Help
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you have a question about something? Click on the relevant section below, read through our FAQs and click on them to find the answers you're looking for!
Questions about your profile and technical issues
Film
The Awards
Music
Media, Advertising and Sponsorship
Abuse and misuse
Questions about your profile and technical issues:
Q. How do I set my profile to private?
A. Login, click on the Manage My Profile button to the right of your screen and then at the bottom left under Account Settings select Hide my email address and/or Hide my real name next to the section you would like to change and click Update.
Q. How do I change my personal information?
A. Login, click on the My Account button in the top right hand corner of your screen. Then click on the Manage My Profile button (remembering that you must be registered and logged in!) to the left of your screen under News Feeds and then click Edit next to the section you would like to change and click Save.
Q. How do I add a movie or music track from Icewhole to my profile? How do I remove it?
A. If you see a film that you would like to have on your profile as one of your favourites then when watching it click on the Add to my Favourites just above the screen.
To remove a film from your Favourites either select the link Manage Favourites just above the screen of the film or login to your account and go to the Film tag then click on Manage your favourite film.
Q. How can I change my default picture?
A. Login and click on the Manage My Pics button in the red Pics box down the right hand side of the screen. Select the Edit tab and then the Set profile image button under the image you would like to appear on your profile. Done!
Q. I'm trying to upload an image, and I am getting an error message... what is wrong?
A. Make sure your image is a jpg or png file and no bigger than 1MB in size. If you continue to have problems, let us know.
Q. How do I cancel my account?
A. Login and click on Manage my profile then go to the link under your profile picture on the left hand side of the screen and click on Leave. You then need to confirm your decision (there's no going back, you'll lose all of your material and settings on your profile) by clicking on the Yep, afraid so button
Q. What does "rights cleared material" actually mean?
A. You must own the rights to any films, artwork, photos and music (including music featured on the film soundtrack) that you upload onto your Icewhole profile. You may have contributed a large part to the project but unless you own the film, your best bet is to ask the person who does own the rights to create a profile and upload the material. You can then get them to list you as cast and crew on the credits and link the film to your profile.
Q. I can't create an account.
A. Make sure you aren't already logged in by looking at the buttons at the very top right hand corner of the Home Page. If you have made it through the registration process but can't login, check the email address you used when filling in your details for a validation email. You need to click on the link contained in this message to activate your account.
Q. I can't login to my account.
A. Make sure you aren't already logged in by looking at the buttons at the very top right hand corner of the Home Page. If you still can't login, check the email address you used when filling in your details for a validation email. You need to click on the link contained in this message to activate your account.
Q. I have forgotten my username.
A. Your username is the email address you entered when you registered your account with Icewhole.
Q. I have forgotten my password.
A. Visit the forgotten password page.
Q. How do I change my email address or my password?
A. Login, click on the Manage My Profile button to the right of your screen and then click on one of the links below your profile image to the left of the screen and follow the instructions.
Q. How do I report an error?
A. Visit the Report an Error page.
Film
Q: Can I upload any film I like?
A: Well this is a two part answer!
1. As long as you own or control all the rights to the film, you can upload the material. Remember you have to have the contractual right and be allowed to use the music contained in the film. If you don't own the rights to the film then ask the person who does to upload it, if you've got a credit on it you can be linked to it and have it on your profile.
2. We would like to think that this is a site for lovers of film and that some semblance of artistic integrity, creativity and originality went into the process of making your film. If so upload it! Others will no doubt appreciate your efforts and vote for it. However we will not tolerate any lewd content on the site so make sure it's suitable material for a global audience.
Q: What format does the film have to be in?
A: We can take most formats; .avi, .dv, .mov/.qt, .mpeg, .mp4, .3gp, .asf/.wmv, flv. 100MB is the largest file size, the more compressed the quicker it will upload, but be careful, don't sacrifice that all important quality with too much compression!
The Awards
Q. How often are awards given?
A. Awards are given on a Monthly, Quarterly and Annual basis. Monthly Awards are given in these 4 regions - US/Canada, UK, Europe and International. Quarterly Technical Awards and Annual Awards are given to Film-makers from around the world.
Q. Can I earn money?
A: Of course you can! On a monthly basis you can win per region (US/Canada; UK; Europe; International): US $1 500 for Best Movie over 10 minutes; US $600 for Best Movie over 5 minutes; US $400 for Best Movie under 5 minutes; US $500 Most Viewed Movie, as voted for by everyone on Icewhole (make sure you vote for your favourites).
Also, remember, that the Film of the Year at our Annual Awards wins US $10 000, and that monthly award winners are automatically nominated.
Q. How do I submit my work to the award scheme?
A. Upload a film on your profile at any time but if you'd like to defer its live date on the site so that it qualifies for a later month then change the Publish Date on the upload page to your preferred post-date. Therefore you don't have to physically go to the site on the first day of the month to give it the maximum chance of exposure. Remember, you MUST own the rights to all movies on your profile and you will be disqualified from an award if you upload someone else's work. If you worked on a film that someone else owns the rights to, get them to upload it to their profile and you can associate it with yours, therefore you still get the credit and could still win an award for it e.g. Best Actor.
Q. How do I vote for my favourite movie?
A. If you see a movie you like you can give it a star rating between 1 and 5 just above the film screen. A movie has to have a minimum of 20 5 star votes to qualify for an award.
Q. What categories are there?
A. Each month the following categories are judged by our panel and awarded in the following regions: the US/Canada, UK, Europe and Internationally: Best Movie over 10 minutes, Best Movie over 5 minutes and Best Movie under 5 minutes. We also let you have your say and the Most Viewed Movie as voted by other users receives US $400 in each of the four regions each month
Each quarter our sponsors will give special awards for technical achievements in selected films showcased during that period from around the world.
Annually our panel of judges vote for the Best of the Best for awards in different categories, and so as not to be dull we have additional awards for fun elements e.g. Best Car Chase. See the IcePics for further details.
Music
Q: Can I upload any track by any band?
A: If you own the rights to the track (i.e. you wrote or performed it) then yes, you can upload the track but if you don't control the copyright to the material then it is against the law to upload it. This site is monitored for breach of copyright law, if you're caught ripping another artist off your profile will be deleted and you could be prosecuted.
Q: What File Formats can I upload?
A: We can take up to a maximum of 30MB in .mp3 format only.
Q: Is the music library actually free?
A: Yes, the music library is actually free. Composers and musicians can upload their work to this library for use in film projects so that film-makers don't have to pay for music and can use it legitimately. The musicians will get a share of any money paid if the film is shown with their music in it on a PRS rateable format - like a television ad or a film which appears in theatres. If you are a film-maker using music from the library you must list the unique ID number attached to the track when you upload your film. Don't forget to include the band/musicians and the track in the credits. Giving you something for free means they probably deserve that... and it's the correct thing to do.
Media, Advertising and Sponsorship questions
Q. I'm a journalist and want to talk to someone at Icewhole. Who can I contact?
A. Visit the Contact Us page.
Q. How do I advertise on Icewhole?
A. Visit the Advertise page.
Q. How can I sponsor a section of Icewhole.com or support a specific award?
A. Visit the Partners page.
Abuse and misuse
Q. Someone on Icewhole is bugging/harassing/threatening me - what can I do about it?
A. Well firstly we don't tolerate this kind of behaviour. You can block a user from posting comments and sending you messages on your profile by logging in and going to the Comments tag or your inbox and clicking on View beside the user who is being so rude to you. This will give you the option of blocking them from contacting you. If a blocked user sends you an email to your Icewhole account it will go straight into your deleted folder so you don't have to read it if you choose not to. If you do feel the user is going too far then tell us because we can delete their profile. Please report an abusive Icewhole.
Q. How do I block a user?
A. You can block a user from posting comments and sending you messages on your profile by logging in and going to the Comments tag or your inbox and clicking on View beside the user who is being so rude to you. This will give you the option of blocking them from contacting you. If a blocked user sends you an email to your Icewhole account it will go straight into your deleted folder so you don't have to read it if you choose not to. If you do feel the user is going too far then tell us because we can delete their profile. Click here to report an abusive Icewhole.
Q. I believe someone is using a false profile. How can I report it?
A. Visit the Report an error page.
Q. I think someone else is using my account.
A. Our advice would be to change your password immediately. If this doesn't work try changing your email address too.
Q. Where do I report inappropriate content?
A. If there is anything that crosses the boundaries of decency on Icewhole then please inform us so that we can deal with it.
Q. How do I report Copyright infringement?
A. It is really important to us that people only take credit for their own work and don't rip anyone else's off because that is totally against our ethos. If you know someone has got a film, trailer, some artwork or music on their profile that they don't own then please tell us by filling in a simple online email to us.
Did you find the answer to your query? If not, then Contact Us directly and we'll do our best to help you out.
Top 6 FAQ's
Q. Is Icewhole.com free?
A. Yes!
Q. How do I change my personal information?
A. Login, click on the My Account button in the top right hand corner of your screen. Then click on the Manage My Profile button (remembering that you must be registered and logged in!) to the left of your screen under News Feeds and then click Edit next to the section you would like to change and click Save.
Q. How can I change my email address or password?
A. Login, click on the Manage My Profile button to the right of your screen and then click on the one of the links below your profile image to the left of the screen and follow the instructions.
Q. What was Charlie Croker's big idea at the end of The Italian Job?
A. If we told you that would spoil the fun.
Q. How do I report Identity Theft, Underage User, Cyber Bullying, and Copyright Violation to Icewhole?
A. Visit the Report an Error page.
Q. How can I enter the Icewhole Awards?
A. Upload a film on your profile at any time but if you'd like to defer its live date on the site so that it qualifies for a later month then change the Publish Date on the upload page to your preferred post-date. Therefore you don't have to physically go to the site on the first day of the month to give it the maximum chance of exposure until the closing date. Remember, you MUST own the rights to all movies on your profile and you will be disqualified from an award if you upload someone else's work. If you worked on a film that someone else owns the rights to, get them to upload it to their profile and you can associate it with your, therefore you still get the credit and could still win an award for it e.g. Best Actor.
