The deadline for both the D&D Next Director Awards and Next Photographer Awards is March 11 (UK).

The D&AD Next Awards are new, how D&AD is bridging the gap between the D&AD Professional Awards and New Blood programme by identifying the best new talent and promoting them back to industry.

So this year’s Next Director and Next Photographer will be inaugural winners. Inaugural tends to be given an extra bright spotlight, so this is a big opportunity to make your mark in your field.

Winners are awarded a D&AD Pencil and their work in the 2015 D&AD annual. A D&AD Pencil to launch your career? Yes, that really is one helluva a kickstart.

The Next Director Award was launched to find the best new directorial talent and promote it back to the industry.

So both the winner and shortlisted directors will get invaluable exposure at international screenings and through the D&AD and YouTube platforms. There’s also mentoring from top production companies in the package. That can open a lot of doors.    

It was created in partnership with YouTube and supported by MOFILM, and is open to filmmakers with less than two years commercial experience. Entries cost £40 and any type of film can be entered – including short films, commercials, branded content, documentaries and music videos – as long as the submission is under five minutes in length.

The D&AD Next Photographer Award was created in partnership with Getty Images and is open to new photographers of all ages. Entries cost £20 and photographers are asked to submit three pieces of photography (still or moving image), either from a series or produced individually.

Shortlisted directors and photographers receive international exposure for their work, mentoring from a wide portfolio of acclaimed photographers, agents, production companies and advertising agencies, plus the chance to win funding and grants towards personal and commissioned projects.

There are several rounds of Next Awards throughout the year, with entrants allowed to make one submission per judging round. Judging is done by the world’s topmost creatives and final shortlisted entries will be revealed in April.

The overall winner will then be chosen from the combined shortlists and announced at the D&AD Professional Awards Ceremony in May 2015.