Terms & Conditions

Eligibility

The Motion Awards X opens one 20th Anniversary Window. As a one-time 20th anniversary exception, an eligible entry may represent work published or released between January 1, 2025 and December 31, 2026. This means the project was either finished, broadcast, published online, screened at a festival, or otherwise made publicly available during the 2025 or 2026 calendar year. Work in progress, internal projects, and unreleased work are not eligible.

One piece, one edition. Work entered in The Motion Awards X may not be entered in any future edition.

Submissions for The Motion Awards X close on January 15, 2027 at 11:59pm Pacific. The submission system will not accept entries after that time. The deadline sits fifteen days after the eligibility window ends so that work released in late December 2026 can still be prepared and submitted.

Eligible work may be submitted by its creator, the studio that produced it, or an authorized representative. Student work is welcome and encouraged — we celebrate the full breadth of the discipline, from independent artists to global studios.

Violation of Eligibility

The integrity of this competition depends on accurate, honest submissions. We hold every entry to the same standard, regardless of studio size or reputation.

• If a judge questions the eligibility of an entry, we will ask the submitter to provide documentation demonstrating the work meets our criteria — including completion date, broadcast records, or a public link with a verifiable timestamp.
• If it is determined that an entrant has misrepresented the eligibility of their work, the entry will be withdrawn without a refund. This decision is final.
• The Motion Awards reserves the right to re-categorize any submission to ensure it is evaluated within the most appropriate competitive context.
• We reserve the right to re-compress and/or resize submissions to meet the technical requirements of our online judging system, without altering the substance of the work.
• We reserve the right to disqualify any entrant found to be in violation of these terms at any stage of the competition, including after an award has been announced.

Entrant Warranties

By submitting a project to The Motion Awards, you represent and warrant the following to be true:

• You are the sole owner of the entire rights to the submitted work, or you have obtained all necessary permissions and consents from the rightful owner prior to submission.
• The credits provided on your entry form are accurate, complete, and properly reflect the contributions of all parties involved in the creation of the work.
• The submitted work does not infringe upon any third party's copyright, trademark, moral rights, right of privacy or publicity, or any other intellectual property right.
• You accept full responsibility for any claims arising from intellectual property disputes related to your submission, and agree to indemnify The Motion Awards and Motionographer accordingly.

License to Use Entries

Submitting a project grants The Motion Awards and Motionographer a non-exclusive, royalty-free license to use your work for award-related purposes:

• To reproduce the project on The Motion Awards website, on Motionographer.com, and across any social media channels owned or operated by The Motion Awards or Motionographer.
• To use the project in promotional materials, press coverage, and communications related to The Motion Awards — including future editions celebrating the award's legacy.
• To archive a copy of the submission for historical purposes. We have proudly documented this discipline for a decade, and your work becomes part of that record.

You retain full ownership of your work at all times. This license grants use rights only — it does not transfer ownership.