Village Gamer

Wacom is currently running its Summer of Sharing contest for non-professional photographers and artists who use either the Intuos or Bamboo tablets. This contest is open to residents of Canada (excluding Quebec) and the United States who are over the age of 18.

To define “non-professional”, Wacom’s rules states that “entry must be enthusiast work only (no professional artwork). An enthusiast is defined as someone who enjoys their digital imagery, art and photos, but who does not make their living from the craft.

The contest is open for submissions until August 31st, with voting to start on September 1st. When you submit your artwork, you will need to tell Wacom a bit about how you created it using your Wacom Intuos or Bamboo pen tablet. The contest is open to all genres and personal styles: illustrations, caricatures, digital painting, anime, created with your favorite software.

As an added twist – this is a contest, after all –  you’ll have the chance to earn some serious cash, software, and gear. A Wacom panel of judges will hand-pick a select number of entrants to participate in our Fall 2011 program to showcase pen tablet techniques. This is a totally eclectic process, and entrants will be chosen at the full discretion of the Wacom panel, based on submissions and your answers to questions about how you use your tablet.

If you are going to SIGGRAPH 2011, you can visit Wacom on the expo floor in Booth 825.

A five-member team of high school students from Swan Valley Regional Secondary School, Manitoba beat out more than 50 other teams to win the 2011 Canon Envirothon, a week-long North American environmental education competition sponsored by Canon U.S.A. Inc., a leader in digital imaging. The winning team was announced on Thursday, July 28th, during closing ceremonies at Mount Allison University in Sackville, New Brunswick.

The 54 teams representing 45 U.S. states, eight Canadian provinces and one Canadian territory tested their knowledge on various environmental issues and resource conservation, while competing for a share of over $125,000 in scholarships and Canon products.

“We’re extremely proud of the victory by the Swan Valley Regional Secondary School team and the efforts put forward by all of the other teams,” said Colleen Ryan, Senior Director of Corporate Communications at Canon Canada. “To see Swan Valley win and have West Hill Secondary School from Owen Sound, Ontario and Oromocto High School from Oromocto, New Brunswick in the Top five is a testament to the commitment and dedication these young people have made to the Envirothon program since its introduction to Canada in 2000. We’re thrilled to support Canadian students in this program.”

The first-place winners, Swan Valley Regional Secondary School team, received a total of $25,000 in Canon scholarships.  West Hill Secondary School, Owen Sound, Ontario ($20,000), and Spartanburg High School, South Carolina ($15,000), placed second and third, respectively. The fourth-place team, Oromocto High School, Oromocto, New Brunswick, received $10,000, and the fifth-place team, Housatonic Valley Agriscience, Connecticut, received $7,500. Teams that placed first through tenth received Canon products for their advisors and sponsoring agencies/organizations to use in science education. The list of schools/organizations finishing in the top 10 appears at the end of this announcement.

The top 10 teams at the 2011 Canon Envirothon:

1. Swan Valley Regional Secondary School, Swan Valley, Manitoba
2. West Hill Secondary School, Owen Sound, Ontario
3. Spartanburg High School, Spartanburg, South Carolina
4. Oromocto High School, Oromocto, New Brunswick
5. Housatonic Valley Agriscience, Falls Village, Connecticut
6. West Johnston High School, Benson, North Carolina
7. Fort Defiance High School, Fort Defiance, Virginia
8. Middleton High School, Middleton, Wisconsin
9. Jupiter High School, Jupiter, Florida
10. The Wheeler School, Providence, Rhode Island

Each team is made up of five students that previously won their state or provincial competition and came together to compete in categories including aquatics, ecology, forestry, soil and land use, and wildlife. Each year an additional topic is included that is based upon a current environmental issue. For 2011, the topic was salt and freshwater estuaries.

Since 1997, Canon U.S.A. has been the title sponsor of this annual competition. The Canon Envirothon is the culmination of a series of competitions that began during the past school year and involved more than 500,000 high school students throughout North America.  In written tests and oral presentations, starting at the local level, winning teams from schools and organizations competed for the distinction of representing their state, province or territory at the Canon Envirothon.

Celebrating its 25^th anniversary in 2012, the competition will be held at Susquehanna University in Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania.

The Khronos Group has announced a 3D content development contest with a $500 cash prize for the winner. The open COLLADA format is ideal for creating compelling experiences, but a great example is worth a thousand words. This is where you come in. Help Khronos show the power of COLLADA by creating a compelling piece of 3D content the group can use as an example for its large and growing developer community.

Deadline is Sunday August 7th, 2011 at 11:59PM PST. The winner will be announced at our event at the SIGGRAPH 2011 conference in Vancouver and be awarded the $500. For full details on how to take part please read the Design Brief on the contest page.

Sirius XM Canada today revealed the winning communities for the inaugural Face the Music Summer Concert Series. After earning the highest average score within their region playing SiriusXM’s Face the Music Challenge, residents of Telkwa BC, Sault Ste. Marie ON, Baie-Comeau QC, and Sussex NB will receive an exclusive free summer concert experience in August courtesy of SiriusXM Canada.

Launched in June, the Face the Music challenge tested Canadians music knowledge for an opportunity to win an exclusive free concert experience for their hometown. The game awarded points for correctly identifying songs based on SiriusXM’s commercial-free music playlist. With more than 100,000 games played since launch, participation was strong with many Canadians taking to Twitter and Facebook to encourage their friends and neighbours to compete for their communities.

SiriusXM Canada subscribers and local game participants will be invited to the exclusive concerts. A number of select promotional tickets will be made available to area residents.

In addition, a grand prize consisting of a trip for 2 to attend the concert of the winner’s choice, spending money and a Sirius Satellite Radio with subscription will be awarded to the individual with the highest score. Nine secondary prizes will also be awarded.

The four exclusive free concert experiences include:

“We’re thrilled that Telkwa, Sault Ste. Marie, Baie-Comeau and Sussex are our Face the Music winners,” said Paul Cunningham, Vice President, Sales and Marketing, SiriusXM Canada. “It was terrific to see such strong community participation and with over 100,000 games played, it seems that everyone had a lot of fun. We’re proud to reward the winning communities with a free and exclusive concert experience from these incredibly talented Canadian artists.”

“Really looking forward to getting out to BC and rocking for you folks,” remarked John-Angus MacDonald of The Trews. “Congrats on the big win and thanks to everyone who participated. I’m sure it’ll be a grand ol’ time. Cheers!”

“From all of us in Broken Social Scene, we just want to thank the people of Sault Ste. Marie that took the time to play the game,” commented Brendan Canning of Broken Social Scene. “We’re really looking forward to heading out and playing for all of our fans out there.”

“It’s cool that the Sirius Face The Music Summer Concert series puts the power in the hands of local communities to bring one of the shows of the summer to their hometown,” said Eon Sinclair of Bedouin Soundclash.  “You have to know your music, listen in, answer quickly, and rally your people online to make it happen – looking forward to sharing a wicked night of Canadian music with everyone in Sault Ste. Marie.”

“I think it’s an incredible idea to give people a chance to put their musical knowledge to use to try to win my show in their city,” says Marie-Mai.  “Rock on Baie-Comeau!”

“Congratulations to all those who played and who know their rock,” commented Alfa Rococo.  “We cannot wait to play in Baie-Comeau!”

“It’s great how many people played to get us to come to their hometown,” said Dallas Green of City and Colour. “I’m really looking forward to coming to New Brunswick and performing for everyone.”

The Recycling Council of British Columbia (RCBC) is proud to announce that the Trailer Trashed 2011 competition is now open. Trailer Trashed is the environmental short film competition with a twist – all entries must be in the form of a movie trailer and convey this year’s waste reduction theme, The Unrecycled. Please see the competition web site for full details and contest rules.

Last year, 280 million beverage containers were not recycled in B.C. Despite the convenience of depots, return-to-retail options and the incentive of refundable deposits, containers are still trashed. Studies show there’s one group collectively responsible for 242 million of these missing containers. They’re mostly single, mostly male, and for the most part, aged 18-34. The other thing they mostly have in common is watching movies. That’s why RCBC wants filmmakers to help change this wasteful behaviour by making a movie! A movie trailer to be exact; a spectacular, entertaining movie trailer to enlighten this group to return their containers, collect their deposits, and help save the planet, one bottle and can at a time.

You can use animation, live action, claymation, Lego, toy soldiers or sock puppets, in any genre you like such as drama, horror, comedy, sci-fi, action, romance, musical, parody, satire or wherever you creative energies take you.

Anyone can enter, young or old, amateur or professional, as long as your entry is engaging, entertaining and enlightening. Enter as many films as you like. The trailers will be judged by a panel of RCBC staff, sponsor representatives and film industry experts. First prize is $2000 and HD video camera, second place is $1000 and third place is $500 plus all the fame and glory you can handle. Yes, fame and glory because these trailers will be used in a viral internet campaign to put an end to . . . THE UNRECYCLED!

Trailer Trashed is generously sponsored by Encorp Pacific, Belkorp Environmental Services Inc., London Drugs, the B.C. Film Commission and Warner Bros.

Last night at Casual Connect in Seattle, Toronto’s  TransGaming Inc. announced that Yo Deshi by Scottish developer Proper Games had been declared the winner of the company’s $ 50 000.00 GameTree Developer Competition.

Yo Deshi is a cerebral martial arts-themed board game that challenges players of all levels with a unique multi-player puzzle experience. Gamers can experience the excitement of incredible gains and stunning losses as they engage both real and simulated opponents with a range of thought-provoking strategies. Featuring highly immersive and fully customizable gameplay, the game was chosen as the grand prize winner of TransGaming’s GameTree Developer Competition.

The influential celebrity judges included actor, director, producer and writer LeVar Burton, President of Development at Jerry Bruckheimer Games Inc., Jay Cohen, and Lorne Lanning, co-founder of Oddmobb, Inc. The competition was launched in January,  with developers being offered the chance to win $50,000 and have their game featured on the GameTree TV platform for Smart TV, making it accessible to millions of Smart TV users as the GameTree TV market adoption continues to grow.

“We were highly impressed by the level of skill that all the finalists demonstrated. In the end it came down to talent, attention to detail and the overall quality of the winning game,” said panel judge LeVar Burton. “We’ve been able to offer developers the chance to reach a global audience with GameTree TV, a fantastic opportunity for a new developer eager to make their mark on the industry. It’s an exciting time for developers as the way we all interact with games and entertainment on a daily basis is changing rapidly, and TransGaming is playing a vital part in that process.”

If you are interested in developing titles playable on the GameTree TV platform, visit the GameTree Developer Portal to find out how to have your games published on Smart TV systems around the world. Other games in this first competition included Smiles HD by Canadian developer Sykhronics Entertainment and Bubblenauts: The Hunt For Jolly Roger’s Treasure by Western Star Entertainment of Oregon.

“Our passion for discovering, promoting and distributing the innovative content developed by the incredibly talented independent game development community is the main reason we decided to run this competition. We received an overwhelming response from developers around the world and were thrilled by the quality of the submissions,” commented Vikas Gupta, CEO & President of TransGaming. “GameTree TV is emerging as a top new gaming platform and we are extremely happy that Yo Deshi, and all of our finalists, are going to be part of the experience. My sincere congratulations go out to Yo Deshi and Proper Games.”

On Sunday July 27th, the final votes for the 8 developer selections for the Indie Games Summer Uprising were tallied and the organizers are now ready to announce the titles of the games which will headline the promotion:

The next step in the competition will begin on  Monday, August 1st and run until Sunday August 14th, when fans will have the opportunity to choose two titles that they would like to see as part of the promotion on any of the remaining candidates from the IGSU entries page. Voting will take place on the IGSU Facebook page. Winners will be announced during the #IGSU Twitter Chat.

The #IGSU Twitter Chat will be held on Tuesday Aug 16th – 9PM EST, and the gaming community will have the ability to speak directly with the developers, organizers, and journalists in a roundtable style chat. As mentioned before, the two winners from the fan vote will be announced at this time as well.

Indie Games Uprising Summer Schedule:

August 1st – August 15th: Community voting for 2 additional titles they would most like to play.
Tuesday August 16th – 9PM EST: IGSU Developer Twitter chat, community winners announced
August 22nd – September 2nd: Promotion and release of 8 developer and 2 community voted titles

The She’s Connected Conference is taking place in Toronto this September 29th and 30th – but you can’t just buy tickets to attend. Instead, attendees are chosen for their digital reach and influence. Last year, 100 women were hand-picked to attend She’s Connected, which is for women who want to work with brands. This year, 200 women will be given tickets and the chance to meet with the people behind the brands.

In a quote on the event’s web site, Founder and CEO Donna Marie Antoniadis explained the philosophy behind She’s Connected, stating “we created the She’s Connected Network four-and-a-half years ago to help you connect with other women and organize your busy life. Now, we’re giving you an opportunity to increase your influence by building relationships with Brands face-to-face.”

The requirements for getting tickets is quite simple, with the basics being that  you are active across all major social networks and have established relationships with other influential women. In addition, you must also meet the following conditions:

• You are a member of She’s Connected
• You are Canadian
• You are extremely active across all social media (Blogs, Twitter, Facebook, etc.)
• You post frequently on Blogs, Twitter and Facebook
• You post high quality content
• You are eager to work with Brands
• You fit the target demographic our sponsors are looking for

The conference highlights the following opportunities for learning and networking:

• How to work with digitally connected women: Approaches to maximize your relationships for social reach and benefit
• Proper disclosure policies: Ensuring that you’re following best practices online to protect your brand
• The best way to execute product posts and giveaways: Tips and tricks that digital women and brands can benefit from
• Great interactive sessions with Brands & Women: A chance to get product information out there
• Lots of networking: Building relationships that will move past the conference
• Product display in exhibition area: Get products into women’s hands
• Live tweeting and promotions: Your brand message will be included
• Foursquare promotions: Drive traffic to your booth

Note that while those chosen to attend the conference are given free admittance, attendees are required to pay their own travel and hotel costs.

The Canadian National Institute for the Blind has announced that Winnipeg resident Tara Miller is the winner of the organization’s national Eye Remember photo contest. Miller’s stunning photo, entitled “Fortuitous Twilight,” captured the attention of CNIB’s celebrity photographer judges, who were not aware the entrant had any vision problem whatsoever, let alone having only 10 per cent vision in her left eye.

Fortuitous Twilight by Tara Miller

Miller’s photo, which was voted to win by more than 2,000 Canadian users on the contest’s website, was one of 128 submissions by people who are sighted, partially-sighted and blind across the country.
Miller, who began to lose her vision to glaucoma in childhood, says she takes photos by using what little sight she has to plan and frame the shot. Once shooting is complete, she hooks her camera up to a large 27-inch monitor and blows the image up to 200 per cent so she can see the results.

“People with vision loss can do the same things as sighted people, but just in a different way,” says Miller.

As the contest winner, Miller and a guest will be heading to Quebec City, Quebec, later this year for a free weekend hotel stay and an opportunity to explore and photograph the historic city.

As a CNIB client who has taken advantage of many of the charity’s rehabilitation services for Canadians with vision loss, Miller says she has learned the skills she needs to live independently despite her blindness. Working one-on-one with CNIB’s specialists, Miller learned to travel on the bus independently, use a computer, and take care of her home and family .

“I am so proud of myself for my abilities and I thank the staff at CNIB for helping me,” says Miller.

Supported by an unrestricted educational grant from Pfizer, CNIB’s Eye Remember photo contest is designed to educate Canadians about the importance of detecting glaucoma early in life and to remember to be proactive about their vision health.

Otherwise known as the “silent thief,” glaucoma usually progresses slowly and painlessly; therefore, it’s possible to have glaucoma without noticing any symptoms or major changes to your eyesight. Glaucoma is the second most common case of irreversible vision loss in seniors and affects more than 250,000 Canadians.

The World Youth & Student Travel Conference and its 2011 marketing partner Internet Advantage are organizing the first annual App Yap Contest to find the best travel app in the youth travel industry.

They are looking for apps that help young travellers in their journeys, from inspiration to planning to saving memories. The winning app will enhance the traveller’s experience and stand out from other travel apps with its original, youthful design, easy to use navigation, user-centric focus and hopefully,a bit of fun.

The contest is open to developers around the globe, however only one app submission is permitted per company.The winning app must be suitable to use before, during or after travelling. The app should be aimed at young individuals (under 35 years old), a group of young travellers, or those who organize or provide travel services for young travellers.

Conference Director Michael Palmer enthused, “We are all very energised by the launch of the App Yap Contest. The benefits for the winning company are tenfold. Not only will they receive valuable exposure and increased usage of their app, they will also be able to interact with other youth travel mobile app creators. And of course, the winner will gain recognition as a technology savvy company by earning the title ‘The provider of the best in youth travel mobile applications,’ which they can use to further market their app.”

In line with young traveller’s heavy use of social media, the App Yap Contest is being promoted on social media channels such as the new WYSTC Facebook page, the WYSTC Twitter account and WYSE Travel Confederation’s Linkedin Group.

The Top 10 Finalists will have the chance to present their app at the World Youth & Student Travel Conference being held in Barcelona September 20th through 23rd 2011, in front of 800 delegates looking to find new features for their travel companies. WYSTC attendees are decision makers, holding senior-level positions in youth travel companies from over 80 countries around the world: CEOs, owners, partners, presidents and directors.

The winner of the App Yap Contest will receive a prize worth over 5000 EUR:

•     Two free registrations to WYSTC 2012 (worth 3200 EUR)
•     Online marketing services provided by Internet Advantage (to a value of 2000 EUR)
•     The winner will present the app in a live webinar for the WYSE Travel Confederation community
•     Plenty of free publicity and recognition for being the best app in the youth travel industry

Voting will begin online in mid-July and run until midnight CET 22 September 2011. Entries must be received by midnight CET 31 August 2011. The winner will be announced at the Industry Awards Luncheon on Friday 23 September, the closing day of WYSTC.