Contest Overview
The Improv "Up Yours" contest is an internet based international search for the next great comedian.
To become a contestant, comedians create a profile and upload video clips of their comedy routines to improvcc.com.
Users can vote for their favorite comedians each day to help determine the finalists.
Voting ends February 29th, 2012 at 11:59pm. The finals will be held April 1st, 2012 at The Improv at Harrah's in Las Veags, Nevada.
The 6 finalists will travel to Las Vegas for the finals, where they will perform their act in front of celebrity judges who will determine the grand prize winner.
The contest is open to everyone age 18 and older with an account on The Improv website and/or mobile app. There are both free and premium accounts available.
Contestant Page
Registered contestants receive a page on The Improv "Up Yours" site with the contestant's video(s), a brief bio, their picture and social media links. This is where the contestant's will get to invite their fans to come and see their uploaded videos and vote for them.
The submitted material will be posted to The Improv "Up Yours" site and may be posted to Facebook as well as other social media outlets.
Contestants are encouraged to share their page at The Improv "Up Yours" website with their uploaded video(s) on Facebook.
Video Rules
After submission, videos undergo an approval process after submission before they are displayed publicly on the website. The approval process generally takes less than 24 hours, and the contestant will be notified by email immediately after their video is accepted or rejected.
Submitted videos files must be less than 250 megabytes and should be no longer than 7 minutes.
Videos with no content, or content unrelated to the contest will not be approved. We reccomend at least 3 minutes of Comedy per video.
The amount of videos a contestant can submit depends on their membership level.
Voting
Voting for the contestants will take place on the Improv "Up Yours" website, The Improv "Up Yours" Facebook app, and with The Improv "Up Yours" mobile app as well as other social networks. We recommend sharing your video on social networking sites as much as possible to increase your visibility and receive more votes.
Registered users are allowed to vote once per day per contestant. Any attempts to bypass this rule will result in a warning and possible disqualification from the contest.
"Up Yours" nights at local Improv clubs and other select comedy clubs around the country will be able to host "Up Yours" contest shows to add contestants to the site.
The Finalists
The six (6) finalists will be determined as follows.
- The three (3) contestants receiving the most total votes for the entire duration of the contest.
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Two (2) contestants will be selected by judges from the "Ringers Pool". The "Ringers Pool" is determined as follows:
- The contestants receiving the 4th - 20th most votes for the entire duration of the contest.
- Contestants who are one of the top three monthly vote getters for any of the months during the contest.
- One (1) wildcard finalist will be selected by judges. Any contestants not already chosen as a finalist by one of the previous methods will be eligible.
The Finals
Videos from the finalists will be used in marketing efforts for the finale.
The finalists will be required to share finale status on Facebook.
The finalists will appear in Vegas in early 2012 to do a set on The Improv stage at Harrah's in front of celebrity judges.
The finalists will be flown round trip from within the continental Unites States to Las Vegas for the finale.
Contestants will be judged on the following criteria:
- 1) Stage presence - The comics comfort on stage and the way they handle audience reactions, including heckling if that occurs. Up to 25 points: into 10 points for comfort and 15 points for handling the audience.
- 2) Content - The type of material in the act. Is the material bright? Is it original? Is it made up of knock/knock jokes or is some of it stolen or spun off from other comics? How facile is the comic with writing jokes? Up to 25 points: 15 points for originality, 10 points for joke writing ability.
- 3) Point of view - Whether or not the comics' personality was consistent. For instance, if they started out as an angry comic did they stay angry all the way through or did they bring in different approaches to the material. Is there a story line to the comics' personality? Up to 25 points: 15 points for staying in a consistent point of view, 10 points for having a strong story line
- 4) Audience reaction - How well were they accepted? Did the audience laugh at them a lot or little or not at all. A really raucous reaction gets a lot of the 25 points and less if the reaction is subdued. Up to 25 points.
- 5) Extra points - Up to 10 points extra for orginality.
Grand Prize
The winner of the finale will win:
- Paid gigs at BOTH The Improv Las Vegas and The Improv Lake Tahoe - Valued at $25,000.
- A meeting in Vegas at the time of the finale with an agent from the talent agency APA.
Conditions
The "Up Yours" contest is subject to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy on www.improvcc.com.
We reserve the right to make any changes to the rules that we deem necessary.
