Rode has announced a new competition. But it’s not the My Rode Reel you might be used to. This one is the Rode Creator of the Year Awards, where you can win a share of $250,000 in cash and over $100,000 in prizes.
It covers a diverse range of topics from creators across YouTube, Instagram and TikTok. To enter, you only need to own a Rode product and use it in your productions.
Rode Creator of the Year Awards
The awards carry on the legacy of Rode’s past competitions, My Rode Reel and My Rode Cast. But instead of targeting filmmakers and podcasters, this one honours social media creators on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok.
“Celebrating creators is part of our DNA”, says Rode CEO Damien Wilson. After having run what was the world’s largest short film competition and then doing the same for podcasters, Rode says that they’re “celebrating a new generation of creators” with the new competition.
There’s $250,000 in cash up for grabs, along with more than $100,000 in product prizes from Rode and the competition’s partners. These include Artlist, Atomos, Fujifilm, Lume Cube, Nanlite, Obsbot and Sandisk, amongst others.
22 Categories for different creators
There are 22 categories in all, with two winners in each category. One is chosen by Rode and one is chosen by the community. Each of the category winners will receive $5,000 and a prize pack (although Rode hasn’t stated the value).
The overall Creator of the Year Award winner will receive $20,000 in cash and $30,000 in gear prizes. There’s also an Emerging Creator of the Year Award for newcomers that offers $10,000 in cash and $25,000 in gear. Here are each of the categories:
Adventure and Outdoors
ASMR
Beauty
Comedy
DIY and Hobbies
Entertainment Review
Fashion
Food and Cooking
Gaming
Gear and Tech Reviews
Gym and Fitness
Health and Wellness
Home and Studio Tours
How-to and Tutorial
Interview
Journalism
Music Production and Performance
Science
Short Film and Documentary
Sports
Travel and Lifestyle
How to enter
Creators will need to pick the category that best suits their subject matter and provide 1-3 links to content that best represents their YouTube channel or Instagram/TikTok account. You’ll also need to mention which Rode products you used during their creation.
There’s no cost to enter, but you will need to register on the Rode awards website and complete your submission before October 1st. The categories will then be shortlisted, and the best from each category will go up for community voting from October 15th to 31st.
Good luck!