Asia’s first mobile video festival “Korea Mobile Fest (KMF)” that was kicked off today will attract and award creative short films, organizers said Tuesday.

KFM, jointly run by startup accelerator D.Camp, media company Herald Corp. and data tech firm Aroundus, is a contest platform open to all, from ordinary citizens to experienced content creators. The content must be in the form of short videos taken at least partially with smartphones. They will be submitted online to be judged by a panel of experts.

KMF consists of two tiers, with the first being individual video contests where contestants can submit short videos taken by smartphones. Winners become automatically eligible for the annual KMF Awards (KMF2020) – the second tier of KMF.

Cash rewards this year for the individual contests and KMF2020 combined will reach 42 million won ($34,500), including a total 20 million won from two contests sponsored by Herald and D.Camp, respectively, and another 20 million won from the KMF Organizing Committee.

D.Camp will offer 10 million won for its “Home Alone Mobile Fest” where contestants can enter videos on how they are spending time at home during lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Herald also offers 10 million won for its “True Hero Mobile Fest” for the best video cheering on individuals, such as medical workers, who are working hard to fight the virus.

Contestants also have a choice between signing up for free and paying a 10,000 won ($8.20) entrance fee. Paying contestants are eligible for the entirety of the prize money, while those applying for free can claim 70 percent of the prize money.

The organizers said the prize money and global reach distinguishes KMF from other existing video contests in Korea. The greater awards will enable KMF to attract a much larger and better pool of talent, according to Aroundus, operator of the platform.

For KMF sponsors, the mobile festival offers an opportunity to access creative content that can be used as branded content, while securing a potential pool of talent.

“D.Camp hopes to help turn KMF into a unique event representing not just Korea, but all of Asia as a platform through which sponsors including startups can discover new talent and creative marketing content,” said Kim Hong-il, head of D.Camp.

KMF organizers said winners of the KMF Awards will be selected among the winners of individual contests who will be announced by September 2020. The awards ceremony will take place at IF, the country’s largest street startup festival hosted by D.Camp scheduled for Oct. 9-11. The winning video will be shown at the festival.

Details about KMF can be found at www.koreamobilefest.com.

By Park Ga-young (gypark@heraldcorp.com)