AMV CONTEST
Applications for the AMV Contest will open Feb 1st and close March 15th. The form will be accessible here.
We will manage applications through Google Forms. Due to storage limitations, applicants will need to submit a shareable link through which the DashCon 2 team can watch the video. (For example, videos may be sent through Dropbox, OneDrive, or YouTube links, either public or unlisted.) It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure that the link is accessible without the DashCon 2 team needing to manually request access.
The AMV Showcase is divided into two parts: the AMV Contest, which will happen in-person at the convention, and the Virtual Showcase, which will take place at VirtualDash on its Discord server.
Contest entries will be evaluated by a panel of judges. In general, judges are looking for creativity, editing quality, and a recognizable narrative/core theme(s).
Videos submitted for competition will also be screened at the Virtual Showcase. AMVs submitted exclusively to the Virtual Showcase will not be evaluated by judges, so entering is a relaxed, fun way to show off your creative work to other people.
Categories
Your Attractive Heading
| 2026 Challenge: Tumblr Fandoms! | Past and present, from SuperWhoLock to Hazbin Hotel, it counts as long as it’s had a notable fandom presence on Tumblr at any point in history. |
| Drama | Serious, storytelling type AMVs go in here. |
| Comedy | Silly AMVs! |
| Experimental | Any submission that doesn’t fit into the above categories goes here |
| Short | No genre limit, only a temporal one: the video must be between 15 and 45 seconds. The name “Short” does not imply vertical video; videos should be horizontal, as they will be screened on standard widescreen monitors/projectors. |
To compete in the AMV Contest, any AMV entered will need to be assigned an appropriate category. Videos compete for the top spot within their specific category.
The general category types are not expected to change much year after year, with the exception of the Challenge category. That will change yearly for the sake of freshness. For our debut year, we simply had to pick Tumblr Fandoms.
Judges reserve the right to move a video to another category if they feel it has been mislabeled.
Rules and Regulations
Entries to the Contest are limited to one entry per category per creator, for a maximum total of three entries per creator. Virtual Showcase entries are limited to three entries per creator.
Permitted
- Media. You may use almost any kind! Anime or other animation, game footage, live-action TV shows, etc cetera.
- Age Rating. The overall AMV video should be rated no more severely than PG-13. The source material does not need to be PG-13 as long as the final product would be appropriate for a PG-13 audience.
- Files. Keep files under 2GB and in .mp4 format.
- Duration. Videos must be 1:30-5:30 minutes in length in all categories except Short; 15-45 seconds in Short.
- Editing. Videos must contain actual editing. They don’t need to be complex, but must be creative!
- Audio Splicing. Audio splicing and use of dialogue from the original media is permitted, but must be used sparingly.
- Crediting. Submissions should contain only video edited by the entrant(s). All participating editors must be included in the initial application.
Prohibited
- Media. Do not use footage of a real life person that is not playing a character. Please do not submit your Dan and Phil AMV. (This restriction extends to special guests – AMVs should not be made of Strange Aeons, Xiran Jay Zhao, or any other content creator attending DashCon 2.)
- Content Moderation. Explicit sexual content and graphic violence are not allowed.
- Files. Oversized files and any file type other than .mp4 will be rejected automatically.
- Freshness. At time of submission, videos cannot be more than two years old. (*)
- Copyright. Submissions cannot contain corporate logos or personal watermarks.
- Commendation. Do not submit any video that has already received an award or any formal recognition from another competition. (*)
- Conflict of Interest. Judges may not participate. (*)
- Audio Splicing. Excessive use of audio splicing is prohibited. What counts as ‘excessive’ is up to the judges’ discretion.
- Plagiarism. Any video found to be plagiarized from other editors will be disqualified.
* Not applicable to the Virtual Showcase
Inspiration
For those not sure what to use for the Challenge category Tumblr Fandoms, here is a short list of possible media:
- Supernatural
- Doctor Who
- (BBC) Sherlock
- Undertale/Deltarune
- Gravity Falls
- Hazbin Hotel
- Danny Phantom
- Pokémon
- Ouran High School Host Club
- Kingdom Hearts
- Sailor Moon
- Naruto
- My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
- Rise of the Brave Tangled Dragons
Pom Gets Wifi
FAQs
Do I need a ticket to compete?
No. You do not need to attend the IRL competition to enter the Contest, nor VirtualDash to submit to the Showcase. However, due to limited screening space and time, we will be prioritizing attendee entries to the Contest. Non-attendees may still submit their work to the Contest, but if there isn’t enough space, their submissions may only be played during the Virtual Showcase.
Why can I only submit one video per category, and yet a maximum of three videos? Aren’t there five categories?
Entrants can submit a maximum of three videos to the Contest and the Virtual Showcase respectively (therefore six videos total for the entirety of the AMV Showcase). This means that entrants can’t compete in every category, and will have to choose their top three if they want to compete in multiple. Only one video may be submitted per category, meaning that the allotted three videos will need to go into separate categories. (For example, an entrant could not submit two videos to the 2026 Challenge. They would need to rescind one video, or find a different category for the second video to compete under.)
How many videos can win per category/superlative?
Categories (e.g. 2026 Challenge) and superlatives (e.g. Period Piece) will have only one winner each.
Is there a reward for winning?
Yes! We haven’t decided exactly what yet, but the winners of each category will receive a small prize.
What’s the difference between a category and a superlative?
Every video sent to the AMV Contest will have been assigned an appropriate category to compete under. Conversely, superlatives cannot be submitted to directly, and will be awarded from among the entire body of videos submitted to the Contest. Trying to win a superlative can guide stylistic choice, but the AMV will need to be assigned some competitive category regardless. (When in doubt, select ‘Experimental’.)
Can a category winner also win a superlative?
No.
What does the judging panel look like?
Ruby, our accessibility coordinator, will be leading the Contest. She has competed in multiple AMV contests and has been an active member in the AMV community for years. Beyond her, the judging panel will comprise an uneven number of judges (either three or five) who will all have equal voting power.
Can I apply to be a judge on the panel?
If you feel you could make a meaningful contribution, feel free to email activities@dashcontwo.com. However, please be aware that as a judge, you are prohibited from competing.