Grab your video camera and let your voice be heard. The Democracy Video Challenge wants to know what you think about democracy.

The Democracy Video Challenge, a global call to action celebrating democracy, launched its second annual competition at the United Nations on International Democracy Day. The Challenge again invites citizens from around the world to create video shorts (3 minutes or less) that complete the phrase: "Democracy is..." in an effort to enhance the global dialogue on democracy. Contestants are asked to post their entries on the competition’s YouTube site. Six winners will be selected by online public voting.

The winners will participate in screenings of their videos in Hollywood, New York, and Washington, D.C., hosted by partners, including the Motion Picture Association of America. In New York and Hollywood, the winners will spend time on TV/film sets, and will meet with directors, film technicians, professional talent agents, and new media experts. They will also receive tickets to the Universal Studios theme park in Los Angeles. In Washington, D.C., the winners will meet with democracy advocates, the media, and U.S. government officials.

THE TIMELINE

• DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS JANUARY 31, 2010
• Challenge semifinalists will be selected on or about March 31, 2010.
• An independent jury will narrow down the semifinalists to 21 finalists on or about May 15, 2010.
• The general public will vote online for the winning videos from May 15 to June 15, 2010.
• Seven winners – one each from the Western Hemisphere, Europe, Middle East-North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, South & Central Asia, East Asia-Pacific and one anonymous winner – will be announced in mid-June 2010.
• The six publicly identified winners, one from each of the six geographic regions, will travel to the United States to claim their prize in the fall of 2010.

THE DETAILS:

• You must be 18 or older to enter.
• Videos can be any style: fiction or documentary, animated or live action.
• Videos must be no longer than three minutes.
• Videos must be in English or have English subtitles.
• Contestants may enter anonymously, but anonymous winners cannot collect the grand prize.

A complete list of rules is posted to www.videochallenge.america.gov

• Previous video challenge winners.