The Shorty Awards Announces 15th Annual Winners and Partners with Wave to Launch Fund for Creators

The $100K Elevate Creatives Fund – a joint initiative between Wave and the Shortys – will be distributed among five creators. Applications open through September 15^th

The Shorty Awards celebrated its milestone anniversary at a live event in New York City on Wednesday, May 24th, 2023. The internet’s preeminent annual awards program announced the winners and honorees of the 15th Annual Shorty Awards in 148 categories, including brands, agencies, non-profits and independent creators. Additionally, a new $100,000 fund for creators was announced in partnership with Wave, the one-stop money management solution for small business owners.

The winners and honorees of this year’s Shorty Awards include brands such as Northrop Grumman, W Hotels, OMD USA, Paramount, FCB, dentsu, Nickelodeon, NFL, Smile Train, Whalar, Day One Agency, Cirque du Soleil Entertainment Group, Observatory, Jay Shetty, Crooked Media, Expedia, Fiverr, and more.

View the full list of winners and honorees here.

The Elevate Creatives Fund is aimed at providing a financial boost to creators looking to grow sustainable businesses. The initial fund of $100,000 will be distributed among five recipients – selected based on the merit of their work, creative aspirations and contribution to their communities. Recipients will also receive personalized bookkeeping and accounting coaching from Wave’s in-house experts. Applications are open between now and September 15^th on the Shorty Awards’ website. The recipients will be announced in November 2023.

“The Creator Economy is booming, but creators have needs that aren’t being met. They don’t necessarily have traditional cash flow and may rely on multiple revenue streams to earn a living, making it challenging to turn their digital talent into a sustainable business,” says Zahir Khoja, CEO, Wave. “Creative entrepreneurship is the economic engine of small business, and we’re thrilled to launch a fund that will directly enable more of these businesses to start, survive , and thrive.”

Since its inception in 2008, the Shorty Awards have evolved with the internet, from the birth of social media to the proliferation of digital content, to the emergence of Web 3.0 and the exponential growth of the creator economy, defined by the US Chamber of Commerce as a group who make money directly from their audience, consisting of consumers, entrepreneurs that cater to their audience, advertisers, and companies that market to artistic entrepreneurs.^[1] Digital talent has spawned a new era of entrepreneurship, and creators have become the fastest-growing type of small business.^[2]

“We are living in one of the best moments in history for creatives, with the democratization of media and an increasingly decentralized creative workforce enabled by technology.” said Junmian Sun, Managing Director of the Shorty Awards. “We are excited to have Wave as a partner in our collective efforts to foster a stronger and more equitable creative workforce. This initiative calls attention to the people and other metrics beyond the $104B market size of the creator economy, to ensure not only the speed but more importantly, the health and sustainability of the growth.”

Eligible applicants to the fund include creators who produce commercial, editorial, and/or fine-art digital content, such as social media or blog posts, podcasts, videos, short films, etc and freelance creatives or independent consultants such as designers, copywriters, and producers who provide creative services. The applications will be judged by a panel of experts from the Real Time Academy, based on the following criteria: the originality and creativity of the current and recent work; the quality, engagement, and effectiveness of the recent work; their entrepreneurial ambitions; and how they utilize their creative platforms and influence to create a positive impact.

^[1] https://www.uschamber.com/co/grow/thrive/what-is-the-creator-economy#:~:text=of%20small%20business.%22-,What%20is%20the%20creator%20economy%2C%20and%20how%20does%20it%20work,that%20market%20to%20artistic%20entrepreneurs.

^[2] https://signalfire.com/creator-economy/#:~:text=More%20than%2050%20million%20people,%25)%20when%20they%20grow%20up.

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Al Mega

I'm Al Mega the CEO of Comic Crusaders, CEO of the Undercover Capes Podcast Network, CEO of Geekery Magazine & Owner of Splintered Press (coming soon). I'm a fan of comics, cartoons and old school video games. Make sure to check out our podcasts/vidcasts and more!