Thread: Anybody participating in the "Belly Buddies" contest?

My teacher got this email:


Instructional Video Contest
Deadline: Entries must be received by January 15, 2010

ENTER TODAY

Create a 10-15 minute instructional video
for your chance to receive Royalties and more,
and have your video featured on BellyBuddies.com,
an on-line community where members will have
unlimited access to bellydance classes.

The Belly Buddies Mission Statement:

To bring the beauty, femininity, joy and self empowerment of bellydance to women of all ages and histories by providing easy to follow classes, music, accessories, resources and more in a supportive online community.

http://bellybuddies.org/

On the site it says, "Winning videos will be selected to be on BellyBuddies.com, an on-line community where Members will have
unlimited access to classes. If a class or classes on your instructional video is/are selected, you will receive (a)
a royalty based on the number of Members of the site, and (b) a complimentary photo listing in the Teacher
Directory. And, the biography of each Winner will be posted on the site."

But the royalty appears to be a one-time royalty per site member. And the site doesn't yet say what they will be charging members to join and view the videos.

Hmm, says I. Anybody know more?

Don't know more about this, but it sounds like a way for ppl to promote themselves/their teaching and maybe make some money. But who knows for sure how this will work out.

Not sure I would pay to be a member of the site but there might be others that feel it will be worth while.

Time will tell.

BTW, don't a lot of ppl put some of this up on youtube or their own websites??

Sounds really hokey to me- it takes a lot of work to put together 15 minutes of *good* video instruction- and I would not sign away rights to something I produce myself for a "chance" to earn money *if* they do their job & promote everything.

If you choose to do something like this as a teaser to get folks into class or to get them to buy a full length DVD, I can see it being beneficial, but you'd better know your target audience & they'd need some proof that it would actually reach who you need to reach!

I'm thinking about it; but the website itself is "under construction" with nothing there, so I'm waiting to see what happens with that first. (Why do people promote a website like that anyway, I don't get it?)

Originally Posted by Lara L

Sounds really hokey to me- it takes a lot of work to put together 15 minutes of *good* video instruction- and I would not sign away rights to something I produce myself for a "chance" to earn money *if* they do their job & promote everything.

If you choose to do something like this as a teaser to get folks into class or to get them to buy a full length DVD, I can see it being beneficial, but you'd better know your target audience & they'd need some proof that it would actually reach who you need to reach!

I found links waaaay at the bottom of the first page with About Us and Terms of Service. But I did have to hunt.

I want to know whose directory they pulled to get everyone's emails.

Originally Posted by _Tanya_

I want to know whose directory they pulled to get everyone's emails.

me too cause I got it as well...

It sounds less like a 'contest' to me than a cattle call audition.

Except instead of letting you just prepare a short audition piece, they're asking you to produce an entire instructional clip. Which they may or may not air, and you may or may not receive a small royalty.

They may be dancers who don't mean any harm, but this is another example of artists being devalued and treated very very poorly in business. No one would think to send out a cattle call for a receptionist or an accountant "come work for a full week and if you are chosen you might receive some compensation"

ok, i got it too !..but i e mailed them back . all read to me as a "women only" thing. they wrote back that men were ok to submit a dvd, but their site was an online forum for women.
i passed

lauren, you made me read it again...they want one to re shoot for them? not submit clips from ones production library ??????

"Thank you for contacting us. Men are welcome to join BellyBuddies.com, but this site is primarily designed to be an on-line community for women. As well as being members, men may also submit instructional videos, and if they do and are chosen to be on the site, we will promote them.



Happy Holidays,



Melia

BellyBuddies.com "



can not belive i found this.....i asked her if they promoted dance for men. perhaps i should have been more clear and used "male dancers"..

On the bottom of the email in the signature area it mentions something about FREE ON-LINE BELLY DANCE LESSONS. A bit like shooting yourself in the foot no? I'll wait till the website is fully operational to pass anymore judgments though.

Originally Posted by zamora

lauren, you made me read it again...they want one to re shoot for them? not submit clips from ones production library ??????

Cory, I'm sure it's ok to use unpublished clips from your existing library.

Most of the dancers who've been contacted don't have an existing library of instructional clips, so the only way to participate would be to produce a clip just for them.

I'm confused by the economics of the project. If your clip is selected, you get royalties but the clips are free to watch? Are the clips "free" in the sense that taking aerobics classes are "free" after you've paid the gym membership? Are they selling a ton of eyeball-guaranteed advertising to offset the cost of running the site? Where's the money coming from?

thanks lauren. actually, i am not feeling good about it.no big... all the posts have a red flag to fly.....yeah, how do you generate $$$ from free? i usually turn the other way when male dancers are treated diff., even in attitude, than women.