The countdown is over, our Spark AR World AR competition is finally closed. Our judges had a tough job on their hands but the votes have been counted and the results are now in. And wow, do we have a bumper-pack of winners for you.
As expected, our judges were blown away by the talent on show, saying: "It was inspirational to see the number of unique and creative ideas created by people around the world. I am excited to see how creators utilized the Spark platform to create truly unique effects and look forward to trying more effects developed by these creators."
Now without further ado, let's introduce the winners. Have a browse through some truly mind-bending games-focused AR effects that will have you transported to another world.
1st place creators
Playful Paint by Antonela Binaj, Albania
A 3D artist, designer, and freelance creative technologist, based in Tirana, Albania, Anotonela Binaj specializes in Augmented Reality and Immersive Experiences that include projection mapping, laser shows and light installations. Her design was inspired by both art and play.
Back to Nature by Francesco Strada, Italy
With a background in architecture, Francesco Strada has been working in the field of augmented reality for the last two years through freelance and agency work. His work focuses on nature and sustainability, as well as architecture and heritage. His design imagines a world with less paved worlds and more green.
Crossroads by Luisa Manzin, UK
Luisa Manzin is a Brazilian musician and visual artist. Interested in media and types of expression, the artist tries to create an extension of feeling into the digital world. Her submission was inspired by the simple fact that we cross roads every day. That in itself is enough for the imagination to fly.
Sly Time Eater by Olena Gertsuska, Ukraine
Working at Morphy Vision, a small team based in Ukraine, Kharkiv, Olena Gertsuska is focused on creating high-quality filters with strong skills in 3D graphics. The main idea behind her filter is the addictive nature of smartphones.
Crosswalk by Yegor Faizov, Russian Federation
Yegor Faizov has worked for 15 years in motion design and art direction across advertising agencies. His submission was inspired by the idea that he could simultaneously animate the familiar crosswalk while making it visible in the dark.
Robot Card Game by Кирилл Брысенков, Russian Federation
Кирилл Брысенков’s idea uses the camera to read images on the cards, then robots appear and begin to fight each other. Oh, and there are bonus cards too.
2nd place creators
Adventure Game by Alejandro Trejo Casas, Mexico
A full-time AR Developer since 2019, Alejandro Trejo Casas’ work ranges from beauty effects to 3D games, and everything in between. The inspiration behind the effect was to mix classic video games graphics with our surroundings.
Manhole Shows Where We Should Go by Jiyoon Sung, South Korea
Creator of Team WE-AR, an AR filter creator group, Jiyoon Sung came up with the visual concept of a treasure hunter during an ideation meeting. The round shape of the manhole and directions feature are inspired by a magic compass.
Paint The Environment by Felipe Alves, Brazil
Felipe Alves’ inspiration was based on how people are interacting with the metaverse in the digital world, wanting to enable the user to look and interact with the real world in a different way.
Alien Invasion by Jesús Saavedra, Mexico
After studying Computer Engineering, Jesús Saavedra dedicated himself mainly as a freelancer to designing for social networks. Since childhood he has felt both fascination and fear of extraterrestrials which is the inspiration behind his submission.
Pamtony Picker by Jullyana Rocha, Portugal
Jullyana Rocha majored in history, but design has always been her passion. PamTony is a friendly character from the future who sees that all colors matter and need to be celebrated, inspired by the idea that nobody should have the power to select one "color of the year".
Boy by Makar Bogdanov, Russian Federation
Makar Bogdanov has worked in graphic design for 10 years, opening his own small studio focused on creatives, branding, and website design. In his submission, he was inspired by the aesthetics of old classic games, spaceships, and old Japanese RPGs.
In The Avocado World by Mariia Silich, Ukraine
Previously working as a 3d artist in the game development sphere, for the past 3 years Mariia Silich has been working in augmented reality. In her submission, she hopes to shine a light on kindness in the world.
Where To Go by Matheus Astori, Portugal
Matheus Astori loves to travel and explore cities with no exact route. This filter is a reflection of this and the idea of just letting fate guide you to the next destination.
Madrid By Subway by Ninoska Correia, Spain
Ninoska Correia is an architect and 3D designer who has always had a special interest in the perception of things and spaces. The inspiration behind the effect is the touristic areas of Madrid and the connectivity of the city through different ways of transportation.
Graffiti Game by Sam Guilmard, UK
With a background in games programming, Sam Guilmard fell in love with AR at university, and shortly after that, he discovered Spark AR. Never being the best programmer or the best designer, Spark AR allowed him to combine his knowledge in many areas to create these effects. His inspiration for the work was street art and artists such as Banksy.
Magical Drawings by Sarah Tan, Australia
A Malaysian User Experience (UX) Designer currently based in Australia, Sarah Tan’s inspiration for her submission came from her childhood memories growing up with Harry Potter. When she was a kid, she wished that she had her own wand and could create magical drawings. 20 years later, there is still no magic wand but there is the magic of AR.
Your Pet Soop by Snehal Dhruve, United States
Snehal Dhruve’s submission is your very own AR follow-around pet. Called Soop, customizable and interactive, it’s like having a real pet but best of all, you don’t have to clean up after it.
Ghost On Cam by Syaoki Biek, Indonesia
Previously the creative officer at an advertising agency, the pandemic forced Syaoki Biek to adapt and make the move to online creative activity. His concept was to create a machine that could help him see the ghost that perpetually bothers him at night.
Walking Dancing Sign by Yegor Faizov, Russian Federation
In his second submission, Yegor Faizov used the inspiration of animated traffic lights in this animation of a road sign.
3rd place creators
Desert Safari and Ball Game by Aditya Agarwal, India
Aditya Argawal, 23 and from India, started experimenting with Spark AR and creating his first effects at university. His effects were inspired by the desert safari rides taken in his hometown and carnival games common in people’s childhood.
Mermaid Game by Alena Bahdzel, Belarus
Alena Bahdzel’s inspiration was the 1989 cartoon The Little Mermaid, but with her own twist. Different bonuses give a different amount of points, and obstacles also take away points.
GTA Malibu by Anna Nelkina, Russian Federation
When Anna Nelkina saw the brief she immediately thought of her favorite game from childhood - Grand Theft Auto - Vice City. Now at any moment, a person can be in the world of GTA.
Fragile World by Askhat Mudarisow, Russian Federation
A self-taught programmer, Askhat Mudarisow is involved in a wide range of projects including creative coding, shaders, automation, and generative modeling. His inspiration for the submission came during winter walks in his hometown, noticing the contrast between nature and urban areas.
UFO Shooter by Baidhar Hembram, India
An engineering student as well as a 3D generalist, Baidhar Hembram was inspired by many hours playing Space Invader in his childhood. This submission was his attempt to recreate this classic 2D game in AR.
Find the Object by Balaji Ramu, India
An XR developer passionate about creating games and experiences, Balaji Ramu has been in the XR industry for over three years. He was inspired by a game he played in his school days that involves finding a hidden object in the given time.
DesertDancer by Dani Goltara, Brazil
Dani Goltara is a self-confessed lover of plants, owning a huge garden full of cactus and succulents. She didn't have to think twice about what she wanted to bring to life, creating a fun animation that people can dance and interact with.
NFT Showroom by Daniel Pikl, Croatia (Hrvatska)
A marketeer from Croatia, Daniel Pikl has been learning and making AR filters for the past few years. A few months ago he started to make NFTs and so wanted to make an AR gallery to display them so everyone can enjoy watching them no matter where they are around the world.
40FY by David Seelos, Austria
From Vienna, Austria, David Seelos co-founded the advertising agency "Pixel Adgency" a few months ago. Besides digital content creation, they specialize in augmented reality and the creation of Instagram effects, web AR, and more. Their submission was a team effort and drew inspiration from the famous game Space Invaders.
The Blocks by Denis Rossiev, Russian Federation
Starting in AR more than three years ago, Denis Rossiev comes from a tech artist background, including visual effects, interactive programming, and graphic design. Most of his latest AR experiences are focused not only on displaying something but on giving people different creative tools right inside their phones.
Matter by Gunes Peksen, Turkey
With a bachelor's degree in architecture, Gunes Peksen always fancied designing experiences for people and carried that interest into the digital world. His initial inspiration came from the brief's name itself: "Animate the inanimate", and sparked the idea of designing a colorful matter that can transform itself into completely irrelevant fun forms.
Wardenclyffe Tower by Kevin Criado, Colombia
Kevin Criado took inspiration from history for his submission and the character of Nikola Tesla and his invention Wardenclyffe Tower, recreated in the modern world through augmented reality.
Gravity Control by Maria Nova, Finland
A former student at XR Design Program at Metropolia, Helsinki, Finland, currently Maria Nova works with a small studio bringing AR projects to life. For her submission, inspiration came from low-poly 3D techniques, neon aesthetics, and spacy beats she has recently been listening to.
ResidentialAreaX_WE0 by Neil Hammers, Latvia
Starting his career as a 3D modeler for local television, Neil Hammers has worked as a video artist for over 25 years. His effect allows users to discover an otherwise invisible dimension inhabited by small beings who are perhaps the real puppeteers of our world.
Touch the mole by Paula Casado, Spain
Paula Casado’s filter is inspired by the whack-a-mole games found in arcades. However, with the power of AR you can now take it anywhere on your phone and place it on any surface by changing its size (whether on a small table or in a big park). You can also invite your friends on social networks to try and beat your score.
City By The Sea by Roland Smeenk, Netherlands
A freelance creative technologist, Roland Smeenk is passionate about mixing the digital and the real in new and interesting ways. This inspired his submission, in which he had the idea of generating a sea within a local town square.
Inhale Exhale by Teresa Spöckner, Germany
Starting with more analog designs, Teresa Spöckner transitioned more and more into animation, AR 3D, creating filters, and motion design in general. Occasionally suffering from anxiety attacks, she had the idea to design a guide, in the form of an animated poster, to help people focus on their breathing.
2048 by Vasily Abrosimov, Russian Federation
Vasil Abrosimov mainly develops games in C# using the Unity game engine, however recently, has begun to also develop augmented reality effects for Instagram. Inspired by serious gameplay, he decided to make something simple but at the same time interesting that he himself would be eager to play.
co2 offset tree by Властислав Темнов, Russian Federation
Inspired by the real issue of rising CO2 levels and deforestation, Властислав Темнов decided to create a fun game where you can plant trees to offset your carbon emissions and perhaps be inspired to do the same in the real world.
Thank you to everyone who submitted to this unique competition. We look forward to bringing you more augmented reality opportunities and seeing where your innovative creativity takes us!
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