Thirty-two high school and teenage graphic designers from 17 different countries recently descended upon Anaheim, Calif. tocompete in this year’s Adobe Certified Associate World Championship.
According to a July 29 Las Vegas Review-Journal article, graphic design software giant Adobe hosts the competition each year for graphic designers 22 years of age and younger. Of 117,000 entrants, only 1% were selected to compete at Anaheim — the United States sent only three representatives.
Competitors were required to design a promotional poster for Kiva, a real-world client, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Kiva is a nonprofit organization that works to alleviate poverty around the world by encouraging people to donate to entrepreneurs in developing nations, according to a KFOX 14 article. Each competitor was given a computer and eight hours to complete the task using Adobe Photoshop, InDesign and Illustrator software.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that the competition’s judges looked for the best design work and also judged based on who used the software most effectively.
“It’s good to see these high schoolers showing a passion for graphic design,” says Mark Sparacio, Professor at Digital Marketing Arts College. “Though it is never too late to discover your passion for digital media, these individuals will certainly have an impressive amount of experience at a young age.”
At press time, winners of the ACA World Championship have not yet been announced. The winner receives a $5,000 prize, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.