Eligible films will incorporate any known animation technique, including CGI, stop-motion, Flash, hand-drawn/cel, live-action mixed, claymation, paper-cut, Pixilation, RotoScope, 3D, machinima, and all others. There are no restrictions on production year or whether the film has been previously distributed or entered into any online and/or offline film festival. The award categories are as follows:

*    HUMOR: Cartoons/animation that look at life slightly askew
*    FANTASY: Sci-fi, horror, adventure, outer space, imaginary worlds, genre-based
*    REAL LIFE: Animated documentary, RotoScope, interview-based films
*    ANIME: Manga, Japanimation, comics-inspired
*    MINIS: Under 60 seconds

The Babelgum Animatron Film Festival will award the following prizes:

* The Audience Awards will be given to an outstanding film in each category receiving the highest number of votes determined solely by the voting totals from the global online and mobile Babelgum and Hamptons audiences.  

* The Jury Awards will be given to an outstanding film in each of the five categories, determined by members of the Jury. Five first-place winners will receive a $2,500 cash award and five second-place winners will receive a $500 cash award.

* The Grand Jury Award will be given to an outstanding film in any category, chosen by members of the Jury. The winner will receive a $5,000 cash award.

Submissions will be accepted starting today until 11:59 PM EST on August 22nd, 2010. Further information about the submission specifications and regulations, including deadlines for viewing and voting, are available at www.babelgum.com/animation-film-festival.

About Hamptons International Film Festival
The Hamptons International Film Festival was founded to celebrate the Independent film - long, short, fiction and documentary - and to introduce a unique, varied spectrum of international films and filmmakers to the public. The Festival is committed to exhibiting films that express fresh voices and differing global perspectives, with the hope that these programs will enlighten audiences, provide invaluable exposure for filmmakers and present inspired entertainment for all. For more information about the Festival, and to become a member, please visit our website at www.hamptonsfilmfest.org.

About RingTales (www.ringtales.com)
RingTales is a new media company founded by Jim Cox and Michael Fry that animates print comics for all digital media. RingTales holds the exclusive rights to animate Dilbert and the New Yorker Cartoons and several other popular comics including Pearls Before Swine, Bloom County, Over the Hedge, Cul de Sac, Lio, and Pooch Café.  RingTales animations have been viewed over 180 million times since March 2007. Jim Cox is a long-time feature animation writer and producer. His credits include co-executive producer on the 2006 DreamWorks Animation feature animated hit Over the Hedge, writer/producer on Ferngully, story on Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, and screenwriter on The Rescuers Down Under and Oliver & Company. Michael Fry is a four-time internationally syndicated cartoonist. He currently writes the comic strip Over the Hedge, which inspired the DreamWorks Animation film of the same name that earned $335 million dollars in worldwide box office.

About Shooting People (www.shootingpeople.org)
Shooting People is the world's largest networking organization dedicated to the support and promotion of independent filmmaking. Over 35,000 members in the UK and US share tips recommendations and news using Shooting People's website, the nine Daily Bulletins to get their films cast and crewed, and individual Member Profiles to exhibit themselves and their work to their peers, the industry and the world. Founded in 1998 by filmmakers Jess Search and Cath le Couteur, Shooting People’s patrons include Mike Figgis (Founder Patron), Sally Potter, Morgan Spurlock, Christine Vachon, Michael Nyman, Penny Woolcock, and Jason Solomons.

About Babelgum (www.babelgum.com)