Artistic Performance Yoyo Video Contest $500.00 to be awarded Eli Hops Benefit

Hey guys! It’s getting close to the time of the 2013 ELI HOPS EVENT AND YO-YO BATTLE!!! (Insert echo here)

Registration for the contest will be at the event only this year. If things go well, there may even be a CASH prize this year!!

I will be posting much more often now to keep everyone updated on the event. It is November 17th at the AMVETS lounge on Primrose st. in Haverhill MA 01830 from 11 to 4:30.

Buuuuuuuuut first… We have a REALLY COOL THING TO TELL YOU ABOUT!!!

Want to win a cash (up to $500) or yoyo prize for creating and submitting an artist performance video?

The Eli Hops Foundation in conjunction with Granny Smith Productions and “a store” will be hosting an unprecedented artistic performance video contest! Official rules will be posted in their own right soon, but here is a run down of the rules:

Your video must be an ARTISTIC performance roughly 2 to 6 minutes in length.

Yo-yo must be an important part of the performance but the story, message and entertainment value are the most important parts. We are excited to see your micro-movies!

The content must be clean- anything much more than a “PG-13” will be disqualified. Please avoid: profanity, drug use or references, violence for the sake of violence, and excessive alcohol use. We would like these videos to present the yoyo community in a positive manner.

Though not mandatory, it is greatly appreciated if you use music that is either original or free to use. Many people view YouTube on mobile apps and we want them to be able to see your movie too!

Videos MUST be uploaded to YouTube and then posted here on the Eli Hops wall. You must tag Eli Hops.

There is no “theme” to the contest. Let your imagination run wild! All types of films are welcome: serious or dramatic film, political or social statement, musical or silent film, thriller, horror, comedy or noir! Just remember that artistic impression is the most important of the judging criteria- it’s not about how many string hits or technical tricks you can fit in the time frame, but the overall story line and performance factor.

All entries MUST INCLUDE the Eli Hops Foundation and (request name on a PM) logos at the start or finish of the film and the YouTube title format MUST be this: “2013 EHF/GSP/YYC AP video contest: (title of your film)”. Only entries with the appropriate title format and are searchable publicly on YouTube will be accepted.

Now all of this is really cool- but that’s not all! The winning films have the potential to win either a hand picked yo-yo from (a store) chosen by owner Tony Alonso himself, or up to *$500 awarded from Granny Smith Productions! (Multiple cash winners possible)

Entries can be submitted starting September 1st and you have until Sunday September 22nd to get those entries in! Winners will be announced by the first week in October!

How does this benefit the EHF you ask? That’s easy! Granny Smith Productions will be donating $100 to the Eli Hops Foundation for each of the first 10 films submitted. That’s a $1000 donation! After the first 10, Granny Smith Productions will donate $20 for EVERY FILM SUBMITTED!

The more films that are submitted, the more money is made for the Eli Hops Foundation! That being said, the maximum number of entries per person is 2 films.

Please feel free to ask if you have any questions and happy filming!

*Team members/partners/owners and affiliates of The Eli Hops Foundation, (the store), and Granny Smith Productions are encouraged to enter videos, which will increase the donation to Eli Hops, but are not eligible to receive any prizes or placement.

To receive money you must have an operable PayPal account.

In the event that more than one person is involved in the making of a winning entry, the prize money/item will be awarded to the yo-yoer in the film. If there are more than one yo-yoer in a money winning entry the winnings will be delivered to a single Paypal account (determined by the entrants) and dividing the monetary winnings will be the responsibility of the winning party. In the event of multiple yo-yoers in an item winning entry the judges will pick the winner by name and mail it directly to the winners home/submitted address.

All prizes (monetary, item or otherwise) are picked and given out solely at the discretion of the judging officials in the contest (, The Eli Hops Foundation, Granny Smith Productions, [the store] ) and are subject to change at any time with or without notice.

Any and all entered films remain the property of the entrants/producers of the film- however The Eli Hops Foundation, Granny Smith Productions, and (the store) reserve the right to utilize any or all parts of any entry in any manner they deem fit (I.E. further advertisement or use as examples for future contests, etc)

Violation of any of the stated rules can result in disqualification of your entry.

(The Store) - the name has been intentionally left out to avoid breaking forum rules.

Please post entries on the Eli Hops Facebook page… not on the forum thread. Thank you. www.facebook.com/elihopsforhope

Remember, a $100.00 donation will be given to Eli Hops for each of the 1st ten entries!!!

The following in quotation marks is copied & pasted from Dave’s Eli Hops post:

"Hey guys- we’ve had some questions about the video contest that I want to field now…

There is NO entry fee of any kind. No credit cards or bank accounts or anything needed. All you need to do is make the video and link it to www.facebook.com/elihopsforhope

Granny Smith Productions is a new organization started by a person who prefers to remain anonymous. They are dedicated to funding programs that are designed to make the world a better place through fun and play- which is why attracted them the the Eli Hops Foundation in the first place. They already donated a very large sum of money to the EHF for pre-production costs and they never ask for any money at all. I swear to you, they are a truly legit and good hearted group.

No you don’t have to be an amazing yoyoer to make a winning video. What is the deciding factor is the story itself- yoyo is secondary.

There are two and a half weeks left to submit- DON’T WAIT! Seriously you can win up to $500!!! You don’t even need to give any information til after you have won!"

That being said, if any yoyo enthusiast wishes to participate in this contest but is hard pressed for ideas, I’ve got dozens. I just can’t yoyo… not at all. That doesn’t make me less of a fan. I can’t ice skate either, but it’s my favorite Winter Olympic sport.

You can’t make a bad video if it is made to support a good cause, & a $100.00 donation to Eli Hops for each of the 1st 10 videos is definitely a good cause.

Message me if you’d like ideas to get you started.

Peace, & Happy Filming

The weekend is here, yoyo peeps!!! Get those cameras rolling, submit those videos, and support a great cause!!! Completely free to enter, and $500.00 will be awarded!!!

The deadline to enter is two weeks from today! Get your entry in for your chance to win up to $500.00 and to support a great cause!!!

Pleased to announce this contest has its 1st entry. That means Eli Hops has its 1st $100.00 donation!!! The video is from Mack Hillier. Thank you for your upbeat submission, Mack, & best of luck to you in the competition. Interested parties can see his submission here:

& guess what?!? The judges are looking at this video very carefully… it appears that Mack’s video may have satisfied a secret element that qualifies him for a secret prize. Stay tuned for more videos, and more prizes!!! The excitement is just beginning!!!

You have no entries? Hm. Seems legit. Ive seen stuff about this online before written by dave. Its just that the whole granny smith thing seems sketchy.

Shot me an idea in a PM. Ill enter.

It is truly not uncommon for donors who wish to remain anonymous to provide their donations via an organization. The founder of Granny Smith Productions had previously donated on a local level. Now that she has expanded her horizons, she wishes to do so anonymously. Here is an excerpt from her newly created Facebook page:

“In 2009, something amazing happened to the founder of Granny Smith Productions – inspired by the financial teachings of Dave Ramsey, she became debt free. That Christmas, Granny Smith began her giving adventure. She began the 1st of what has become an annual “Santa’s Secret Workshop.” Through the years, Granny Smith has provided contributions of both time and money to numerous organizations, mostly locally. Numerous churches, prolife groups, Christian organizations, and schools, as well as individuals, have been the benefactor of her generosity. Now that Granny Smith is reaching beyond her local community, she feels the need to create this Facebook information page.
May God Bless you abundantly,
Granny Smith”

I truly hope those who are thinking of entering do so. A donation to Eli Hops WILL be made for EVERY entry, and $500.00 in prize money WILL be awarded. So please, put any reservations you have regarding the legitimacy of this ARTISTIC video contest to rest. It is the real deal.

The artistic yoyo video contest received its 1st entry yesterday… an upbeat video from Mack Hillier!!! That means Eli Hops will get a $100.00 donation from Granny Smith!!! Who’s ready to help Eli Hops get another $100.00 donation?!? Come on, yoyo & artistic peeps, help support a great cause, give yourself a chance at the $500.00 in prize money, & get in on this contest!!! The deadline is in 12 days.

What is the Eli Hops Benefit?

Thank you for your interest. Here is the link to the Official Eli Hops thread on this forum:

http://yoyoexpert.com/forums/index.php/topic,26034.0.html

Also, this was copied & pasted directly from the “about” section of the official Eli Hops Facebook page:

Eli Hops is a group that was founded in December of 2010 to raise funds and awareness for special needs education services and other special needs causes each year.

Eli Hops was founded by David Herrera when he noticed that his son Eli, who was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder earlier that year, was significantly helped by playing with a yo-yo.

Through the international yo-yo and skill toy community, David found similar benefits were being observed by the parents and friends of “differently abled” children the world over. It was then he decided to form Eli Hops to not only raise funds but also to help spread the word about these special kids through play.

Eli Hops is about special kids and special young adults having fun along side professional and amateur skill toy performers, sports players, artists, musicians, and all sorts of volunteers with one common goal; to “Play for Hope”.

Thank you for visiting Eli Hops!

This is a genuine contest to not only raise money for this great cause, but to provide the participants of the contest the opportunity to win some cold hard cash. Get your entry in before the deadline, which is September 22.

I can think of numerous ways this could be done in a tasteful and poignant manner, & I think it would be awesome if someone posted an artistic video to commemorate the anniversary of the September 11 attacks. Do something positive on America’s most somber anniversary, & help a worthy cause by submitting your video today. Each entry raises money for Eli Hops.

Come on yoyo peeps!!! Get your entries in before the deadline sneaks up on you. Eli Hops gets a donation for EVERY video submitted. Shoot me a PM if you need ideas.

Unless there are more submissions, one week from tomorrow Mack Hillier will win $500.00!!! He remains the lone entry in this contest. Anyone else wants a shot at the prize?!? A yoyo prize will also be awarded, as well as additional secret prizes. EACH of the 1st 10 videos generates a $100.00 donation for Eli Hops!!! Help out a great cause & submit your artistic video today. Shoot me a PM if you have any questions or need ideas.

The contest has another entry!!! Thank you, Matt Feinstein, for sharing your creative talents with us!
And another YouTube star is born:

The contest is picking up some steam!!! Here’s a 3rd entry from Frank Pantland. You WILL to watch this one!!!

The deadline is a week away, lets keep those entries coming & keep those donations pouring in for Eli Hops!

Looks like Frank Pantland is really in the spirit of raising money for Eli Hops!!! Contest rules allow a maximum of 2 submissions, so here’s his 2nd one, raising another $100.00 for Eli Hops (not to mention doubling his chances to win the top prize!) The deadline is THIS SUNDAY, so don’t miss out on your chance to help out a great cause while getting the opportunity to win cash or a yoyo prize!!!

And here’s entry number 5!!! Keep those entries coming, yoyo peeps!!! The deadline is THIS SUNDAY!!! For EACH entry submitted, a donation is made to Eli Hops!

Although the videos have been posted on this thread, if you place the following in the youtube search section, all 5 of the entries that have been received so far will appear:
ehf/gsp/yyc ap video contest. Get your entry in before the deadline, THIS SUNDAY.