Design Competition

Deadline: May 14, 2010

Enter the most prestigious competition for creativity in graphic design, the Communication Arts Design Competition. Any design project printed, published or aired for the first time within the last twelve months prior to the deadline is eligible. Selected by a jury of leading design professionals, the winning entries will be distributed worldwide in the Communication Arts Design Annual and on commarts.com, assuring important exposure to the creators of this outstanding work.

What to Enter: Information on eligibility, categories and fees.
How to Enter: Information on preparation of entries and forms.
Design Competition FAQs: Frequently Asked Questions about applications and file formats.

What to Enter


Any design project printed, published or aired for the first time within the last twelve months prior to the deadline is eligible. Publication means in a form of mass media exposed to a substantial audience. Entries may originate from any country, but we need an English translation for the jurors. Submission of entries acknowledges the right of Communication Arts to use them for publication and exhibition.

Design Competition Categories/Fees
These categories are judged by the graphic design jury and will appear in the Design Annual:
Packaging/Labeling: $40 single entry/$80 series
Identity: $40 single entry/$80 series
Integrated Branding Program: $300
Letterhead: $40 single entry/$80 series
Company Literature: $40 single entry/$80 series
Poster/Design: $40 single entry/$80 series
Editorial: $40 single entry/$80 series
Books & Jackets: $40 single entry/$80 series
Self-Promotion: $40 single print entry/$80 print series/$100 single video entry/$200 video series
Motion Graphics: $100 single entry/$200 series
Public Service: $40 single print entry/$80 print series/$100 single video entry/$200 video series
Environmental Graphics: $80 series
Miscellaneous/Design: $40 single print entry/$80 print series/$100 single video entry/$200 video series
How to Enter

All competition entries are processed through our online entry system. Printed Call-for-Entry forms are no longer used.

Before you begin the process of entering a competition, please have the following information and materials ready. This will make the process go quickly:

-Your contact information for registration and notification.
-Title of each project.
-Any digital files you might want to submit saved as RGB (not CMYK) JPG format (maximum 1024 pixels wide X 768 pixels high @72dpi)

Entries can be submitted in the following formats:
Print Entries: Submit tearsheets or proofs, unmounted and trimmed as they appeared. Do not tape series together. Send annual reports, brochures, folders, books, catalogs, etc., in bound form. For posters over 18" x 24," packaging, displays or signage, submit JPG files with a resolution of 1024(H) x 768(V). Trademarks must be centered on an 8-1/2" x 11" sheet. Place the company name and nature of the business next to the mark.

Audio/Visual Entries: Submit motion graphics on Beta SP NTSC, DVD NTSC (viewable on a standard DVD player) or CD-ROM. Include 4 seconds of black, no slates or bars. Single entries must be on individual cassettes/disks. Series should be edited together on one cassette/disk with 2 seconds of black between each entry. Computer-based formats such as QuickTime or Flash should have a maximum screen size of 1024 x 768. Tape an entry form to the outside of each disk/video case.

Preparation of Packages
Address packages to Communication Arts Design Competition. Non-United States contestants should mark each package "Materials for Contest Entry. No Commercial Value." No provision will be made by Communication Arts for U.S. Customs or airport pickup. International entries should be sent by post or international courier. All entries must be received by the deadline date.

Forms and Entry Fees
After choosing a form of payment you will have access to PDF reports summarizing what you entered. If you chose to pay by check, you will have an invoice available for printing. If you chose to deliver entries via mail/courier, you will also have entry forms in PDF format that you will need to print, trim and attach to your entries. Tape an entry form to the back of each entry. If the entry is a print-based campaign, you will tape an entry form to each part of the campaign. Tape an entry form to the outside of each disk/video case. Multiple digital files may be placed on a single disk. Please tape all applicable entry forms one on top of the other so we can flip through them to verify the contents of the disk.

Make checks payable to Communication Arts. Non-United States contestants must send an International Money Order or a check in U.S. funds drafted on a U.S. bank. Please include the check with your entries if you are delivering them via mail/courier. If your payment is being sent under a separate cover, please send your entries now, with a note saying that the check is coming under separate cover. If you submit all of your entries online please write the Communication Arts invoice number on the check. The invoice number can be found in the Entry Forms PDF file. We accept Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover. Charges for your entry fees will appear on your statement as "Commarts"). Credit card charges can only be done online. We do accept wire transfers, however there is a fee of $25 (U.S.) to cover fees charged by the banks to process the transfer. Please contact our office at (650) 326-6040 (9-5 PST) for instructions.

Mail entries to:
Communication Arts Design Competition
110 Constitution Drive
Menlo Park, CA 94025-1107 U.S.A.
(Via United States Mail, FedEx, UPS, etc. Entrants submitting from outside the U.S. please use an international courier)

Notification of Acceptance
Only accepted entries will be notified two months after the deadline date. Complete credits and any necessary material for the best possible reproduction in the Annuals will be requested at that time. Award of Excellence certificates for firms, individuals and clients will be mailed one month after the publication date.

Questions
If you have any other questions or want to request a call for entries, you can reach us by:
Email: competition@commarts.com
Fax: (650) 326-1648


Design Competition FAQs

Can I get an extension on the deadline?
Log onto our Web site the day before the due date to see if we have extended the deadline.

Do you offer a cash prize?
We do not offer a cash prize. The winners are featured in one of our annuals distributed worldwide and on commarts.com, assuring important exposure to the creators of this outstanding work.

Can I submit my work via e-mail and just include a credit card number with it?
You can submit and pay for your entries online.

Will you confirm receipt of my package(s)?
The best way for you to track your package(s) is to contact your carrier. We are unable to acknowledge receipt of your package(s) until your submission(s) has/have been processed. At that time you will receive an e-mail confirming that your package(s) has/have been received, along with your assigned entry number(s). This process can take up to two weeks.

Will my entries be returned?
Because of the number of entries we receive, it is not possible for us to return any of them.

I have already sent in my submission, can I still make a change?
No, we are unable to locate individual pieces due to the number of entries we receive. If you want to submit additional entries, please submit a new package.

Can we send actual packaging instead of JPGs?
Yes, if it is not too large, or if it is necessary to communicate the entire design.

Can I enter one project into two separate categories?
Yes, just make sure to submit a duplicate entry for each of the categories you are entering and attach a separate entry form on each printed submission.

Can I enter my work as a series?
Yes, but all work in a series must be part of the same campaign. When works are submitted as a series they are judged together as a group. The overall strength of the series depends on each individual piece and its function within the campaign.

If my entry is accepted, what will you use for reproduction?
If your work is accepted we will request necessary reproduction materials at that time.

How do you want trademarks/logos presented?
Send an unmounted output with the trademark/logo (maximum of 4" square) centered on a 8-1/2" x 11" sheet. Text with the client name and nature of the business should appear under the mark for the judges' information.

Where do we put creative credits?
All we need is the contact information of the person submitting the work along with the name of the design firm or agency. Creative credits will be requested if your work is chosen for inclusion in the magazine.

I have a poster bigger than 18" x 24", can I send it in a mailing tube?
We don’t recommend it; mailing tubes (and the posters inside them) usually arrive damaged. If you must send a poster, send it in a flat package or submit JPG files with a resolution of 1024(H) x 768(V) either online or on CD-ROM.

I'm entering a series, do I pay $80.00 for each piece in the series or $80.00 for the whole thing?
$80.00 for the complete series.

We're waiting on the check from our accounting department. Can we have an extension?
Please send your entries now, with a note saying that the check is coming under separate cover. If you submit all of your entries online please write the Communication Arts invoice number on the check. The invoice number can be found in the Entry Forms PDF file.

I don't know which category to put my piece in?
Choose the category that you feel best fits your submission. If we feel another category is more appropriate, we will move it; your work will not be penalized or disqualified.

Do you accept work on disk?
Entries can be submitted as digital files on disk, although it's easier to submit them online. Digital files will be projected for the judges. Submit digital images in JPG format with a maximum width of 1024 pixels and a maximum height of 768 pixels. Images with a vertical format must have a height no greater than 768 pixels. Online design must be submitted on CD-ROM. If the project consists of multiple files such as SWFs, please embed the project in one HTML document. Tape an entry form to the outside of each disk case. Web sites submitted as part of an integrated branding program (7C) should be submitted as a maximum of five hard-copy printouts. For posters over 18" x 24", packaging, displays and signage, submit JPG files with a resolution of 1024(H) x 768(V). Digital files will be projected for the judges. Digital images with a vertical format must have a height no greater than 768 pixels. If your work is a multimedia project you may want to submit it to our Interactive Design competition.

Can I submit multiple entries on one CD?
Yes. Please name the files as instructed on the entry forms generated for you and attach all the entry forms (one for each entry) on the CD case. Please enclose each series in its own folder on the CD.

How do I enter a Web site?
If you would like your project judged for its visual design, submit it as a series of captured screenshots and submit it in the 20F category of the Design Competition. If the Web site is part of an integrated branding program (7C), include captured screen shots and the URL along with all of the other components of the campaign. If it is only the Web site you want judged, enter it in our Interactive Design competition.

Is there a category for student work?
Student work is accepted as long as it was created for an actual client, and not a school project. The Illustration and Photography competitions both have Unpublished categories for student work, but the Design competition does not.

Is there a category for Illustration, Photography and Interactive Media in the Design Competition?
No. Work in these categories should be submitted to the Illustration Competition, Photography Competition and Interactive Design Competition, which are separate juried competitions.

How does the judging takes place?
The nine jurors work in screening teams of three. Judges are not permitted to vote on work they were directly involved in. Each category is distributed into three parts so each group screens one-third of the entries. Print entries are spread out on tables by category. Most categories require several room setups. Each juror views the entries independently. Any juror can put an entry into the final voting by picking it up from the table. Digital entries are selected by checking an "in" or "out" column on prepared scoring sheets. For finals, all nine jurors work as a single team. In one hall, print entries are again spread out on tables by category. Two paper cups, one white and one red, with slots cut in the bottom, are placed upside down to the right of each entry. White cups are for "in" votes, red cups for "out." Each juror votes with different colored ceramic tiles by putting his or her tile in the appropriate cup. After all the jurors finish voting on print, they move to another hall for digital files. Again, voting is done by each juror checking the "in" or "out" column on scoring sheets. Meanwhile, in the print hall, if the votes do not total nine, a check of the tile colors tells the Communication Arts staff which juror has inadvertently missed that piece and he or she is called back to vote. After the judges make their selections, their votes are tallied. A simple majority is usually required for a finalist to be selected a winner.

When will we know if our entry was chosen?
If your entry is chosen we will notify you two months after the deadline date. Because of the number of entries we receive, we can only notify people whose work is accepted.