I apologize about losing your post due to them closing the topic. They like to do that so that they can have the last word without further discussion.
So, first of all, I march to the beat of my own drummer when it comes to rendering style. I could really care less if I didn’t win, especially now since they care just as much.
But, there is an issue at the heart of my questioning and that is the integrity of how they follow their own rules in the judging.
Here’s some samples for you from other professional competitions:
Images
Applicants are encouraged to provide up to six images. Format must be jpeg. Maximum dimensions are 2000 x 2000 pixels.
http://challenge.bfi.org/enter
If you submitted an image which did not meet this criteria when others did, you’d be disqualified.
All digital files must be 5 megabytes or smaller, must be in JPEG or .jpg format, and must be at least 1,600 pixels wide (if a horizontal image) or 1,600 pixels tall (if a vertical image).
Logic would dictate that an image greater than 5 megabytes would not be eligible.
You say, “But the fact that someone didn’t compress their video tightly enough isn’t really grounds for disqualification.”
Improvement is both a subjective observation as well as a technical observation.
There were some technical challenges as well, some people were rewarded for not meeting them.
My question remains standing.