All entries must submit media for judging via the online entry system. Each media type has specific technical requirements, as outlined below.
Submission media options vary by category. Refer to the categories section for details on the submission options for each category.
JUDGING MEDIA: This media will be reviewed by the jury.
SUPPORTING MEDIA: This media is not required, but may be viewed at the jury's discretion.
REFERENCE MEDIA: This media is required, but will not be reviewed by the jury. Examples of reference images include screenshots of the work or the images that were submitted for judging. Reference images are used for administrative purposes only
THUMBNAIL: Every entry requires a thumbnail image. The jury will see this for reference only, it will not be judged.
IMPORTANT NOTE: ADC is accepting physical entry materials in Brand / Communication Design, Book Design, Magazine / Newspaper Design and Packaging Design disciplines.
All physical entry materials must be received no later than March 4, 2025. Please send physical entries to The One Club for Creativity, 450 W 31st Street, 6th Floor, New York, NY 10001, Attn: ADC 104th Annual Awards.
The ADC Annual Awards accepts and celebrates entries from around the world. All work should be submitted in its original language. English translations are required for all work in another language.
Image and Audio Media: For entries in a language other than English, provide an English translation in the "Judging Description / Translation" field with the individual media.
Video Media: For video entries in a language other than English, provide English subtitles in the video or a translation in the "Judging Description / Translation" field with the individual media.
URL Media: For URL entries in a language other than English, use the "Judging Description / Translation" field with the individual media to provide any necessary instructions in English.
PDF Media: All PDF entries must be submitted in English.
Physical Materials: For all physical entries in a language other than English, use the "English Translation" field in the Information section on the entry.
Reference Image
Reference Image files will only be accepted through the online entry system and are required for all entries. These images may be used by the ADC Awards for promotional purposes. Examples of reference images include screenshots of the work or the images that were submitted for judging. Reference images are used for administrative purposes only. The jury will see these images, but they will NOT be judged.
NOTE: Specific audio submission options do not require reference images, but they may be submitted with the entry.
CONTENT
The images should reflect the content of your entry.
For Content Video entries, reference images should be high res stills from the video.
When submitting multiple images, each should be unique. Do not submit duplicate images for one entry.
DIMENSIONS
The longest side of each image should be at least 2400 pixels long
The longest side of each image must be a maximum of 4800 pixels long
FILE SIZE
Each file must be no larger than 5 MB
FORMAT
Each file must be a high res JPEG or PNG
Each file should be RGB color mode
Image
Image files will only be accepted through the online entry system. Images submitted can be:
Artwork Image (the original content or artwork as it ran)
The longest side of each image should be at least 2400 pixels long
The longest side of each image must be a maximum of 4800 pixels long
FILE SIZE
Each file must be no larger than 5 MB
FORMAT
Each file must be a high res JPEG or PNG
Each file should be RGB color mode
NOTE
For Project Board images, all information should be large enough to be seen from a distance when projected or on a small monitor.
For Artwork Images in a language other than English, provide an English translation in the "Judging Description / Translation" field with the individual image file.
Video
Video files will only be accepted through the online entry system. Videos submitted can be:
Content Video (the original content as it ran) Please reference the individual categories for length restrictions.
Project Video (case study, behind the scenes, trailer, cut-down, demo, screen record, etc.) Case Study and Project Videos should be no longer than 2 minutes.
ASPECT RATIO / RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080 is preferred and recommended
Minimum resolution of 1280 x 720
All videos must be submitted in 16x9 format
Other aspect ratios will automatically have black pillars added after uploading the video into the online system
FORMAT
.mov or .mp4
H.264 compression
Audio compression must be AAC
FILE SIZE
Each file must be no larger than 500 MB
EXTRAS
Do NOT include color bars or tone
Do NOT include agency information or slates
NOTE
Case Study and Project Videos should be no longer than 2 minutes.
For video entries in a language other than English, provide English subtitles in the video or a translation in the "Judging Description / Translation" field with the individual video file.
Audio
Audio files will only be accepted through the online entry system. Audio files submitted can be:
Content Audio (the original content as it ran)
FILE SIZE
Each file must be no larger than 50 MB
FORMAT
All audio files must be in MP3 format
EXTRAS
Do NOT include agency information
Do NOT include audio slates
NOTE
For entries in a language other than English, provide an English translation in the "Judging Description / Translation" field with the individual audio file.
URL
URLs will only be accepted through the online entry system. URLs submitted can be:
URL to Website (the original site or a landing page providing information about the project)
URL to Full Length Piece (long form or full length content video hosted online)
ALL URLS
Entries must be an active URL.
URL links entered must remain unchanged through June 2025.
URL TO WEBSITE
URLs of a video hosted online (i.e., Vimeo, YouTube, etc.) are NOT accepted for Website categories
Landing pages of project information are acceptable
URL TO FULL LENGTH VIDEOS
For Long Form and Full Length video categories, a URL may be submitted to a content video hosted online (i.e., Vimeo, YouTube, etc.)
Case Study and Project Videos must be submitted through online upload.
NOTE
Password-protected URLs are NOT recommended, as complicated logins slow down judging.
Some categories may accept a URL to a download link for an application. This will be supporting media and is not guaranteed to be downloaded and installed by the jury.
For URL entries in a language other than English, use the "Judging Description / Translation" field with the individual URL to provide any necessary instructions in English.
PDF
PDF files will only be accepted through the online entry system. PDFs submitted can be:
Project PDF (contains images, graphics, and copy providing information about the project)
Publication PDF (full booklets, brochures, books, magazines, etc.)
ALL PDFS
Files must be exported at a high resolution image compression.
Printers marks should not be included.
FILE SIZE
Each file must be no larger than 15 MB
PROJECT PDF
Images, graphics, and copy should be provided in a single file
Project PDFs should be three (3) pages or less
PUBLICATION PDF
Physical books, magazines and newspapers should be entered as multi-page documents
Publication PDFs should not contain any extraneous project information. They should be a digital version of the book, magazine or newspaper as it was printed.
NOTE
All PDF files must be submitted in English.
Password-protected PDFs are NOT accepted.
Single-page PDFs can be submitted for Book and Magazine covers, but Digital Image submissions are recommended.
Digital publications may be entered as PDFs, providing they contain their original interactive components.
Animated Gif
Gif files will only be accepted through the online entry system. Gifs submitted can be:
Content Animation (the original content or artwork as it ran)
DIMENSIONS
The longest side of each graphic must be a maximum of 4800 pixels long
FILE SIZE
Each file must be no larger than 50 MB
FORMAT
Each file should be a high res GIF when possible
Each file should be RGB color mode
NOTE
For artwork animations in a language other than English, provide an English translation in the "Judging Description / Translation" field with the individual gif file.
Physical Materials
Physical Materials may only be submitted for select categories. Physical material entries can be:
Artwork / Content (the original content or artwork as it ran or was produced)
An entry label must be securely attached to each piece.
Entry labels can be printed from the Invoices and Closed Entries pages for all entries with physical judging media.
Physical submission are only accepted in the following Disciplines: Brand / Communication Design, Book Design, Magazine / Newspaper Design & Packaging Design,
Physical submissions should be mailed to the following address no later than March 4, 2025:
The One Club for Creativity
ATTN: ADC 104th Annual Awards
450 West 31st Street 6th Floor
New York, NY 10001 USA
FLAT PRINTS
An entry label should be securely attached to the back of each printed piece.
For Series entries, prints should be taped together horizontally.
Flat prints should not be mounted.
Prints should be submitted at the original size in which they ran or were published.
DIMENSIONAL WORK
For dimensional work, an entry label should be attached as securely as possible in a location that does not obscure the piece.
LIQUIDS
For work containing liquids, refer to your local customs restrictions. United States import restrictions can be found here.
If an item complies with customs restrictions, the ADC Awards accepts entries containing liquid.
Liquid can be removed from the item before shipment if it is not necessary in order to review and judge the piece.
NOTE
Categories that accept physical materials also accept digital supporting media (images, video) that can be viewed by the jury at their discretion.
Supporting judging media will be viewed on a small hand-held tablet. Images and text on supporting digital files should be large enough to be viewed in this format.
