Award winners will receive:

• A complimentary full-Conference registration for the 2026 Annual Conference & Stage Expo
• 2,000 Cash Award
• Commemorative Certificate
• Invitation to an award luncheon, which includes a chance to meet other award winners as well as the award sponsor.

Nominees must be an undergraduate or graduate student, or a recent graduate (within two years).

Nominees must have a current student, early career, or individual membership at the time of submission.

An individual may self-nominate OR be nominated by faculty or another non-student professional who is a current USITT member.

Awards are open to all ages and recognize promising newcomers in each award area.

Award will be presented at the Annual Conference.

The 2026 Annual Conference will take place from March 18-21 in Long Beach. Award Presentations are scheduled for Thursday, March 19 at 9 AM.

Nominations Open: September 2, 2025

Nominations Close: November 6, 2025 (11:59 PM EDT)

Review Period: November - December 2025

Award Notifications: January 2026

Award Presentation: March 19, 2026

The entry fee for each nomination is $25 (US Currency).

This fee must be paid by credit card by the nominee at the time of form submission.

All entry fees are non-refundable.

Read all guidelines carefully before submitting your application.

All applications must be submitted via the USITT Awards Portal to be considered.

Nominators must begin the nomination by filling out a brief nomination form. Nominees may self-nominate or be nominated by a faculty or professional. Nominator must be a current USITT member.

Upon receipt of a complete nomination form, USITT will email the nominee a link to complete their submission.

Required information:

• Nominee Contact Information: Name, email address, mailing address
• Nominee’s school attended or currently attending
• Graduation date (or anticipated graduation date)

Submission Materials:

• Resume (PDF Format)
• Letter of recommendation from a faculty member.
• The faculty member may include a design instructor, an instructor or supervisor in the shops, acting and history professors, department chairs and other faculty mentors.
• Nominee will provide recommender’s name and email address. The recommender will receive instructions via email to upload their letter directly into the submission portal. Nominee will not be able to upload or view the letter.
• Letter of Support
• Letter of Support may come from fellow collaborators, directors, choreographers, production team members, faculty members, or other in the entertainment industry.
• Personal Artistic Statement (Max. 300 words)
• The personal artistic statement articulates who nominee is as a collaborative artist. What is their creative working philosophy? What is their approach to lighting design?
• Five (5) digital image plates.
• A Plate refers to a single image or a collage of images, much like one page in a portfolio.
• Maximum size and resolution is 18 x 24 inches, 300dpi, 20MB.
• All plates must be in PDF format.
• Event/play/piece title, scene and character clearly labeled with an appropriately sized and colored, easy-to-read, well-placed font.
• Recommendation of three (3) realized shows across all submitted plates
• There should be one (1) show/project per plate; however, multiple shows or projects may be placed on a single plate with proper organization.
• One (1) plate may be submitted as a video of up to six (6) minutes in length. This video could be archival footage, post-production mock-up, etc.
• One (1) production/project may be represented on multiple plates.
• Consider a way to organize the plates so that the process is shown in a clear, concise, and thoughtful manner. Quality should be stressed over quantity.
• Paperwork should be legible, labeled, and be examples that best reflect process.
• All documentation should meet current industry best practices.
• The plates should be organized to show the process of design or project creation and implementation within the production process. These images should clearly show the execution of the project using digital media tools and concepts. These might include (but are not limited to):
• Choices/Aesthetics
• Personal artistic statement
• Written concept demonstrating artistic analysis of event content (script, dance, music, etc.) and discussion regarding the use of animated or created content
• Analysis of director’s/choreographers/musicians artistic vision
• Analysis of other designer materials (costumes, scenic, paint, props, sound, projections, etc.)
• Digital or hand rendering(s) with appropriate analysis and application to production
• Visual research
• Any appropriate tests of light on paint, materials, costumes, etc. that influence design decisions
• Process
• Drafted plot(s) and section(s) following industry standards and expectations
• Supported documents may include:
• Raster diagrams
• Signal hookups
• IP schedules
• Equipment schedules
• Rack Drawings
• Product
• Visual documentation (digital production shots) of 5 different moments from the production demonstrating the final execution. These images should clearly show the execution of the project. All or part of this may be submitted in the form of a video, showing representation of imagery over time.
• Self-evaluation statement exploring what worked and what didn’t work. Examining what you would differently in the future
• Statement of Conceptualization for each realized production. (Max 800 words per show)
• Statement of conceptualization articulates the design process, collaborative process within the production team and shop, research and development, communication with the run crew and others in the team and the ability to work within the parameters of the production as whole.
• May include but is not limited to:
• Demonstrating an artistic analysis of the event content (script, dance, music, etc.) and a discussion of the use of design elements to support the analysis.
• The overriding themes, motifs or elements as presented by the director/choreographer/musician.
• Explaining the research and development process, and analysis/usage of other designer materials (scenic, paint, props, sound, lighting, projections, dramaturgy, etc.)
• Explaining how collaboration was achieved with director, choreographer, other production and design team members, actors/dancers, costume shop staff, run crew, etc
• Self Evaluation (Max 300 words)
• This statement explores what worked and what didn’t work, examining what nominee would do differently in the future.
• Secondary Support Materials
• An additional three (3) plates of material may be submitted for a maximum of eight (8) plates total.
• May include projects, from other areas of production technology, entertainment technology or machining.
• This work may be produced or classroom projects, realized or conceptual, and should showcase the range of the applicant.
 

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All USITT award nominees are required to submit a Professional Conduct Disclosure Form. This form will not be visible to the award jury and will only be reviewed by the USITT Ethics Officer.

This form is part of the submission and your submission will not be considered complete if it has not been submitted.

For more information, please review the USITT Honors and Awards Policy.

All nominations for the Young Designers’, Managers’, and Technicians’ Award will be reviewed by selected members of the USITT Commissions.

No current USITT staff member may serve as a juror. Any reviewer with a conflict of interest is required to recuse themselves.

All submissions will be scored on a scale of 1-10 using the following criteria:

• Content and organization of plates and photographs (image size & quantity, labeling, legibility, and clarity)
• Demonstration of: choices/aesthetics, process, product
• Adherence to the submission guidelines: plate size, format, and parameters. Submissions not adhering to the format listed will be considered ineligible.
• Written materials: clarity, articulation, and thoughtfulness

Judging process is overseen by the USITT Awards Committee and results are approved by the Board of Directors.

Nominees will be notified of the outcome of their requests via email after the Board of Directors has approved the results.

Award winners will be required to submit additional information via the submissions portal, including a W9 form and RSVP to any Conference events. Failure to submit this information promptly may delay award processing.

USITT will publicize award winners utilizing official channels including (but not limited to): website, social media, weekly newsletter, Technically Speaking podcast. Winners may be contacted for additional information for publicity .