes

Note: Any video at odds with CSU’s Code of Student Conduct will not be released for viewing, nor considered as a viable entry for the Film Festival competition.

Judging Criteria

Video submissions for each category will be reviewed in the Spring by a neutral committee of WCNR students and faculty not participating in the competition. Did we mention that the winner in each category will receive $1,000!?!?!

The judging criteria includes:

  • Sizzle (overall “wow” factor based on what the judge / viewer / audience experiences while viewing; i.e., is it interesting?)
  • Production quality (sound, imagery, lighting, etc.; i.e., is it technically/aesthetically intact?)
  •  Impact (measures what the judge / viewer / audience is thinking and feeling while interacting with the story, setting, “characters” – e.g., wildlife, plants, people; etc. – and overall message of the video; i.e., is it inspiring?)

FAQs

  • Do I have to be a HDNR student or a WCNR student? No, this is open to all CSU students!
  • Can I form a team? Yes, but we can’t rip the $1,000 winning check into parts, so you as a team will have to divvy up the winnings amongst yourselves!
  • Will there be another Film Festival? Yes, we are still finalizing the details, but it’ll be during Warner’s Natural Resource Days in April!

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