Welcome to the first Creative Jam. Here are your rules and guidelines.

February 26, 2026 - By Jordan Eardley

Theme

Join us to celebrate St David’s Day!  We want to celebrate Wales and Welshness, and you’ll help us to do this with your game or film. This can look at contemporary stories, reflect modern Wales, introduce characters from history, celebrate Welsh music or language, or interpret this in any way you like, but you must reflect or encapsulate an element of the saying ‘Do the little things / Gwnewch y Pethau bychain’.  

This event is funded by the Welsh Government’s St David’s Day Fund. 

Teams

You can work as an individual.  You can also work as a team, and there is no limit to the size of your team.   Your team does not have to be present with you, if they’d like to be ‘anonymous’ and working with you in the background.  No one will be required to verbally present anything in the event, although the judges may wish to ask you questions after seeing your game/film. 

Scoring scale for each category – the panel will use this to score the work, and they will have detailed criteria to define ‘poor’ and ‘excellent’. We’ve defined these below for you. 

1 = Poor
2 = Needs work
3 = Good
4 = Very good
5 = Excellen

Films

The film must be at least 1 minute, and no longer than 5 minutes, in length.
The film must contain the Welsh word “cariad” (love), and feature a Daffodil.  
The judges will use the following assessments: 

• Whether Wales or Welshness was captured in an authentic way. 

• Clean and understandable audio, or subtitles if required. 

• Clear subject focus, intentional framing, visual storytelling, and controlled lighting/colour. 

• A story! The film must not be a trailer but will tell a tale. 

• Emotional connection: inevitably, people enjoy films that make them feel something and connect with the film on some level. 

Some elements are at the judges’ discretion, and they will be required to justify their winner(s). 

Judges’ use: 

1. Story & Structure — 30%

• Criteria:

  • Clear beginning, middle, end

  • Narrative coherence

  • Character motivation

• Scoring:

  • 5 (Excellent): Complete, emotionally engaging story.

  • 3: Mostly clear but some narrative weakness.

  • 1 (Poor): Confusing or incomplete.

2. Composition & Cinematography — 20%

• Criteria:

  • Intentional framing

  • Camera movement choices

  • Visual storytelling

  • Shot clarity

• Scoring:

  • 5: Strong visual language that enhances the story.

  • 3: Competent but basic.

  • 1: Distracting or poorly framed.

3. Editing & Pacing — 15%

• Criteria:

  • Smooth continuity

  • Good rhythm

  • Appropriate shot length

• Scoring:

  • 5: Excellent pacing that supports emotion.

  • 3: Generally fine but uneven.

  • 1: Jarring or confusing edits.

4. Sound & Music — 15%

• Criteria:

  • Dialogue clarity

  • Effective music use

  • Audio balance

• Scoring:

  • 5: Audio strongly enhances the film.

  • 3: Understandable but rough.

  • 1: Hard to hear or distracting.

5. Use of Wales Theme — 10%

• Criteria:

  • Meaningful inclusion of Welsh elements

  • Cultural authenticity

  • Integration into story

• Scoring:

  • 5: Theme is deeply woven into the film.

  • 3: Theme present but surface-level.

  • 1: Theme barely present.

6. Emotional Impact — 10%

• Criteria:

  • Did it make the judges feel something?

  • Memorability

  • Audience connection

• Scoring:

  • 5: Strong emotional response.

  • 3: Some emotional engagement.

  • 1: Emotionally flat.

Games

The judges will use the following assessments: 

• The game must contain the Welsh word “cariad” (love), and feature a Daffodil.  
  A theme that is integrated into the gameplay/story and not just bolted on. 

• The game is enjoyable moment-to-moment. 

• Difficulty levels are fair. 

• The controls are responsive, and the games run. Judges will accept a certain amount of ‘crashing’, but an unplayable game may lose points. 

• The graphics do not have to be high end, but a considered aesthetic including visual and audio design will earn favour. 

• Originality.  

Judges’ use: 

1. Theme Integration — 20%

• Criteria:

  • How meaningfully the game uses the Wales theme

  • Whether the theme affects gameplay or experience

  • Cultural elements feel intentional, not cosmetic

• Scoring:

  • 5 (Excellent): Theme is central to gameplay or narrative and feels inseparable.

  • 3 (Good): Theme is clearly present but mostly aesthetic.

  • 1 (Poor): Theme is barely present or feels pasted on.

2. Gameplay & Fun — 30%

• Criteria:

  • Is the core loop enjoyable?

  • Do you want to keep playing?

  • Is difficulty fair and engaging?

• Scoring:

  • 5: Immediately fun and satisfying to play.

  • 3: Playable and somewhat enjoyable but has rough edges.

  • 1: Confusing, frustrating, or not enjoyable.

3. Completeness & Clarity — 20%

• Criteria:

  • Can judges understand what to do quickly?

  • Is there a clear goal or endpoint?

  • Does the game feel finished?

• Scoring:

  • 5: Clear goal, complete level/loop, no major confusion.

  • 3: Mostly complete but some unclear elements.

  • 1: Feels unfinished or purpose is unclear.

4. Presentation (Visuals & Audio) — 15%

• Criteria:

  • Cohesive visual style

  • Readability of UI/gameplay

  • Effective use of sound/music

  • Important: High-end graphics are NOT required.

• Scoring:

  • 5: Strong, cohesive presentation that enhances gameplay.

  • 3: Functional but inconsistent or rough.

  • 1: Distracting, unclear, or missing key elements.

5. Technical Stability — 10%

• Criteria:

  • No game-breaking bugs

  • Reasonable performance

  • Controls work as expected

• Scoring:

  • 5: Runs smoothly with no major issues.

  • 3: Minor bugs but playable.

  • 1: Crashes or is very unstable.

6. Originality & Creativity — 5%

• Criteria:

  • Fresh ideas

  • Interesting twist

  • Memorable concept

• Scoring:

  • 5: Stands out with a clever or unique idea.

  • 3: Familiar but competently done.

  • 1: Very derivative.

Where to join:

You can come to M-SParc to work, making use of our internet and facilities.  On Friday, the 27th, Vedri Studio in Felinheli is offering use its virtual production space; Book here! You can also work from home, or any other location you like, as long as you’re at M-SParc by 6pm on Friday the 27th. 

How to showcase:

Register on the Eventbrite to secure your place https://JamCreadigol.eventbrite.co.uk 
Be at M-SParc from 6pm on Friday the 28th.
Games – Bring your games on a playable device; there will be an area for you to set these up
Films – Bring your film on a laptop, USB, or you can log into a remote drive from our Computer, to play your film on our big screen. 

Forbidden topics and images

Please note games and films cannot include the following and will be disqualified immediately if they contain: 
Nudity or pornographic images. The Jam is open to those 16+, and those aged 16-17 are children; it is illegal to show nudity or pornographic images to this audience. Please consider this carefully.

Slurs, including racial or homophobic slurs, racism, homophobia, or sexism, will incur immediate disqualification. The exception is if this is included by one of the groups it depicts, and it is explicitly used to tell the story of their lived experience, and is relevant to the story.

Copyright

Ownership and Intellectual Property 

Participants retain full ownership of all intellectual property (IP) rights in the games, films, and assets created during the Creative Jam. By submitting your work, you are not giving away your copyright; you are simply granting us permission to use it.

Grant of License

Bysubmitting an entry to Creative Jam, you grant the organizers a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, and perpetual license to:

Host and Distribute: 

Display, host, and make your submission available for download or viewing on the Creative Jam website and affiliated platforms (e.g., Itch.io).

Promotional Use: 

Use screenshots, video clips, audio, and descriptions of your submission to promote Creative Jam, including advertisements for future jams, social media content, and press releases.
Archival Use: Maintain a record of the submission as part of the Creative Jam history. 

Third-Party Content

Yourepresent and warrant that your submission is your original work or that you have obtained all necessary licenses and permissions to use any third-party assets (such as music, stock footage, or middleware). Creative Jam is not responsible for any copyright infringements within your submission.

Content Guidelines

Submissions must notcontain material that is: 

1. Unlawful, defamatory, or libelous under UK law. 
2. Hateful, discriminatory, or designed to incite violence. 
3. Infringing upon the privacy or intellectual property rights of any third party.

Limitation of Liability

The organizers ofCreative Jam provide the event platform “as is.” We are not liable for any technical issues, loss of data, or any claims arising from your participation in the jam or the subsequent