Saturday Night Contest - A FREE Trip To Magic-Con 2010
- Thread starter j.bayme
- Start date
Before we get to tonight's main event, we'd like to start by announcing the ELEVEN VIP winners. These were selected at random, and will receive invitation to an invitation only, presenters-only event at the conference:
1. Adam B. (New York, NY)
2. Billy G. (Fayetteville, AR)
3. Brian H. (San Jose, CA)
4. Robert L. (Lexington, AL)
5. Andrew M. (Pico Rivera, CA)
6. Andy R. (New York, NY)
7. Samuel R. (Riverside, CA)
8. Michael S. (Roanoke, VA)
9. Stan S. (Cupertino, CA)
10. Jonathan T. (San Diego, CA)
11. Alfonso V. (Mexico City)
And now for tonight's main event. The grand prize. An all expense paid trip to Magic-Con, with hotel and airfare included.
We posted this contest on a whim last week as we wanted to kick off this year with something special. The idea was simple. Over and over these past few months, we've heard from magicians young and old that - for whatever reason - won't be able to make it to this year's Magic-Con. And especially because it's the first conference of it's kind, we really truly do want as many people as possible to attend. We know that times are tough and that the economy kind of sucks. So we wanted to do something about it - and we did this.
We had no idea that we were going to get the response we received. In one short week, 162 posts and submissions filled our forum thread. News of the contest spread to iTricks, Facebook, Twitter, and InterwebTubes, and the stories starting pouring it. It was a privilege to read each and every one of them - so much so that we took an extra three days just to make sure we had given each a fair review.
The stakes were high. On the line was an all expense paid trip to the conference, with hotel included. For many of you, we realize that this had the potential to be a life changing experience: meeting the brightest minds this industry has to offer, all under one roof, all in one weekend. Your stories were humbling, and each was proof of your passion, determination, and dedication to this artform. As we mentioned before - regardless of if you win this particular contest or not, keep that passion up. I promise, I promise that it will pay off in the long run.
More thought and energy was put into judging this contest than anything we've posted before. We shared your entries with countless presenters and artists - from our crew here in the USA all the way to Luis de Matos in Portugal. Our choice, although difficult, was unanimous. While the contest did not require that you had to be creative, we asked you to show us that you mean it and stand out from the crowd. One submission in particular really, truly jumped out at each of us. And tonight, we announce him as our Magic-Con{test} 2010 Grand Prize Winner. Please join us in congratulating Ben Jackson for his submission and his win here tonight.
If you didn't take home the prize, we do hope with sincerity that you keep up the passion and dedication you showed us and shared with us this week. And if you can't make it to Magic-Con this year, don't worry - we plan for this to be a long term venture for the advancement of the art. And there is always, and will always be, next year.
Jonathan Bayme
Dan & Dave Buck
1. Adam B. (New York, NY)
2. Billy G. (Fayetteville, AR)
3. Brian H. (San Jose, CA)
4. Robert L. (Lexington, AL)
5. Andrew M. (Pico Rivera, CA)
6. Andy R. (New York, NY)
7. Samuel R. (Riverside, CA)
8. Michael S. (Roanoke, VA)
9. Stan S. (Cupertino, CA)
10. Jonathan T. (San Diego, CA)
11. Alfonso V. (Mexico City)
And now for tonight's main event. The grand prize. An all expense paid trip to Magic-Con, with hotel and airfare included.
We posted this contest on a whim last week as we wanted to kick off this year with something special. The idea was simple. Over and over these past few months, we've heard from magicians young and old that - for whatever reason - won't be able to make it to this year's Magic-Con. And especially because it's the first conference of it's kind, we really truly do want as many people as possible to attend. We know that times are tough and that the economy kind of sucks. So we wanted to do something about it - and we did this.
We had no idea that we were going to get the response we received. In one short week, 162 posts and submissions filled our forum thread. News of the contest spread to iTricks, Facebook, Twitter, and InterwebTubes, and the stories starting pouring it. It was a privilege to read each and every one of them - so much so that we took an extra three days just to make sure we had given each a fair review.
The stakes were high. On the line was an all expense paid trip to the conference, with hotel included. For many of you, we realize that this had the potential to be a life changing experience: meeting the brightest minds this industry has to offer, all under one roof, all in one weekend. Your stories were humbling, and each was proof of your passion, determination, and dedication to this artform. As we mentioned before - regardless of if you win this particular contest or not, keep that passion up. I promise, I promise that it will pay off in the long run.
More thought and energy was put into judging this contest than anything we've posted before. We shared your entries with countless presenters and artists - from our crew here in the USA all the way to Luis de Matos in Portugal. Our choice, although difficult, was unanimous. While the contest did not require that you had to be creative, we asked you to show us that you mean it and stand out from the crowd. One submission in particular really, truly jumped out at each of us. And tonight, we announce him as our Magic-Con{test} 2010 Grand Prize Winner. Please join us in congratulating Ben Jackson for his submission and his win here tonight.
If you didn't take home the prize, we do hope with sincerity that you keep up the passion and dedication you showed us and shared with us this week. And if you can't make it to Magic-Con this year, don't worry - we plan for this to be a long term venture for the advancement of the art. And there is always, and will always be, next year.
Jonathan Bayme
Dan & Dave Buck
Congratulations Ben! You did a fantastic job and JB is right, there is always next year to go if we couldn't make it this year.
Congrats man i just watched your video and it was soooooo nice and refreshing... i hope you enjoy this amazing experience 
learn enough for use all man
-Chris DEan
learn enough for use all man-Chris DEan
Dude, that is amazing. If you would make a recording of that song, I would totally buy it and listen to it and cherish it forever. Congratulations and have fun at Magic-Con
Congrats Ben!! I'm really jealous, but also happy for you. I hope I will be able to attend next year
