The Clip Combat competition, announced by South Australian Minister for Innovation and Skills David Pisoni, will run until June 21 and is open to those aged 13 to 25.

“We really thought it was a great idea to target emerging artists and musicians under the age of 26 as a way to help us build awareness of local South Australian musicians,” says Music SA CEO Lisa Bishop.

“Every time a musician releases a single, they need to have a music clip as a vital marketing tool, because a lot of people today are discovering music through YouTube. They’re discovering it through a visual medium.”

Competition entrants must perform an original song, produce a music video of it and upload it to the Music SA website.

Bishop says Music SA will be offering a free workshop for people to refine their video-producing skills.

“[It’s] called Making and Marketing a Music Video, [to be held] on May 2, and everyone is welcome to attend. There will be a great panel of speakers and plenty of hot tips on how to make a music video.”

Shortlisted entries in the Clip Combat competition will be judged by a panel of five industry judges, as well as online by the public.

The winner will be announced at a special screening event at the Mercury Cinema on July 18, as part of the Adelaide music festival Umbrella – Winter City Sounds.

“Umbrella – Winter City Sounds already highlights South Australia’s great live music scene and the Clip Combat competition complements it beautifully by documenting in film the fantastic songwriting talents that we have here,” said Bishop.

“The competition will be looking for video clips that capture the attention of viewers through emotion, originality or humour.”

The winning music clip will be screened online and on the big screen, with prizes including music festival tickets, cinema passes and merchandise packs.