December 3, 2012 PRESS RELEASE
For immediate release
PARALYMPIC WHEELCHAIR RACER TO JUDGE THIS YEAR’S “JUST WATCH ME” VIDEO CONTEST
Saskatoon, SASKATCHEWAN – Paralympic wheelchair racer Alexandre Dupont is the celebrity judge for this year’s “Just Watch Me” video contest for entrepreneurs with disabilities. Dupont competed in four events at London’s 2012 summer Olympics, and is a small business owner himself. “I am extremely excited to be part of this year’s contest,” says Dupont. “Owning a small business can be a great fit for people with disabilities. You can set your own hours, create a personalized work environment, and – most importantly, gain a sense of control over your destiny.” The video contest is being run jointly by the Manitoba and Saskatchewan Community Futures Entrepreneurs with Disabilities Program (EDP), and being launched today as part of International Day of Persons with Disabilities celebrations. The contest is open to people with self-identified disabilities or ongoing health conditions operating businesses in rural Saskatchewan or rural Manitoba. “If you are an entrepreneur with a disability and have a business success story to share, you could win up to $1000 and great prizes,” explains Susan Bater, EDP Coordinator for rural Manitoba and spokesperson for this year’s Prairie Edition contest. “All you have to do is create a two or three minute video about your business and upload it to the contest website by January 25, 2013.”
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This year’s contest has prize categories for both seasoned entrepreneurs as well as start-ups, and winners receive cash as well as fantastic business development and mentoring opportunities. The top videos in the “Just Watch Me” contest will be selected through a process that includes a judges panel and public voting process. Last year’s contest winner Chris Gaulin will also be one of the judges. Winners will be announced on February 26, 2013. For full contest details go to www.justwatchmecontest.ca or contact Susan Bater at edpinfo@mts.net.
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BACKGROUNDER Contest sponsor The video contest is being run jointly by the Manitoba and Saskatchewan Community Futures Entrepreneurs with Disabilities Program (EDP). Please feel free to contact Susan Bater at edpinfo@mts.net if you have any questions. How the contest works If someone is interested in submitting a video to the contest, they can get all of the information they need from the contest website: www.justwatchmecontest.ca. Basically this is how the process works: 1. The potential participant should review the contest’s “Eligibility requirements” and “Terms and conditions” to make sure they qualify. 2. The potential participant should also take a minute to review the “Contest theme” to make sure it matches with the story they want to tell in their video. 3. If the potential participant has any questions, they might wish to review the “FAQs” and then proceed to the “How to enter” and “Help me make my video” pages. 4. Once they have finished making their video, they are ready to upload it to YouTube. Uploading a video to YouTube is an easy process, and is outlined in detail on the contest’s “Help me upload” page. 5. A panel of judges including paralympian Alexandre Dupont, will announce the top four videos in the “Seasoned entrepreneur” category on February 5, 2013. At that point, the public is invited to vote for their favourite (one person, one vote), and voting takes place until February 19, 2012. The video that gets the most votes wins $1,000 cash and prizes, and the other three finalists also receive prizes. The judges panel will directly pick the winners for the “Start-up entrepreneurs” category. Prizes for this category will be awarded to one entry from Manitoba and one from Saskatchewan. Contest timeline Contest starts: December 3, 2012 Contest closes: January 25, 2013 at noon Top finalists in Seasoned Entrepreneurs category announced by judges panel: February 5, 2013 Public voting begins: February 5, 2013 Public voting ends: February 19, 2013 at noon Winner announced: February 26, 2013