After the resounding success of 2008, The Daily Star & Standard Chartered's Celebrating Life: A Film, Photography and Lyrics Contest is all set to take off again. Back by popular demand, Celebrating Life 2009 is going to be bigger and better then ever. For those who are not yet familiar, “Celebrating Life” is a composite competition, inviting   films, photographs and lyrics entries that show-case various aspects of life in Bangladesh. Organized jointly by The Daily Star and Standard Chartered, this initiative is our attempt to provide participants with a platform for creative expression, on a scale unprecedented in the local media scene. This year we shall be asking the participants to direct their creative energy towards showcasing women from all walks of lives in Bangladesh. For the Film and Photography contests, send in entries “ Celebrating Womanhood” in Bangladesh. However, we strongly encourage participants not to limit themselves to urban settings, but to deal with rural Bangladesh as well. For the lyrics contest, we shall be asking for entries focusing on theme “Maa”.

Participants are allowed to submit a maximum of 3 entries per person. A jury board composed of eminent personalities & experts in the field will judge the submissions, amongst which three winners will be selected ho will receive certificates, crests and cash prizes. The winner will receive a cash prize of Tk. 40,000, the 1 st runner's up entry will receive Tk. 30,000 and the 2 nd runner's up entry will receive Tk. 20,000. Nine additional entries will receive honorable mention awards and certificates. Only digital pictures will be accepted in CD format, the minimum acceptable resolution is 1500 pixels. Once the preliminary selection is finalized, the  participants shall print out the chosen photographs and re-submit. The organizers have the right to disqualify any entry without any prior notification due to non-adherence to technical guidelines, or unacceptable nature of the content of the images. No submission can be returned to the participant. Selected photographs will be featured in a district level festival all around Bangladesh. The top three winners of the photography competition will have an opportunity to work with The Daily Star as apprentices.

All selected photographs will become the property of The Daily Star and Standard Chartered and the organizers will gain rights over any form of usage. The winning photographs will also be featured on calendars; credit lines will be provided on any form of usage.

The length of the films should be between 20 - 45 minutes.  All the submissions must be in DVD format for preview purposes. Winners will be asked to provide master copies of their awarded films in DVCAM master format. Submissions must be original and unpublished work of the filmmakers. No submission can be returned to the participant. A jury board consisting of experts in the field will judge the submissions, and the best submissions will be awarded in the following categories: Best Documentary, Best Short Fiction, Best Debut Documentary and Best Debut Short Fiction. The winning films will be broadcasted on Channel I and shall be screened in a touring festival program in twelve districts across Bangladesh. Eminent film directors have shown interest in working closely with the top two winners of this contest for upcoming projects. Cash awards equal to Tk. 100,000 will be given to each of the two Best films, and Tk. 50,000 to each of the two Best Debut Films. The winners will also receive certificates and crests.

The Daily Star-Standard Chartered and the maker of the films will have rights over usage of the winning films for public screening, television screening, charity purposes and for other promotional purposes either individually or as joint events.

The lyrics contest shall be motivating young lyricists and poets to write under the theme “ Celebrating Womanhood: Maa”.  Entries can be in both English and Bengali, and participants can submit a maximum of three entries per person. A jury board composed of eminent personalities/experts in the field will judge the submissions, amongst which ten winners will be selected in two categories – five for “English Lyrics”, and five for “Bengali Lyrics”, who will receive certificates, crests and cash prizes. The winning entries in either category will receive Tk. 15,000 each; the 1 st runner's up entries in either category will receive Tk. 10,000 and the 2 nd runner's up entries in either category will receive Tk. 7,000. The rest of the ten winners, 4 th and 5 th , in either category will receive Tk. 3,000 each. Lyrics should be submitted in the form of computer printed hard copies. No submission can be returned to the participant. Renowned music directors and artists will compose songs based on the winning lyrics, and young and veteran singers will give voice to the songs. These songs will be featured on CDs. The prize-winning songs will also be featured in a district level festival all around Bangladesh.

All lyrics will become the property of The Daily Star and Standard Chartered who will gain rights over any form of usage.

For Further Information:

Address: Celebrating Life, The Daily Star, 19, Karwan Bazaar, Dhaka 1215.

E-mail: celebratinglife.contest@gmail.com

Website: www.celebratinglifebd.com