Manila, Philippines (BBN)- The deadline for the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) ‘MyView’ video contest has been extended until 23 March this year to give aspiring filmmakers more time to submit entries on the topic of ‘Energy for All’ – and a chance to win a share of $10,000 in prizes.
The annual competition provides a showcase for short films that can creatively illustrate the energy-related development challenges facing Asia and the Pacific. Providing clean, stable energy to the smallest village and largest city is a crucially important goal in a region where 800 million people still lack access to electricity.
“We want to encourage people to tell their stories about how and why sustainable energy matters using video as their medium. Videos can be highly effective in helping to understand the important role that energy plays in the development of the Asia-Pacific region,” Ann Quon, Principal Director of ADB’s Department of External Relations, said in a statement on Tuesday.
The competition theme coincides with the International Year of Sustainable Energy for All, declared by the United Nations in 2012, which aims to highlight the critical role universal access to energy plays in global development and poverty alleviation.
Ms. Quon and Pil-Bae Song, ADB’s Director of the Central and West Asia Department’s Energy Division, sit on the judging panel, which also includes Academy Award-winning American producer Ashley Jordan; Oscar-nominated Indian writer and director Ashvin Kumar; Afghan documentary filmmaker and curator of the Kabul International Film Festival Malek Shafi’i; Singaporean documentary cinematographer Yong Mun Chee; Philippines YouTube sensation Moymoypalaboy; and award-winning British filmmaker and co-founder of onedotzero Shane Walter.
A total of $10,000 worth of prizes is available in two categories. Citizens of any age in any of ADB’s 67 member countries are eligible to take part. The competition features a new blog providing ADB news and information on renewable energy, Q&As with the judges, production tips and other useful content.
Registration for the contest is easy. Applicants need to complete a short online form at the MyView website, and then upload their videos to YouTube.com or Youku.com, tagging it with ‘ADB-MyView.’ The new deadline for submission of entries is 23 March 2012.
ADB has put support for clean, renewable energy at the heart of its long term development strategy, providing nearly $1.8 billion for clean energy investments in 2010 alone. In nearly two decades through to 2009, it has provided almost $26 billion for energy projects which gave hundreds of millions of people access to electricity.
BBN/SSR/AD-21Feb12-1:25 pm (BST)
