Zeal Reel Micro Short Film Competition™ (the “Competition”, “Zeal Reel”, “Zeal Reel MSFC”, or “ZRMSFC”) Official Rules

Entry into the competition will be deemed as acceptance of all of these terms and conditions.

The Competition is sponsored by Lazy Park Entertainment, LLC, a Texas limited liability company, with a principal place of business at: 1500 Hadley St #2052, Houston, TX 77002 (the “Sponsor,” “Lazy Park Entertainment”, “Lazy Park”, “LPE,” “we” or “us”).

Eligibility

1. Open to all filmmakers globally who are eighteen (18) years or older at the time of entry. Proof of age may be required.
2. Entrants must not be our employee, officer or agent, or an employee, officer or agent of any person or organization involved in the running of the competition, and you must not be a family relation of any such person.
3. The Competition is subject to all applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations. Participation constitutes entrant’s full and unconditional agreement to these Official Rules (the “Rules”) and Lazy Park Entertainment, LLC’s decisions, which are final and binding in all matters related to the Competition.
4. Entries must have been completed after March 1, 2021, and must be available for screening on March 23, 2023.
5. The maximum number of entries for the Competition shall be at our sole discretion, but no less than 100 entries. Once this number of entries have been received, the competition will be closed to new entries, notwithstanding the published closing date.
6. Winning a Prize (as defined below in the Prizes Section) is contingent upon fulfilling all requirements set forth herein.

Open and Closing Dates

The Competition begins on October 1, 2022 at 12:00AM Central Standard Time (CST) and ends on February 15, 2023 at 11:59PM CST (the Competition Period).

1. The Competition shall open for entries at the time and on the date specified on our website and/or social media channels, and similarly, shall close to entries at the time and on the date specified on our website and social media channels. Unless otherwise stated, these times and dates are set to those for CST (Central Standard Time).
2. Any entries received before the opening or after the closing of the competition will be invalid and will not be entered into the competition.
3. No responsibility can be accepted for entries not received for whatever reason.
4. We reserve the right to cancel or amend the competition and these official rules without notice in the event of a catastrophe, war, civil or military disturbance, act of God or any actual or anticipated breach of any applicable law or regulation or any other event outside of our control. Any changes to the competition will be notified to entrants as soon as possible by the Sponsor.

Entry / Entry Fees

1. For evaluation and consideration for Prizes, entrants may submit to the Competition an unlimited number of entries with each no more than sixty (60) seconds in length.
2. Remittance of the Entry Fee, the amount stated on the Competition web page and/or the third-party submission platform(s), to Sponsor during the Competition period, together with your completed Submission Form and micro short film (the “Short”) entitles you to participate in the Competition and shall constitute your entry (“Entry”) in the Competition.
3. Entry fees are non-refundable. If a payment is disputed by an entrant for any reason, the entrant may be subject to any transaction fees or similar amounts incurred by ZRMSFC in connection with the dispute.
4. Each submission of a micro short film requires a separate entry fee to be paid to be eligible for evaluation and consideration of Prizes.
5. Shorts must be submitted as an online streaming video via a third-party submission platform (FilmFreeway), or a password-protected streaming URL. Submissions must be in high definition and downloadable from the submission platform or the streaming URL.
6. In the event of a password change or link change after submitting, you must update your submission via the third-party submission platform. If unable to update your submission through the third-party submission platform, you must email the Competition at zealreel@lazyparkent.com immediately with that change so we may update your record. If the Competition is not notified of the change and the link is found to be inactive or the password to be incorrect, the submission may be deemed ineligible.
7. Any form of entry other than that described herein is void. Sponsor is not responsible for lost, late, incomplete, invalid, unintelligible or misdirected submissions or entries, which will be disqualified.
8. The Short must be your original creative work, and you hereby warrant and represent that you are the sole and exclusive owner of all right, title, and interest in and to the Short and/or have obtained prior written authorization or license to submit the Short from any and all third-party rights holders therein. Neither the Sponsor, Competition, nor its jurists investigates or attests to the authenticity of an entrants’ ownership or rights secured. By entering the competition, you represent that you have secured all necessary rights.
9. You are prohibited from submitting any Short that has been completed prior to March 1, 2021.
10. Entries must be in English or use English sub-titles.
11. Shorts that are publicly available online prior to the exhibition date may be screened, but will be ineligible for prize consideration. Our preference is that Shorts are not publicly available online. Notwithstanding online, private screenings through film festivals.
12. By entering, each Entrant agrees to: (a) comply with and be bound by these Rules and the decisions of the Sponsor, which are binding and final in all matters relating to the Competition; (b) release and hold harmless the Sponsor and affiliated companies, Prize suppliers and any other organizations responsible for sponsoring, fulfilling, administering, advertising or promoting the Competition, and all of their respective past and present officers, directors, members, employees, agents and representatives (collectively, the “Released Parties”) from and against any and all claims, expenses, and liability, including but not limited to negligence and damages of any kind to persons and property, including but not limited to invasion of privacy (under appropriation, intrusion, public disclosure of private facts, false light in the public eye or other legal theory), defamation, slander, libel, violation of right of publicity, infringement of trademark, copyright or other intellectual property rights arising out of or relating to a participant’s Entry, participation in the Competition and/or acceptance or use or misuse of Prize; provided however, that such release will not apply to any commercial exploitation of the Short by a Released Party in violation of your rights under applicable copyright law; and (c) indemnify, defend and hold harmless the Sponsor from and against any and all claims, expenses, and liabilities (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) arising out of or relating to an entrant’s participation in the Competition and/or entrant’s acceptance, use or misuse of Prize.

Judging/Winners Selection

Potential Contest Winners Are Subject to Verification by Sponsor Whose Decisions Are Final and Binding in All Matters Related to The Competition. Inquiries concerning entries will not be accepted

1. Sponsor or an independent judge or judges selected by Sponsor will select one (1) entries for the Grand Jury Prize described below in the Prizes Section, and twenty (20) other awards based upon the level of creativity, originality, entertainment value, visual appeal, story, character appeal, and length of the micro short, as determined in the sole discretion of the Sponsor or such independent judge(s), as applicable.
2. Shorts that are selected to screen at the Exhibition may not necessarily be selected to be “in competition” for awards and/or prize purposes. Notifications regarding potential selection for competition status possibly may occur subsequent to notifications of acceptance for exhibition.
3. The Texas Filmmaker Audience Award will be chosen by Competition event goers themselves through ballots cast at the event location after screenings. If a live, in-person event cannot be held for any reason, the ballots will be cast via a virtual, online method to be determined.
4. If a Competition entrant does not meet the eligibility requirements or is subject to any entry restrictions, that entrant shall not be entitled to be judged a winner, and will not be entitled to an award or a prize in any circumstances.
5. Zeal Reel MSFC has no obligation (other than as stated in these rules or on our website) to disclose any of the following information: (a) identities of screeners or judges; (b) notes, feedback, or information relating to the submitted Short; and/or (c) details regarding the submission review or selection process.
6. Zeal Reel explicitly disclaims any liability or responsibility for any comments, notes, or opinions expressed about a submission, whether by Zeal Reel or by its volunteers.
7. The Competition and these official rules will be governed by the State of Texas law and any disputes will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Harris County, Texas.
8. Verification – Competition prize winners will be contacted with the results using the email addresses provided on the corresponding Submission Forms and may be awarded the Prize(s) (subject to verification of eligibility and compliance with the terms of these Rules). Sponsor’s decisions as to the administration and operation of the Competition and the selection of potential winner are final and binding in all matters related to the Competition. Each Winner will be notified not more than 30 days following the closing date of the competition, and will receive their prize(s) not more than 60 days following that closing date.
9. Verification – Reasonable efforts will be made to contact the Prize winner. Failure to respond to the initial verification notification within fourteen (14) days or return of notification as undeliverable after three (3) attempts will result in disqualification. In the event that a potential Winner or Runner-up of a Prize is disqualified for any reason, Sponsor may award the applicable prize to an alternate contestant from among all remaining eligible entries.
10. Verification – Each Winner must continue to comply with all terms and conditions of these Rules up to and through receipt of the Prize, and winning is contingent upon fulfilling all requirements.

Prizes

1. See the Competition web page for current prize details.
2. Prizes are not transferable and are subject to availability and Sponsor reserves the right to substitute any prize with another of equivalent or greater value without giving notice. No cash alternative to the in-kind prizes will be offered.
3. Zeal Reel MSFC requires the Grand Prize winner and the Texas Audience Award winner to complete and return an Affidavit of Eligibility and Liability/Publicity Release before any prize money is released. Failure to fully complete and return the Affidavit within 10 business days will result in forfeiture of the prize. No exceptions.
4. Within ten (10) days after receiving each Winners’ Affidavit of Eligibility and Liability/Publicity Release, Sponsor will mail prize(s) (a)via USPS to the address provided therein, (b)via bank transfer for non-USA winners, or (c) follow up and satisfy via e-mail and other online means if such Prize constitutes a payment or service. Winners receiving cash prizes are solely responsible for payment of all taxes and fees due in any USA local, state, and federal jurisdiction or applicable non-USA jurisdictions.
5. Restrictions and limitations apply for Prizes that require a service(s) to the Prize winner from Sponsor and affiliated companies, Prize suppliers and any other organizations responsible for sponsoring, fulfilling, administering, advertising or promoting the Competition. For example, if the service is script coverage for a feature-length script, the limitation may be that the Prize winner submit the script for coverage within four (4) months of receiving the Prize.

Copyright, Moral Rights, Representation, and Warranties

You hereby warrant and represent the following:

1. You are at least eighteen (18) years of age.
2. You have the right, authority, and capacity to enter into this agreement; and you are submitting the Short voluntarily on a non-confidential basis.
3. You warrant to us that you are the exclusive owner/creator or one of the owners/creators, if co-owned or co-created, of your Competition entry(ies), such that it is your original creative work that you own all of the copyright in those entries, and that our use of the entries in accordance with these rules will not infringe, misappropriate, or violate any person’s intellectual property rights or other legal rights. Or, you have obtained prior written authorization to act on behalf of any co-creators of the Short. Zeal Reel MSFC expressly disclaims all liability or responsibility for any violations of the foregoing.
4. You grant to us an exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, perpetual and irrevocable license to copy, store, edit, distribute, transmit and publish your competition entries.
5. By accepting your Entry, we in no way grant you any additional rights therein or otherwise expand the scope of your rights under applicable copyright laws. You are solely responsible for protecting your rights in the Entry, including without limitation, for filing or registering the Micro Short Script with the United States Copyright Office or the appropriate governing body if outside of the United States. You acknowledge and agree that Sponsor and/or any participating judges may be independently assessing or currently developing separate creative concepts and/or works which may resemble the Entry, or may be assessing or incorporating concepts, themes, formats, plot lines, or characters similar to those in the Entry, and that you are not entitled to any compensation and have no rights of any kind with regards to that separate material. However, you retain all rights to the Entry itself and any other creative materials submitted to Sponsor and the Competition.
6. Neither your execution of this agreement nor your participation in the Competition will conflict with or violate any term or condition of any other agreement to which you are a party, including but not limited to any union or guild regulation.
7. There are no threatened, pending or current claims, actions or lawsuits in connection with the Short and you agree to notify in writing Lazy Park Entertainment, LLC at: 1500 Hadley St. #2052, Houston, TX 77002 immediately upon your notification of any such claims, actions or suits.

Publicity

Except where prohibited by law, participation in the Competition constitutes each Winner’s consent to Sponsor’s and its agents’ use of their names, likenesses, photographs, and/or personal information for promotional purposes in any and all media, now known or hereafter devised, in perpetuity, worldwide, without further payment or consideration. All information of Winner will be in accordance with our privacy policy

Limitations of Liability

The Released Parties are not responsible for:

1. Any incorrect or inaccurate information, whether caused by Entrants, printing errors, or by any of the equipment or programming associated with or utilized in the Competition.
2. Technical failures of any kind, including, but not limited to malfunctions, interruptions, or disconnections in phone lines or network hardware or software.
3. Unauthorized human intervention in any part of the Entry process or the Competition.
4. Technical or human error which may occur in the administration of the Competition or the processing of Entries.
5. Any injury or damage to persons or property which may be caused, directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, from Entrant’s participation in the Competition or receipt or use or misuse of any Prize(s).

Law and Dispute Resolution

1. This agreement shall be deemed to have been entered into and shall be construed and enforced in accordance with the laws of the State of Texas as applied to contracts made and performed entirely within Texas. Any controversy, dispute or claim arising out of or related to the agreement or your participation in the Competition shall be settled by an arbitrator, within in the County of Harris, State of Texas, subject to the rules and regulations of the American Arbitration Association then in effect, except that such arbitration shall be handled by a single arbitrator selected in accordance with such rules and regulations. The arbitrator shall be well acquainted with the entertainment business in the County of Harris, and the arbitrator’s decision shall be final and binding. Each party to any arbitration shall bear its own costs, including attorney’s fees. Failure to appear at any arbitration hearing entitles the arbitrator to proceed Ex Parte.
2. Any attempt by any person to deliberately undermine the legitimate operation of the Competition may be a violation of criminal and civil law, and, should such an attempt be made, Sponsor reserves the right to seek damages from any such person to the fullest extent permitted by law. Sponsor’s failure to enforce any term of these Rules shall not constitute a waiver of that provision.

Zeal Reel Micro Short Film Competition™ is void where prohibited.