SaberComp 2024 Official Rules

Prizes

Thank you to this year’s sponsor: CoastalSabers. Please visit their website to see their catalog. Exact prizes will be determined and announced at a later date.

Judging Criteria

• There will be four judges this year.

• The committee of judges will determine their top ten favorite nominees.

• Nominees will duke it out in a live judging on SaberComp’s official YouTube page on a date to be decided.

• Winning entries will be awarded best choreography, production design, cinematography, editing, and VFX, respectively.

Tips

• Keep YouTube’s content guidelines in mind when it comes to music. Copyrighted stuff will likely get muted or ads placed upon it. It also runs the risk of being blocked in some countries.

• Follow your regional guidelines regarding safety and social distancing.

• Be safe!

• Have fun!

Judging will be based on five categories: Choreography, Production Design, Cinematography, Editing, and VFX.

Pre-Production (Story)

This category is based on the quality of your storytelling, what are your characters struggling with, what sort of interplay is happening between each character’s saber swings? A good fight scene or action scene isn’t great because of its choreography and move sets, it’s great because we care about the people fighting.

Production (Choreography, Cinematography, Production Design)

This category is based on your shot selection and shot movements and anything involved with the filmmaking process, from cinematography to set design and choreography. Is your camera another participant in your duel? Is it involved with the fight in a significant way? How about your color settings? Does it represent the mood of the fight? Costumes and set design, are they all working in concert? Keep this all in mind as you shoot your videos. 

Post-Production (Editing, VFX, and Sound Design)

This category is based on how you cut the action together. Editing dictates the pace of your fight. Are you choosing long shots for more tension or fast cuts for more kinetic energy? How are you choosing the sequencing of your shots, and are they the best choices to represent the feeling you want your audience to experience? 

No lightsaber duel has been brought to life without the aid of visual effects. Whether you're blurring once-twice-thrice or matching your grain one channel at a time, do your sabers feel like they fit within your scene? Is your rotoscoping top-notch? Are you employing invisible effects to help tell your story? Feel free to release a VFX breakdown with your entry! And don't forget: the judge’s panel usually consists of one or two industry professionals who got their start with lightsabers in the backyard.

And don’t forget that sound will bring all of this together. Don’t skimp on one of the most overlooked parts of the process.