Education

Teams and Registration

What students can participate?

All five registered team members need to be current students in the U.S. attending high school (9th through 12th grade) or an accredited college or university. Home-schooled students in 9th grade or above, graduate and Ph.D students may also enter. Students in 8th grade or lower are not eligible to participate.

I don't go to school in the United States, can I still enter?

No, the contest is limited to U.S. high school and college students only. Students in Canada and any other country are not eligible to participate.

Can Apple employees enter into the festival?

No, current Apple employees are not allowed to enter. This includes retail employees.

What is the team captain responsible for?

The team captain is responsible for creating your team in the Insomnia Gallery. This person has the ability to add team members (up to five) and remove team members. The team captain counts as one of your five registered team members.

Does everyone on the team need to register?

The five primary team members must register on the Insomnia Gallery. You may have additional team members who help create your film but they will not be registered on the Insomnia Gallery and will not be eligible for prizes.

I have registered on the Insomnia Gallery, how do I join a team?

Once you are registered, if you are not the team captain and would like to join a team, simply click on My Profile in the top navigation of the Insomnia Gallery. Under the My Teams section, click Request Membership. Search for the name of the team you want to join and click Request Membership. The team captain will need to accept your request before you are part of the the team.

Does everyone need to be a student to enter?

Yes, all 5 registered team members need to be current students in the U.S. attending high school or an accredited college or university.However, anyone else helping to create your film does not need to be a student. These nonstudent team members can serve as production support and on-screen extras. Nonstudent team members are not eligible to receive prizes. There is no upper age limit. You do not have to be a full-time student to register.

Do actors count as part of the five registered team members?

We were purposely vague when we developed the rules because we want you to be as resourceful as possible. You can divide up the roles of your five registered team members however you'd like, but we only award prizes to the five registered team members. If you are able to get friends or family to help with your film for "free," we can't control that (in fact, we encourage it).

Creating Your Film

Can I submit films made on another type of computer?

No. Your film must be edited and compressed using an Apple Macintosh computer. You may choose to use non-Apple software to edit your film but you must be running Mac OS X during editing (you cannot boot into another operating system on your Mac and edit your film).

Do credits count in the three minute time limit?

Absolutely. Your entire submission cannot exceed three minutes in length.

May I use profanity or adult content in my film?

Films must adhere to the MPAA guidelines of PG-13 or lower. For details on these guidelines, visit http://www.mpaa.org/FlmRat_Ratings.asp.

Do I need a talent release for the actors or other people in my film?

Yes, your team captain is responsible for maintaining a talent release for anyone who appears on screen. This form can be found in the Insomnia Gallery.

What are the rules around music usage?

You cannot use music that you don't have specific permission from the artist to use. You are responsible for obtaining permission for any music usage that might be in question prior to the submission of your film. This is in the Terms and Conditions under "Film Submission Requirements." If you need a music release form, please see the US Copyright Office's web page of forms:http://www.copyright.gov/forms/.

Public Voting

Why do I want people to view and rate my film?

The film with the highest rating at the end of the public voting period will win one of the grand prize packages. Additionally, the 25 films with the highest ratings will be screened by our celebrity judges who will pick their favorite film to receive a second grand prize package.

Can I advertise my film on campus or other places online to encourage people to vote for it?

Yes, we encourage you to promote your film anywhere you can and send people to the Insomnia Gallery to vote.

Do you have to be a Mac user to vote?

No, you don't have to be a Mac user to vote on your favorite films. You do, however, need an Apple ID, click here to create one.

What's an Apple ID and how do I get one?

You may have established an Apple ID to make a purchase from the Apple Store, the iTunes Store, to access the AppleCare Knowledge Base, or to register a new Apple Product. If you have a MobileMe account, your MobileMe login acts as an Apple ID as well. To create a new Apple ID, confirm that you have an Apple ID, or to retrieve a forgotten password visit:https://myinfo.apple.com/.

Why do people need to log on with an Apple ID to vote?

It helps us prevent cheating and fraudulent behavior when we require the extra step of signing in to rate films.

Can someone rate more than one film?

Absolutely. You can vote on as many films as youd like. However, you can't vote on the same film more than once.

How are the public votes calculated?

We don't reveal the rating details.

Troubleshooting

Im having trouble uploading my film, what should I do?

Please wait a few minutes and try uploading your film again. There is likely to be a lot of traffic as teams upload their entries near the final hours of the contest. Please continue trying to upload your film until you receive confirmation that it was received.

How do I find a film in the gallery?

Films can be found by searching for the team name, film title, and the registered team members names.

Where can I get answers to questions not already in this FAQ?

Email insomniafilm@apple.com with other questions. Please include your team name and film title.