Kaleidoscope's Frequently Asked Questions

[dark_administrator]

Kaleidoscope's Frequently Asked Questions

What is dark_agenda?

dark_agenda was founded as a place to provide resources in order to increase representation of international, non-English language and non-Western sources in multifandom fanwork challenges as well as to promote the responsible portrayal of chromatic characters.

dark_agenda seeks to provide a place where fans, especially chromatic fans, can and are encouraged to critically produce, consume and discuss fanworks centered around chromatic cultures and characters.

What does chromatic mean?

We use the term “chromatic” as an umbrella definition for "person of color", "non-white", "multiracial", "indigenous", "sourcelander", "hyphenate", "diasporian", etc.; while we acknowledge that it has shortcomings. Similarly, we accept that there is a certain flattening in our “white/Western/other” terminology.

Why is dark_agenda running Kaleidoscope?

There are several reasons dark_agenda is running Kaleidoscope: one among them is to promote chromatic sources and characters and another is because we want an exchange challenge dedicated to chromatic fandoms.

What is Kaleidoscope?

Kaleidoscope is a multimedia fanwork exchange for rare fandoms containing chromatic characters or people and produced by chromatic creators.

How will Kaleidoscope work?

Each participant has an opportunity to nominate up to three (3) fandoms and from each fandom, up to ten (10) characters or people to be included in Kaleidoscope. From a list of fandoms, characters and people nominated, the participant must requested three (3) distinct fandoms and specify whether they are willing to receive artworks, graphics, stories and/or vids; they may also include optional specific character requests and prompts.

The participant must also offer at least three (3) or more distinct fandoms for which they are willing to create a fanwork and specify whether they are willing to create artworks, graphics, stories and/or vids. Then the participant is matched to someone who requested at least one (1) fandom and one (1) fanwork type, i.e. artworks, graphics, stories or vids, that they, the participant, did.

Once the participant has received an assignment, they must create a fanwork a) from one of the three fandoms and b) in one of the media, i.e. artworks, graphics, stories or vids, their assigned recipient requested. The fanwork must also c) be centered around at least one (1) chromatic character or person and d) be a minimum of 1,000 words for stories, 1:00 minute for vids, completed pieces for artworks as well as digital collage, photo manipulation and user-interface graphics (e.g. not initial brainstorming or preliminary sketches), 30 images for picspams and 20 icons, 5 banners or other equivalently sized graphics for web graphics.

Who can participate in Kaleidoscope?

Anyone who is interested can participate in Kaleidoscope.

What fandom will be considered eligible for Kaleidoscope?

For this challenge, we are only allowing rare fandoms whose source has both (a) at least one chromatic character in a major role and (b) at least one chromatic person who is credited as an creator. In cases where there are no clear creators listed, directors, writers, developers, etc. may be submitted as creators, e.g. Ang Lee, Wang Hui-Ling, James Schamus and Tsai Kuo Jung would be considered creators of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon while for Final Fantasy, only Sakaguchi Hironobu would be considered as the source's creator. For fandoms involving real people, the chromatic creator criterion does not apply.

For future challenges, we may extend our scope to include rare fandoms with chromatic characters, but not by chromatic creators. That consideration, though, is dependant on a couple of factors, some technical and logistical.

How will rarity be determined?

A fandom will be considered rare for this challenge if it meets the following criteria:

• It has less than 1,500 English-language stories, 15,000 artworks and 350 vids (in any languages) on major multifandom archives;
  
• It does not have a dedicated fandom-specific challenge that has run annually for more than two years in a row;
  
• and it does also not have a dedicated fandom-specific archive or community that has more than 1,500 fanworks.

Our rarity criteria is based on the consumption and production of source materials and their trends in English-language fandom.

What type of fanworks will be allowed?

Kaleidoscope welcomes artworks, graphics, stories and vids. For the purposes of this current challenge, we are limiting artworks to traditional art & craft and digital painting & drawing as outlined in this guide to fanart terminology, but we are willing to consider opening the challenge to other mediums and/or fanwork types.

Graphics, on the other hand, will encompass digital collage, photo manipulation, picspams, user-interface graphics (e.g. desktop wallpapers, program skins, etc.) and web graphics (e.g. icons, banners, etc.). In addition, under AO3's guidelines, picspams must be transformed in some ways, either by containing some kind of commentaries and/or contexts or be visually manipulated (e.g. images are colored or digitally edited).

Vids may be AMVs, compilations, fanvids, songvids or fan-made MVs, but excluding slide shows -- or simply a series of photographs set to music. Mixed-media vids that include some still images or vids that manipulated and animated them would be welcome.

What are the requirements for fanworks?

Fanworks must be centered around at least one (1) chromatic character or person and it must be a minimum of:

• 1,000 words for stories
  
• 1:00 minute for vids
  
• 30 images for picspams
  
• 20 icons, 5 banners or other equivalently sized graphics for web graphics
  
• completed pieces (e.g. not initial brainstorming or preliminary sketches) for artworks and digital collage, photo manipulation and user-interface graphics

What are the deadlines?

All time will be in Pacific Time (U.S.A.), but our schedule will be:

• Nominations will be open for two weeks and will close at 9 p.m. on 2011 September 3.
  
• Sign-ups will also be open for two weeks and will close at 9 p.m. on 2011 October 8.
  
• Assignments will be due at 9 p.m., 2011 November 12.
  
• For assignments that only include artwork, graphic and vid requests, the last day to default without penalty will be 9 p.m., 2011 October 29; for assignments that include story requests, 9 p.m., 2011 November 5.
  
• Pinch-hit assignments made before defaulting deadlines will be due at 9 p.m., 2011 November 12, and assignments made after the defaulting deadlines will be due at 9 p.m., 2011 November 19.
  
• Treats will be due at 9 p.m., 2011 November 19.

How do I nominate a fandom?

Nominations may be made through this form, which will go live when the nominations period begins. Up to three (3) fandoms and for each fandom, up to 10 characters or persons may be nominated. The fandom must be from a source that (a) contains chromatic characters or people, (b) is produced by chromatic creators and (c) meets our rarity policy. For characters and people, they must, obviously, identify or be coded in cases of fictional characters as chromatic.

How do I dispute a fandom's eligibility for Kaleidoscope?

Inclusion of a specific nominated fandom, character or person in Kaleidoscope may be disputed if they do not meet the challenge's criteria of qualified fandom through our nominations dispute form:

• fandom source was not produced by chromatic creators
  
• fandom source does not contain chromatic characters or people
  
• fandom source does not meet our rarity policy
  
• a character or person does not identify -- or in the case of fictional characters, not coded -- as a chromatic.

Verifiable evidence must be cited (e.g. links to Anime Music Videos .Org, AsianFanfics, deviantArt, FanFiction.Net, pixiv, YouTube, etc. searches and so on) for issues concerning rarity.

How do I sign-up?

Participants may sign-up for Kaleidoscope through this form.

On the form, they must request three (3) distinct fandoms from the final list of nominated fandoms and specify whether they are willing to receive artworks, graphics, stories and/or vids; the participant may also include optional specific character requests and prompts. They must also offer at least three (3) or more distinct fandoms from the final list of nominated fandoms for which they are willing to create a fanwork and specify whether they are willing to create artwork, graphics, stories and/or vids.

How will I submit my assignment?

Fanworks for Kaleidoscope may be submitted to its AO3 collection by 9 p.m., 2011 November 12. AO3 has a tutorial for posting stories to a challenge here.

For artworks, graphics and vids, participants may either create a fake unidentifiable account (for videos, AO3 supports 4shared, blip.tv, Dailymotion, Metacafe, Viddler, vimeo and YouTube) or use a Photobucket or YouTube account we've set up for Kaleidoscope participants, upload their fanwork there and embed it in a post to be submitted to the Kaleidoscope AO3 collection. An unsigned version -- or one with a Kaleidoscope watermark -- must be used for the period between go-live and reveals to maintain anonymity (only after creators are revealed may a signed version replaced it if desire).

We'll try to create a Kaleidoscope-specific tutorial for submitting fanworks to our collection as soon as we get the chance.

How do I find someone to beta my fanwork?

Participants may find or request beta services through our beta resources post (not yet live) that we'll make for Kaleidoscope or through our Chromatic Beta mailing list.

How do I drop out from Kaleidoscope?

Participants may drop out from Kaleidoscope through here (not yet live).

Defaulting must be done by 2011 October 29, 9 p.m. Pacific Time (U.S.A.) for assignments that include only artwork, graphic and vid requests to avoid incurring a penalty. For assignments that include story requests, it must be done by November 5th.

After October 29th or November 5th depending, we'll probably ask participants to complete their assignment if they're interested in participating in Kaleidoscope again. Participants who drop out without letting us know will probably be banned from future challenges.

How do I volunteer to be a pinch-hitter for Kaleidoscope?

Pinch hits will be sent through our pinch hit mailing list, which anyone can join here.

Claims are first come first served -- the first person to respond to an email detailing a pinch hit will be assigned to it -- and there are no limits to how many pinch-hits one may claim. Pinch-hit assignments made before defaulting deadlines will be due on 9 p.m., 2011 November 12, and pinch-hit assignments made after defaulting deadlines will be due November 19th. The fanwork requirements are the same as for the initial assignments: a minimum of 1,000 words for stories, 1:00 minute for vids, completed pieces for artwork as well as digital collage, photo manipulation and user-interface graphics (e.g. not initial brainstorming or preliminary sketches), 30 images for picspams and 20 icons, 5 banners or other equivalently sized graphics for web graphics.

What are Kaleidoscope treats?

Kaleidoscope treats are "extra" fanworks (not a replacement for assigned fanworks) someone has decided to make based on a participant's requests from their Dear Doer of Darkness letter or a list generated from Kaleidoscope's participants' requests.

Anyone may create treats. There are no minimum fanwork requirements for them, and they are due on 2011 November 19, 9 p.m. Pacific Time (U.S.A.).

When will the challenge go live?

Kaleidoscope will go live anonymously sometime on 2011 November 19. Creators will be revealed on November 26th.

I'm really excited about Kaleidoscope! What can I do to help?

\o/! There are lots of ways you could help!

• Challenge promotions: the simplest way to help is to promote our challenge in your journaling account and/or any communities you may moderate. Or you could help us contact moderators of relevant communities and ask for their permission to promote our challenges. There are a few communities we're thinking of contacting:
  
  • animanga_news
    
  • Anime Music Videos .Org?
    
  • AsianFanfics
    
  • drama_llamas/brokemycaps
    
  • handbasketnews
    
  • fandomcalendar
    
  • veni_vidi_vids and/or vidding
    
  • wuxia
    
  • yuritoday
  As well as some of the communities listed in our Communities of Interest, but more suggestions are welcome!


• Fandom promotions: another way to help is to prepare and post meta, picspams, primers, resource lists, etc. of fandoms you would like to see represented in Kaleidoscope and increase their visibility!


• Creating graphics: Or you could create banners and icons for Kaleidoscope to use in promoting its challenge. We would like to see all various chromatic sources and genres represented and would love your submission!


• Beta testing: since our nominations and dispute forms are developed and coded in-house, we need volunteers willing to beta test these forms to make sure they work, by reporting any bugs they may encountered (and providing feedbacks on the forms' wording, structure and layout).


• Fandom and character wrangling: our current proposed nominations and disputes processes involve a lot of spreadsheet wrangling so we'll need a lot of help in this area. Volunteers will be working with an administration interface that manages the list of nominated fandoms, characters and people and editing them into a final list which will then have to be input manually as tag sets in AO3 for sign-ups.


• Tutorials write-ups: additionally, we need assistance in writing tutorials for signing-up and submitting fanworks for Kaleidoscope (with maybe sub-sections dedicated to artworks, graphics, stories and vids) so whether by creating individual how-to guides for uploading videos to YouTube with how-tos on including subtitle and other forms of captioning or for uploading images to Photobucket to name a few possible tutorials, any type of contributions in this aread would be greatly helpful.


• Hosting chats: one of the things we'd like to host is weekly or bi-weekly Kaleidoscope chats during our assignment period. Ideally, we'll like the chats to take place in various time-zones, but would need volunteers who are willing to act as hosts for these chats and to keep our chat room open.

If you would like to help us with beta testing, data collection, spreadsheet wrangling, tutorial write-ups and/or hosting chats, leave a comment here with your contact info and details or contact us via PMs to dark_administrator/darkadmn or our e-mail: darkadmn AT gmail DOT com.

You'll have our eternal gratitude; thank you for expressing interests in Kaleidoscope!

This entry is posted at Dreamwidth and LiveJournal and you may comment at either journaling platform.

Comments

[littlebutfierce]

Wait wait wait, does that mean nominations are officially open as of NOW? *______* (The nomination form link still says beta version after it.

I will plug to the 200+ people on writethisfanfic, & poke the Natsume comms both here & on LJ for sure!

I'm also TOTALLY going to do a promo post for Tumbling, this drama that is EATING MY BRAIN, once I've finished the last 3 eps. I am determined to churn up some kind of fandom for this show!

(edit: just saw the next post, ha! Wasn't there when I commented, honest!)

[wistfuljane]

Nominations are not opened yet -- you'll see a separate nominations post once they are. This is just posting all the official documentation before the challenge begins (eta: 9 pm, U.S.A. Pacific Time). :D

[littlebutfierce]

Ohhhhhhh! *headdesk* I see. I saw the 9 PM Pacific time after the close date for nominations (on the other post) & I think my brain read it, & the dates on this post, as "therefore, as it's August 21, nominations are open RIGHT NOW & will close at 9 PM on this date" -- not that it was 9 PM for both dates.

Still, v. soon!

[glitterburn]

I'm so glad you're going to show the request list for Treats - I much prefer writing at random based on prompts these days, so thank you for the opportunity!