Regulations

ART. 1 - AIMS
The Bologna Portfolio Award aims to acknowledge the illustrator’s portfolio as a key tool to furthering his/her profession, recognizing its major role as a means of accessing new job opportunities and as a communication tool between the illustrator and his/her clients (publishers, art directors, literary agents, etc.).

ART. 2 - RECIPIENTS
The award is open to all illustrators who participate in the Portfolio Review Program scheduled during “The Illustrators Survival Corner” program at FIL Fair - Guadalajara (Mexico).
The program shall take place from 30 November to 4 December 2024 at the Bologna Children's Book Fair booth, International Area HH7, FIL - Guadalajara.

ARTICLE 3 – PARTICIPATION
In order to participate in the Bologna Portfolio Award competition, each illustrator - following the booking of the portfolio review - must sign this regulation by filling in the form at the following link: https://www.bolognachildrensbookfair.com/en/application-form-bologna-portfolio-award/14244.html according to the procedures indicated below and on the BCBF website. Failure to complete the Entry Form will exclude the illustrator in question from participation in the Bologna Portfolio Award contest.

How to Book a Portfolio Review Session - The Illustrators Survival Corner FIL - Guadalajara 2024
Reservations for the Portfolio Reviews (15 reviewers with 6 session each) shall open at 1:30 p.m. (CET) on 26 November 2024, and shall be subject to availability.
Attendance of the Portfolio Review Sessions is free of charge. However, reservation is mandatory.
A maximum of two (2) Portfolio Reviews may be booked for the entire duration of “The Illustrators Survival Corner FIL - Guadalajara 2024” program.

To book, please click here: https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/the-bologna-grand-tour-fil-guadalajara-2024-3839223

ARTICLE 4 - PRE-SELECTION
At the end of each Portfolio Review, the reviewer shall assign a score from 1 to 10 to each portfolio reviewed for each of the following portfolio characteristics:

• Presentation: clarity and quality of image layout, order of visual content, clarity of paratexts accompanying the portfolio such as captions, biographical and personal contact elements;
• Consistency: ability of the portfolio to identify the illustrator’s visual language precisely and comprehensively, clearly indicating the particular editorial sections it addresses.

Should the same illustrator participate in two (2) Portfolio Reviews, only the first Portfolio Review attended shall be considered for the purposes of the Portfolio Review Award.
Each Portfolio Review session will produce a ranking of the portfolios reviewed based on the portfolio’s overall score, i.e., the sum of the grades assigned by the Reviewer to each criterion. The two illustrators with the highest score for each session will advance to the next stage (the Final Selection, as described in Article 5 of these Regulations).
In the event of more than one illustrator obtaining the highest score, all these illustrators shall be advanced to the next (Final Selection) stage. Likewise, all those illustrators obtaining the second to highest score shall pass to the Final Selection.
The result of the Pre-selection shall be communicated to the illustrators selected by email.

ARTICLE 5 - FINAL SELECTION
For the final selection, finalists must send the original portfolio of the work submitted and assessed as a PDF file at FIL – Guadalajara. Finalists will receive instructions by email on how to send their work, which must be received no later than 15 December 2024.
The Jury shall be composed of three sector professionals. Each juror shall assign a grade from 1 to 10 to each finalist portfolio, and may, at his/her sole discretion, attribute a special mention to his/her portfolio of choice. The final ranking shall be determined by summing the grade assigned by the three members of the jury. Any mentions awarded by a juror will count as 1 bonus point. The minimum score for illustrators shall therefore be 3 (three), while the maximum score shall be 33 (thirty-three).
In the event of a tie, the Jury shall meet remotely and, at its sole discretion, decide on the winner no later than 10 January 2025.
The name of the winner and the finalist rankings of the Bologna Portfolio Award Competition shall be published on the Bologna Children's Book Fair website and related social channels by 15 January 2025.
Bologna Portfolio Award Competition participants shall also receive an email communicating the outcome of the competition.

ART. 6 - AWARDS
First place:

• round-trip economy-class airfare to Bologna, Italy;
• hotel accommodation in Bologna during the 2025 Bologna Children's Book Fair (31 March - 3 April);
• free pass to the 2025 Bologna Children's Book Fair. 

NB: Visa authorization procedures and charges, as well as meals during the illustrator’s stay in Bologna shall be at the winner’s expense.

Should the winner fail to confirm acceptance of the prize within 7 days of the communication, the award will automatically be assigned to the next name on the list of finalists.

For all participants:

• free access to the 2025 Illustrators Digital Wall 2025 on the BCBF website, where illustrators have a unique promotional opportunity to present themselves with an image together with a short personal profile and contact details (e-mail, website and social profile).

 

ART. 7 - USE OF IMAGES
While the illustrators shall remain the exclusive owners of their portfolios, they nonetheless hereby grant BolognaFiere the non-exclusive right to publish - free of charge, for the duration of 3 years - their portfolios on the web as well as on the social media platforms of “Bologna Children's Book Fair” and its official and authorized partners, for general promotional purposes or for any other initiative related to “Bologna Children's Book Fair”, also in languages other than Italian.

Illustrators hereby agree not to make any claims for payment or other concessions for the use  in whatever form by BolognaFiere and/or third-party agents of their portfolios, recognizing that, in making use of their work, BolognaFiere also intends to publicize and promote the finalist illustrators of the Bologna Portfolio Award selection worldwide.

ART. 8 - CANCELLATION OF AND CHANGES TO THE COMPETITION
BolognaFiere may, at its sole discretion, cancel the Competition with no obligation to compensate any of the parties involved. 

ART. 9 - TREATMENT OF PERSONAL DATA
BolognaFiere undertakes to comply with all obligations arising from current laws governing Personal Data Protection, in particular Regulation (EU) No. 2016/679 (“GDPR”), as well as any additional national or supranational date-protection regulations, namely measures issued by the Italian Data Protection Authority or the European Data Protection Committee. 

ARTICLE 10 - JURISDICTION AND COMPETENT COURT
Relations between the participants in this Competition shall be governed by the laws of Italy. Any dispute arising shall fall within the jurisdiction of the Italian judicial authority and shall be brought exclusively before the Court of Bologna.

ART. 11 - FINAL PROVISION
Participation in the Competition and the use of the awards shall be completely free of charge and shall not entail any constraint or commitment of any kind beyond the conditions of participation set forth in these Rules and Regulations.