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YouTube Announces Sketch Comedy Contest
On Thursday the Web video giant will launch a new nine-week competition called "YouTube Sketchies" where comedy groups will face off in Web vids. The first round will be judged by Hollywood industry pros, and then the YouTube community will choose a winner.
The contest is being sponsored by PepsiCo's Sierra Mist, and the winners will receive "a brand assignment and a production budget" to create a comedy short to be featured on the company's site. Winners will also get to meet The Lonely Island, Adam Samberg's sketch group, which was behind the YouTube hit video "Lazy Sunday." A quote and some details from the press release:
"Some of the best YouTube comedians use the episodic format and they've been hugely popular as a result. We've seen an evolution on YouTube from one hit viral videos, to people building passionate audiences that tune in to see every new video," said Jamie Byrne, head of product marketing, YouTube. "Smosh, Chad Vader and The Lonely Island exemplify the type of comedians we expect people to discover during the YouTube Sketchies."
Three Round Elimination Format
Round 1
Submissions for first round of the YouTube Sketchies begins on May 24 and ends on May 31. A panel of top Hollywood agents, writers, producers and executives will choose 20 finalists from the entries submitted based on criteria provided by renowned sketch comedians, The Lonely Island and YouTube. Those top 20 will be presented to the YouTube community on June 7 to determine which 10 move to the next round. Voting ends on June 13.
Round 2
The top 10 creators from the first round of voting will develop and contribute a second episode for the YouTube Community to vote on by June 19. The community voting period will be held from June 20 through June 27 when the top five sketch comedians will be chosen to move on to the third and final round of voting.
Round 3
The top five creators will be asked to submit a third and final video by July 3 for the YouTube community to vote on. The community voting period will be from July 4 through July 11 and the winning series will be unveiled on YouTube on July 12.
The YouTube Sketchies Contest Details
Each entry must be an original video from an aspiring content creator and be less than three minutes in length. The Sketchies is open to U.S. legal residents only.
