Compelling and unique videos take prizes in final challenge

We have five winners for the Picture the Impossible video challenge (five because one person is an employee of Kodak and is not allowed to take home the prize). The winners come from various backgrounds and generations, and the stories they tell are priceless. Their experiences in overcoming the game’s challenges were compelling and their videos thoughtfully reflected that.

Judges from the Democrat and Chronicle and Rochester Institute of Technology faced the greatest challenge of all, however. Picking five winners took some time, but we did enjoy watching each of the videos. And, afterward, it was fun to already start planning for PTI, Part 2 ...

“The one thing that struck me about many of the videos submitted, not only the winning videos, was that the game wasn't as important as was what people learned about themselves and others while participating,” said Alex Nikish, a developer on the PTI staff.

Winners:

MomD

“My personal favorite was MomD channeling Andy Rooney, and talking about how she learned to do things such as Twitter, texting and even taking photos on her cell phone to complete challenges,” said judge Kyle Omphroy, who worked on the PTI design and content.

Added judge and game developer/designer Mark Newell: “As a Web developer, I have a soft spot for people reaching outside of their techno-phobias, and MomD’s honesty and humor had us all reeling.”

Bethyalamode

Said Omphroy: “Bethyalamode’s video shows how (PTI) has encouraged people to do a lot of things they would have never pushed to do on their own. While she got to experience a lot of Rochester’s firsts and notables, it’s pleasing to know Bethyalamode got to experience her own firsts in Rochester.”

Theyus

This video contained tremendous production values and emotional impact. That, and as many players pointed out, having adorable children in your submission can never hurt.

Thena444

The judges agreed that the list of the top 10 things taken away from the PTI game was well thought-out and funny.

Paula and Alexandra

The video from this mother/daughter combo was one of our favorites because of how well they got along within the game, but also because of how willing they were to take playful jabs at one another.