​BIG Festival Rules
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BIG Festival – Brazil’s Independent Games Festival ("Festival") is held by Bits Producoes Ltda. ("Production Company"), thanks to the sponsorship and support of the companies listed on this Website. The Festival is a cultural contest that will award the best games selected by the Guest Jury and by the Selection Committee, as described below in the Prizes section.

All information about the Festival will be available through the Website www.bigfestival.com.br ("Website"). The Website will also centralize all Festival information and communication, including registration for the Festival, activity dates, lists of finalists, and access to information about the games selected and submitted to the Festival.
All those who submit games to participate in the Festival ("Contestants") declare to know and accept the Festival Rules and the Terms of Use of this Website.

       1. Who can participate?

1.1 We accept the participation of any person or company representative of any nationality that is interested in submitting games to compete for the prizes offered. Contestants who are underage must be properly authorized by their legal guardians.

1.2 The participation of employees of the Production Company or of the companies sponsoring the Festival, as well as their respective relatives up to the second degree, spouses and any persons involved directly in the implementation of the Festival, is prohibited.

       2. Which games can participate?

2.2 ​We will accept all kinds of digital games, for any platform, console or media that's officially available for purchase by the general public and provided they are in a state to be played and evaluated by the Selection Committee.

2.3 In the event the game has already been released commercially, the release must have taken place up to two years prior to the date of the Festival.

2.4 Each competitor can submit as many games as desired. However, a registration form must be completed for each title, free of charge.

2.5 Games that have previously participated in any competitive category from other editions of the Festival will not be selected.

       3. How to participate

To participate, a Contestant must access the submission form at the Festival’s Website fill, and submit it according to the instructions.

3.1 The submission form may be accessed through links from the home page or through the following links:

• in English: http://www.bigfestival.com.br/submit.html
• in Portuguese: http://www.bigfestival.com.br/inscreva-se.html

3.2 Only one game is accepted for each submission form filled and submitted.

3.3 The Contestant has provide access to the game through any of the following means:
- direct download through a download URL;
- direct access to a site where the game can be played through a URL;
- submitting access codes or keys that grant access to the game (see item 3.7.1).

3.4 Only games submitted through the forms indicated above will be accepted.
 
3.5 The Competitor must submit a video of the game via Youtube or Vimeo with maximum duration of 3 (three) minutes. The video must contain a synthesis of the gameplay, emphasizing the main aspects of your game, like mechanics, level design, game modes, interfaces, art direction, sound design, narrative, innovation aspects, among other elements that you consider relevant. You may use texts or voice-over comments.

3.6 The mean of submission chosen must work appropriately when accessed from Brazil.

3.7 Registration is free, but the Selection Committee will not bear any cost to purchase or play the game. In the event payment is required in order to have access to the game, the Contestant must offer 10 coupons or free access codes, that must be made available through the submission form.

3.7.1 If your game is selected, the Contestant must provide an additional 5 (five) keys, coupons or free access codes.

3.8 In the case of multiplayer games that need a server, we only accept games that run on online servers.

3.8.1 The responsibility for the proper functioning of the online server is exclusive to the person or company in charge of the game. The Festival will not inform when the game will be evaluated. Moreover, the game must have a sufficient number of players and be accessible at any time - both for the selection of the game and during the festival, if the game is selected. 
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       4. Deadline for submitting games

Game submissions will be accepted for the Festival until the date described in the website of the festival.

       5. Awards

5.1 Awards will be offered as described in the awards section of the festival website. 

5.2 The prizes can be cumulative for the same game. The prize values are gross and the winners are responsible for any applicable taxes. It will be at the discretion of the jury and Selection Committee to determine which games will be indicated for each category in accordance with what is described below. The Contestant does not choose the category in which his/her game competes.

       6. Selection process for finalists

6.1 The selection process of the festival happens in four different stages. The first one consists of receiving the games submissions and checking their eligibility according to the present rules.
 
6.2 In the second stage, the games considered eligible for the Festival will go to the Selection Committee, which will play all the games received and will make a qualitative evaluation in relation to the following categories: Art, Narrative, Sound, Gameplay and Innovation.
 
6.3 All games are rated by at least 3 different members. The best rated games are highlighted and reviewed again by the entire Selection Committee with the purpose of selecting the finalists for each category. In the case of a tie, the tiebreaker is at the discretion of the Chairman of the Selection Committee.
 
6.4 The games of all the categories of the festival are selected through the analysis of the categories described above, respecting the specificities of each award: Best Virtual Reality Game, Best Multiplayer, BIG Impact: Educational Category, BIG Impact: Social Issues Category, Best Brazilian Game, Best Online Game, Best Multiplayer Game, Best Multiplayer Game, Best Latin American Game, Best Game, Best Kids Game and Best Student Game.
 
6.5 If there the Selection Committee is not able to select 3 games for a Category, they may, at its discretion, abolish the Category. A game can be selected for more than one category. The Selection Committee may create new categories, when they decide it is applicable. The Chairman of the Selection Committee will have the final decision in case of tie or indecision in the selection of the selected games.
 
6.6 The list of selected games will be published on the Festival website.
 
6.7 The finalists of each category will be exhibited to the public during the event as part of the game expo.
 
6.8 In addition to the games in the competitive showcases described above, games for non-competitive or parallel shows may be selected by the Festival.

        7. Selection process for winners

7.1 The finalist games exhibited during the Festival are then evaluated by the Guest Jury, who will choose the winners without any interference from the Selection Committee.

7.2 The Guest Jury will be composed of recognized experts and professionals from the games industry. The names of the members of the Jury will be announced during the Festival. The Festival may invite specific juries for some of its sections like BIG Brands, BIG Diversity, Best game for Children, among others.
 
 7.3 The Audience Award will be chosen through an in person vote at the venue. The game with the highest number of votes from the audience will win the award.

        8. Panorama Brasil
 
8.1 Panorama Brasil is a non-competitive parallel showcase within the Festival with the aim of exhibiting the best games produced by Brazilian developers that were not selected for the competitive section. The process of selecting Panorama Brasil is the same as the competitive section, with the difference that they will not be evaluated by the Guest Jury.
 
8.2 The games chosen to participate in Panorama Brasil will be announced on the website of the festival. The number of games selected for Panorama Brasil may vary depending on the edition of the Festival.
 
8.3 Each chosen game will receive a space in our exhibition and the responsibility for the operation and equipment, such as computers and screens, is exclusive to the participant.

       9. Contestant Responsibilities

9.1 Upon submitting a game to the Festival, a Contestant expressly declares and warrants to be the owner or possessor of all rights and licenses necessary for the use and/or public execution of all material submitted (games, videos, pictures, texts and other materials submitted online), including, but not limited to:
 a) All rights to the game's source code;
 b) Licenses for the technology and software used for the development and execution of the game;
 c) Rights to songs used as a soundtrack or incidental in the game and in other materials submitted;
 d) Right to texts that appears in the game and in other materials submitted;
 e) Rights to the script or texts that have served as inspiration for the game and the other materials submitted;
 f) Rights to archive footage or third parties’ footage that appear in the game and in other materials submitted;
 g) Rights to patents or licenses for use of third party information in the game and in other materials submitted;
 h) Or any other copyrights that may prevent the implementation or the commercial or non-commercial execution, play or airing of the game or other materials submitted.

9.2 The Contestant further agrees:
 a) Not to send any material containing images or sounds that are vulgar, defamatory, or prejudiced, or that disrespect the Brazilian Penal Code and the legislation in force;
 b) Not to violate the privacy of third parties or racially, ethically, professionally, by gender or otherwise disrespect them.
 c) Not to violate any copyright or any other law in submitting the game and other materials and information to the Festival.
 d) Make their game – as well as the rights to use images and information of the game –available for showcasing at the Festival, at the Festival’s website and in promotional material and articles related to the participation in the Festival. The Festival also requires a video demonstration of the game’s gameplay and mechanics.

       10. Finalist Games

10.1 Each Finalist agrees to grant to the Festival, free of charge and throughout the world, all rights of use and distribution to his/her game disclosure material, for disclosure and marketing in any format and on any media, including at the Festival venues and on its Websites, including illustrative and explanatory game materials, videos, photos, texts, interviews with the game developers and other materials and information about the games.

10.2 Each Finalist authorizes the Festival to exhibit and run the Finalist game at the Festival venues, allowing any visitor of the Festival to play the game without any encumbrance, payment or limitation of any kind.

10.3 The assignment of rights described above is also valid for any eventual replications of the Festival in other cities and on other dates.


       11. Curatorship and Omissions

11.1 All decisions of the Festival are the sole responsibility of the Production Company, or of the people, companies or partners to whom these decisions are delegated, and cannot be questioned in any circumstances
.
11.2 The Organizing Committee of the Festival shall resolve events omitted or not foreseen in these Rules.

       12. Disclaimer and Indemnity

12.1 Contestants agree to exempt the Festival, the Production Company and other companies and individuals involved in providing the Festival’s Website, as well as its partners, clients and sponsors, of any loss and damage arising from non-compliance with the Festival Rules, or any loss or damage derived from any kind of legal violation generated by the game(s) or other material(s) submitted.

12.2 Contestants shall indemnify any complainant for loss and damage, in addition to indemnification of the Festival, Production Company and the other companies and individuals involved in the realization of the Festival, as well as its partners and clients, for the eventual damage caused.

       13. Tolerance

​Tolerance in relation to the provisions of Festival Rules and of the Website’s Terms of Use shall not constitute a precedent for non-compliance with what has been here agreed.

       14. Jurisdiction

The Festival is governed by the laws of the Federative Republic of Brazil.
The parties elect the Forum of the Central District in São Paulo, Capital, to resolve any disputes arising from this contract, and expressly waives any other as competent as they may be.