Rules & Fees

Eligibility Period

Entries aired between 15 February 2025 to 13 February 2026 are eligible for entry into the awards.


GENERAL ELIGIBILITY

  • All commercials/ music videos must have aired on TV, cinema or online or
     
  • To classify as being from ‘The Americas’, the work should have been developed through an agency based in North America, South America or Canada.

    Where there is no agency, the in-house dept should be based in The Americas.
    If there was no agency or in-house creative dept, the production company should be based in The Americas.
    If there was no agency, in-house creative dept or production company based in the region, the work is unlikely to be eligible.
     
  • Entries cannot be made without the permission of the client and/or owner of the rights of the work.
     
  • All entries must have been created for a paying client except pro bono work for charities and non-profit organisations.
     
  • Spec ads and director's cuts are NOT eligible apart from the New Director category
     
  • For commercials below 20 seconds in length, up to three can be featured in one single entry if those spots are from the same campaign, with the same concept.
     
  • Non-English language entries must include English subtitles for judging purposes.
     

TERMS & CONDITIONS

  • By entering these awards, you give shots the right to publish still images, video, and credits from the submitted entry.
     
  • All submissions must be made online. Once entries are submitted, they will go forward for judging.
     
  • Entries must be paid before the judging date. Entries not paid for will be taken out the judging process and therefore, the awards.
     
  • After the entry deadline entries cannot be withdrawn, and no refunds will be issued under any circumstances.
     
  • shots retain the rights to disqualify entries which offend national, religious, cultural or racial feelings.
     
  • Edits to your entry are not accepted after the entry deadline.  Any changes after this must be put in writing to shotsawards@extremereach.com
     
  • shots and the judges reserve the right to re-allocate entries that in their view, are entered in an incorrect category.
     
  • The judges’ decision is final.


ENTRY FEES AND DEADLINES

EARLYBIRD DEADLINE 9 January 2026 

(Fees until 9 January 2026)

1-4 Entries $299 /entry
5+ Entries $269 /entry

FINAL DEADLINE 13 February 2026

(Fees between 10 January -13 February 2026)

1-4 Entries $399 /entry
5+ Entries $359 /entry

New Director Category Only
Earlybird $190 (until 9 January 2026)
Standard $250 9 (between 10 January - 13 February 2026)

Film School *
Early Bird $90
Standard - $150

*Film school students should email shotsawards@extremereach.com to receive a dedicated entry code that will offer a discount.
 

PAYMENT

  • Payment must be received for all entries before they will be approved for judging.
  • Payment can be made securely online by credit card at time of submission.
  • Payment by bank transfer for larger numbers of entries can be made - Please contact the awards team on shotsawards@extremereach.com to request an invoice.
     

JUDGING

We have jury heads for different categories, or groups of categories, and they and their fellow jury members will decide both the shortlisted work and, after a period of online deliberation, the eventual winners.

Further to this, points will be allocated to shortlisted and winning work, and the respective companies involved in making that work, to ascertain the winners of the company and people categories [listed below], with the company/person gaining the greatest number of points announced as the winner.  Only companies based in the region will be in contention.

The points allocation is as follows:

  • Shortlisted work: 1 point
  • Bronze winning work: 3 points
  • Silver winning work: 5 points
  • Gold winning work: 8 points

The categories for which the above points system is employed:

  • Director of the Year
  • VFX / Post Production Company of the Year
  • Agency of the Year
  • Editing House
  • Editor of the Year
  • Production Company of the Year
  • Music/ Sound Design Company of the Year
     

NOTES/CONTEXT FOR JUDGES

Please supply any background, explanations, cultural aspects of note, contextual information, or translations you feel would be helpful to judges in their consideration. The juries look through a LOT of work, so anything that can help build their understanding of why yours is of particular note, can only aid in the decision-making process.
(Judges will not be shown any credits so please do not include any credits here)