The Call Is Out--Bring in Your Best Videotapes

Grab a camcorder, a couple of friends, and crank up the imagination. The Del Mar Fair is putting out a call for videotapes--everything from amateur films of the last family barbecue to professional documentaries and commercials.

This is the second year the fair will host a video contest to coincide with its International Photography Exhibit, said Ted Bear, a spokesman with the fair. The winning tapes will be shown at regular intervals throughout the fair, he said.

The idea for a video contest came from Neil Bruington, a graphics communications instructor at Palomar Community College. By expanding the photography exhibit to include videos, Bruington hopes to bring San Diego into the standings with other large fairs in the state.

“There is enough video activity out there, especially at the university level, to support this kind of contest,” Bruington said. “Orange County, Los Angeles and other fairs in California have video contests. It’s time for us to be able to do it too.”

First-place winners in last year’s contest included a documentary on a drunk-driving arrest from the perspective of the person being arrested, and a time-lapse video of the construction of the Oceanside Pier. This year, cash prizes will be awarded to winners in the professional divisions, and plaques and ribbons will be given to winners in the amateur divisions, Bear said.

The categories for professionals are:

* Educational and instructional tapes and commercials.

* Animation.

* Documentaries.

For amateurs, the categories are tapes made by:

* Individuals.

* Groups.

* Students through 8th grade.

* Students in grades 9 though 12.

Entries will be judged by a panel of video producers and professors, Bruington said.

Contestants must live, work or go to school in San Diego County and their tapes should not exceed 30 minutes, Bear said. Entries also must be “suitable for viewing by the fair-going public,” he said.

Entry forms may be obtained by calling the Del Mar Fair Entry Office at 296-1441 or 755-1161. The deadline to submit videos is May 4.