14 years deep- the biggest, best, and most long-standing video talent search in skiing is back and better than ever!
The basic rules for this year’s contest are pretty much the same- entrants are required to put together a 90-second long video showcasing their skills, talent, bag of tricks, style, and personality. No résumés, no still photos, no comp results- just pure unfiltered video action. Entries will be reviewed and judged by the Level 1 staff and our crew of athletes based on the above criteria and overall impression.
In early March we’ll be dropping Semi-Finalist edits online, followed shortly by 9 Finalists. The 10th Finalist spot? They’ll be chosen by YOU- voted from the crop of Semi-Finalists in an online poll!
We’re then taking the 10 Finalists to a private week-long superpark shoot in late April, where they’ll be joined by a film crew from Level 1, on hand to document all the action. Web updates will be released throughout the week keeping you on top of all the action that goes down! At the end of the week, the Finalists and Level 1 crew will put in their vote for whoever they think is most deserving of the title. The skier with the most votes will take home the official title of SuperUnknown XIV, a cash prize, an invite to join the Level 1 crew for film shoots throughout the rest of the filming schedule, and a foot in the door of the ski industry!
About SuperUnknown
SuperUnknown was started in 2003 to help discover and expose the best unsponsored up and coming talent in the game, and give them a shot at making a name for themselves outside of the traditional competition scene.
The first contest of its kind, entrants were asked to submit a simple promo video showcasing their skills, talent, bag of tricks, style, and personality. No résumés, no still photos, no essay questions- just pure unfiltered video action. Entries were reviewed and judged by Level 1's staff and athletes. The most impressive skier each year took the title and was awarded a chance to film with Level 1 and given a foot in the door of the industry. 14 years deep, SuperUnknown is the biggest and best open video contest in action sports with over 100 entries coming in from top amateurs and the best undiscovered talent around the world.
Check out the recaps from SuperUnknown XIII Finals!
SuperUnknown XIII Finals Part 1
SuperUnknown XIII Finals Part 2
SuperUnknown XIII Finals Part 3
2017 LEVEL 1 SUPERUNKNOWN XIV
OFFICIAL CONTEST RULES AND REGULATIONS:
The SuperUnknown contest is open to amateur athletes worldwide, ages 12 and up. Previous years' Finalists are permitted to enter the contest and they'll be judged on the same criteria as every other entrant.
All entries should be submitted online through the upload form on our website - quick, easy, and painless!
The upload form is open on this page until February, 20th 2017. Upload your video in Quicktime format
(technical details at the bottom) and submit the online entry form and you’re good to go!
Entries should show an athlete’s skill, style, and personality. The video must communicate not only the talent and ability of the athlete, but his or her personality as well, and may include lifestyle, cutaway, and interview shots in addition to action. The contest will be judged, and the Finalists determined, by examining the overall skill, ability, style, and potential of the contestant.
How are we scoring entries this year? There’s no official scoring sheet, but here’s the breakdown on how we’re looking at entries:
10% Personality
20% Technical Ability
30% Style
40% Overall Impression
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Videos must be no longer than 90 seconds (or less)! Anything longer will get you disqualified.
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Videos must be uploaded with the following file name:
YourName LastName SUXIV entry.file (Example: Tom Wallisch SUXIV entry.mov)
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Tricks cannot be repeated, whether they’re rail tricks, jump tricks, etc, show them one time only! It’s fine to show something truly epic from a few different angles, but its not helping you out to show that you can do the same trick more then once.
- Only amateur athletes are considered eligible for the SuperUnknown contest and prizes. How do we define “amateur?” Basically if you’re receiving money as part of a contract beyond equipment and travel support, you are by definition a “pro” and no longer eligible. If you get free skis or someone bought you a plane ticket to get to a contest you’re still good to go in our book. We reserve the right to disqualify entrants if we feel the rules are being bent too far or broken.
- What’s the singular most impressive thing in your entry? Drop it in as the last shot in your vid and we’ll consider that your entry in the Best Trick contest, rewarding the standout shot(s) of the contest! This will be voted on by the online community and awarded separately from the SuperUnknown prize.
- Upon entry, the contestant grants Level 1 the rights to use submitted material as they see fit, in any and all mediums of distribution. Entry materials will not be returned. Online distribution or release of video submissions prior to the announcement of finalists will result in immediate disqualification of the entry, which means KEEP YOUR VIDEO OFF YOUTUBE AND VIMEO until we have announed the finalists, if you want to enter!
- Entries must be received by Monday 11:59pm (MST) February 20th, 2017.
- The contest winners are to be determined by Level 1 and our independent consultants. All decisions are final, and are not subject to dispute. Level 1 reserves the right to make amendments or changes to the rules at any point in time.
- The top 10 Finalists (9 chosen by Level 1 and 1 chosen by public vote from all Semi-Finalists) will be invited to a private week-long superpark shoot at a resort in North America starting in April where they’ll be joined by a film crew from Level 1 to document all the action.
- All finalists will be provided free lodging for the duration of the shoot at the resort, lift access, and transfers to and from the filming venue(s) for the duration of the shoot. All additional travel to and from the resort and/or any additional expenses are the sole responsibility of the entrant.
- In the event that one or more finalists is unable to attend the shoot at the resort, Level 1 reserves the right to fill their spot with another contestant, wildcard, OR leave the spot vacant at our discretion.
The Superunknown XIV winner will receive:
- Cash Prize tba
- An invitation to film and photo shoots for the Fall ’17 Level 1 release.
- Associated Media coverage in related web, magazine, and TV content.
- Inclusion of their promo video for the upcoming season in the Fall ’17 Level 1 release.
The Best Trick winner will receive:
- A full equipment package from Level 1 and our sponsors, some serious bragging rights, and a few other things that we’re still working on…
2017 LEVEL 1 SUPERUNKNOWN XIV TECHNICAL GUIDELINES
Please name your video file in this format: YourName LastName SUXIV entry.file
(Example: Tom Wallisch SUXIV entry.mov)
We highly recommend to render your video as a quicktime (.mov) or mpeg (.mp4) file with H.264 codec. For a video duration of 1:30 minutes this should get you a file size under 1GB, which is also our maximum allowance. The guidelines below should give you a little help.
Codec: H.264
A codec is the format in which your video will be encoded. Level 1 accepts most major video codecs, but for best results we recommend using H.264. If you’re uploading High Definition (HD) video, choose the High Profile H.264 setting instead of Main Profile. To make your uploads extra smooth, choose the following formats whenever possible: .mov or .mp4 (Please no .wmv or .avi)
Frame rate: 24, 25, or 30 FPS (Constant)
Level1 accepts videos with frame rates of 24 (or 23.976), 25, and 30 (or 29.97). If you know the frame rate of your footage, it's best to encode your final video at the same frame rate. Important: Always choose "constant" frame rate instead of "variable" frame rate.
Bit rate: 5,000 kbit/s (720p HD) / 10,000 kbit/s (1080p HD)
Bit rate (aka data rate) controls both the visual quality of the video and its file size. In most video editors, this is measured in kilobits per second (kbit/s). When you have the option, choose a “variable” bit rate and set the target to at least 5,000 kbit/s for HD, 1080p HD footage, we recommend at a bit rate of 10,000 kbit/s.
Resolution: 1920 pixels wide (HD)
The most common setting for HD video is 1920 x 1080 px (16:9 aspect ratio). You can use different aspect ratios as well, as long as it keeps with width to 1920px. And remember, we only judge your skiing. A video in 4k won't automatically qualify you for the Finals!
Audio Codec: AAC-LC (Advanced Audio Codec)
For best results, we recommend using AAC-LC (low complexity) for the audio codec. Data rate: 320 kbit/s. For best results, encode your audio at constant rate of 320 kbit/s. Sample rate: 48 kHz
For best results, set your audio sample rate to 48 kHz. If your working setting is already less than or equal to 48 kHz, leave it as is.
