The world's leading format gongs - The C21 International Format Awards in association with FRAPA - are once again open for business, calling for entries from the worldwide content community.
This year the awards, which are again sponsored by US programme packager ICM, went live today. You can find full details of the awards and enter online by clicking here .
This year, the categories are:
Best studio-based gameshow;
Best competition reality show;
Best observational documentary/factual-entertainment show;
Best sketch comedy;
Best scripted format;
Best multi-screen/FutureMedia format;
The IFA Gold Medal.
The awards can be entered throughout August, with voting taking place throughout September. Winners will be announced at an awards ceremony at Mipcom in Cannes on Tuesday, October 14, between 6pm and 7.30pm.
Winners will receive marketing campaigns across C21Media products, including pages in Channel 21 International magazine and video ads on C21screenings. The winners will also be profiled by C21TV at Mipcom.
Last year, more than 70 formats made it through to the three-week online final, which saw over 8,000 votes cast and 23,000 videos streamed. In addition to winners in seven categories, the first IFA Gold Medal was awarded posthumously to Merv Griffin, the US gameshow icon behind Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune.
C21Media.net's community of more than 30,000 international entertainment executives voted for the winning formats, making this the most democratic awards event in showbusiness.
In 2007, the winners were:
Best observation/factual-entertainment show: Wasted, Fumes NZ;
Best entertainment reality show: Just The Two of Us, BBC Worldwide;
Best multi-screen/FutureMedia format: 40 Weeks, Magyx Entertainment;
Best studio-based gameshow: 8 Out of 10 Cats, Zeppotron;
Best sketch comedy: Spoons, Endemol;
Best scripted format: Serial Frank, Distraction Formats;
Best competition reality show: Ladette to Lady, RDF Rights;