Join us for Direbrook’s first-ever Lip Sync Battle Royale, where creatures of all ages can get on stage and put on a lip-sync performance Fey and Fiend alike! Online entries are due by November 2nd, 2023 at 11:59pm. Any forms submitted online after that will not be processed. If there are still available slots after the online form closes, we will accept in-person applications at the Info Booth until 12pm on Saturday, November 4th, 2023. 

The Lip Sync will be held on Saturday November 4th from 6 - 7:30pm with Tech Rehearsal and Check-in at 5pm in the Lloyd Ballroom.

Eligibility

• All participants must have a Direbrook 2023 membership.

• All participants must read and agree to follow all rules of the Lip Sync Battle Royale.

• Performances previously entered into Direbrook’s Lip Sync Battle Royale are ineligible.

• By registering for the Lip Sync Battle Royale, all participants agree to allow Direbrook to use their images for promotional purposes, both photographs and video. 

• All convention policies must be upheld during the entirety of the Lip Sync Battle Royale competition. Anyone breaking Direbrook rules will be disqualified and reported to Operations.

• Direbrook staff may enter Lip Sync Battle Royale as long as staff-related responsibilities are fulfilled.

• Direbrook Board Members may not compete in the Lip Sync Battle Royale.

How to Enter

• Sign-up for the Direbrook 2023 Lip Sync Battle Royale begins after the rules have been posted to the Direbrook website and an announcement has been made. To sign up, fill out the Lip Sync Battle Royale Entry Form once it has been made available at the bottom of this page.

• The deadline for entry forms to be received will be November 2nd, 2023 at 11:59pm. At-convention sign ups may be available should any open slots remain and will close at 12pm on Saturday.

• The maximum number that will be allowed this year will be 15 acts.

• All entries are taken on a first come, first served basis. If all entry slots are full, there will be a wait list for additional entrants who may be called in if any participants drop out or are disqualified.

• Entrants are required to attend the Check-In and Rehearsal, and to show up at the requested time for the contest itself. Entrants who miss any of these events may be disqualified. The event will be on Saturday early evening with Check-In and Rehearsal beforehand. Please see the official Direbrook schedule for exact times and locations of required meetings and activities.

General Information

• Direbrook’s Lip Sync Battle Royale is an all ages event. Any content considered 18+ will not be allowed.

• Offensive language of any kind is not allowed—no racial or sexual epithets; excessive profanity, ect.

• No excessive violence.

• All sexual jokes must have a non-sexual interpretation that is at least as obvious as the sexual one.

• No nudity—all costumes must adhere to the official Direbrook rules.

• Be clever, not crass! If you think your costume or presentation might be too risqué or offensive, it probably is.

• If you have a question about your content, please feel free to ask the Lip Sync Staff if it is allowable.

• You may surprise the audience, but never surprise the crew.

• No fire, flame, smoke, fog, dry ice, wind machines, lasers, pressurized gases or liquids.

• No messy substances—wet, dry, or oily—in the green room or on stage.

• No jumping on or off stage—please use the officially designated stage entrances and exits.

• Entrants must abide by the convention weapons policies. Pointing weapons at anyone not in your cosplay group will not be tolerated. The Event Coordinator must approve any actions involving weapons.

• Contestants may not use stage time to make political, religious, insulting, or other demonstrations not related to their entry.

• If for whatever reason one contestant is removed from competition for any violation, the entire group may be disqualified as well depending on the situation.

• All decisions made by the Main Events Coordinator or Programming Director are final and may only be changed by a formal challenge though Programming.

• You must have some kind of foot covering. Shoes or boots are required. Be aware of safety concerns. If your character does not wear shoes consider flesh-toned ballet flats or clear shoes.

Judging

Contestants are judged solely on their performance. Costume construction has no influence on the performance judging.

• All entrants must give a performance.

• Contestants will be assigned a numerical score by each judge based on lip sync performance, and showmanship/presentation. In addition, "Coolness Points" can be earned. Coolness Points can be earned for anything which, in the judge's determination, is cool, and can add an additional bonus to the score. The scores from each judge are then tallied to come up with a total score for the contestant.

• Each contestant will appear in only one stage performance.

• The judges are free to give as many or as few awards as they choose. 

Performance

• Performance will be judged based on the performance of the whole group.

• Performance awards are granted to the entries that have shown excellent stage presentation.

• Costumes do not have to be self-made. 

• Contestants must provide their own music.

• File uploads are required for online entries.

• For at-con entries, include your group name and performance name in the filename. 

• One track on USB preferred; we cannot change tracks or start in the middle of a track.

• We can accept MP3, M4A, and other common file types (MP3 is best).

• Music must be clear to hear.

• Bring backup copies of your audio on a USB thumb drive just in case technical difficulties happen.

• We will not play or rip music off portable MP3 players, such as iPods or cell phones.

• Leave the stage as clean as it was when you set foot on it. Arrange to remove all items brought on stage at the end of your presentation. If you have a particularly intricate presentation, we recommend you recruit your own stage ninjas.

• No entry may be a repeat of an entry from any previous competition at Direbrook.

• Don't plan for complex lighting. If you desire anything other than default lighting or music cues, discuss it with the Main Events Coordinator before the convention.

Song Selection

• Entry is limited to one (1) entry per person/group.

• Songs may be from any category, but are limited to 3.5 minutes.

• English or other non-Japanese songs from the dubbed version of an anime series or video game are acceptable. (For example: The German theme to Sailor Moon, or songs from Robotech.)

• If your song is not in english please send us the lyrics in the original language and the English translation so we can check for anything egregiously inappropriate.

• Be prepared to sing at least two different songs. If two people have the same song, one or both will be asked to sing an alternate song. 

• When uploading your Audio files online please name the file with your group name and the song name to keep things organized, thank you.