The fall box office season begins this weekend and we’ve got more box office predictions contests for you. We’ll be featuring multiple contests. You can participate in whichever ones you want, but we encourage you to play them all. Here are the rules. If you’ve played in the past, be sure to re-read the rules as there are a few changes.

This contest begins the weekend of Sept. 2-4, 2011 and continues through the weekend of December 30, 2011-January 1, 2012.

This is an 18-week contest where each week your predictions can earn you points with the highest point total declared winner.

There will be four divisions this season. Divisions 1 through 3 will have weekly results posted. Division 4 will not be completed until after the Academy Awards in February.

Special Rules, Divisions 1 & 2

• All predictions over $50 million must be made in $5 million increments (a prediction of $60 million would be correct; a prediction of $62.5 million would be incorrect).
• All predictions over $25 million must be made in $2.5 million increments (a prediction of $42.5 million would be correct; a prediction of $41 million would be incorrect).
• All other predictions must be made in $500,000 increments (a prediction of $12.5 million would be correct; a prediction of $12.3 million would be incorrect).
• You may duplicate predictions made by other participants; However, if you consistently duplicate more than two predictions from any opponent, your predictions may be disqualified

Special Rules, Division 3

• All predictions must be made in 500 increments (a prediction of $25,500 would be correct; a prediction of $25,300 would be incorrect).
• All eligible prediction candidates will be listed on the weekly post calling for entries. You may not predict using films that are not listed.

Special Rules, Division 4

• You may not make predictions after the normal Friday deadline.
• You may not change your predictions after the normal Friday deadline.
• Saying a film will win an Academy Award or an award from another awards-giving body (not including festivals) will also count as a prediction of a nomination (e.g. Let’s say you prediction Film A will win an Academy Award. If Film A is nominated, but does not win, you will still get 1 point for predicting a nomination).

AFTER you finish reading the rules, be sure to post your predictions for this week.

Each week, on Wednesday, we will post a call for entries. You will have until midnight Central (U.S.) on Friday to post or edit your submissions for the contest. After that time, any changes will nullify your predictions for that week’s entry. Results will be posted on Wednesday of the following week. If you miss the deadline, you can still participate in the remaining weeks of the contest. Missing any number of weeks will not disqualify you. Points will be given out for correctly predicting as follows:

DIVISION ONE

1. Guess the #1 Film at the U.S. weekend box office – 1 Point
2. Guess how much the #1 Film will make, if it is not also the highest grossing new wide release – 1 Point (closest to the final result)
3. Guess the highest grossing new wide release – 1 Point
4. Guess how much the highest grossing new wide release will earn – 1 Point (closest to the final result)

DIVISION TWO

1. Guess a film’s total within $500,000 (predictions over $10 million only) or within $2,000,000 (predictions over $25 million only) – 1 Point (per film)
2. Guess which films will place in the Top 10 of the weekend – 1 Point (per correct prediction)
3. Guess in what order the Top 10 of the Weekend will be – 1 Point (per correct position)
4. Guess how much each film in the Top 10 will earn – 1 Point (each person closest to the final answer on a per film basis)
5. The winning prediction is within $500,000 of the final result (predictions from $10 million to $24.5 million only) – 1 Point
6. The winning prediction is within $2,500,000 of the final result (predictions from $25 million to $47.5 million only) – 1 Point
7. The winning prediction is within $5,000,000 of the final result (predictions over $50 million only) – 1 Point

DIVISION THREE

1. Guess the #1 limited release film of the weekend (based on per screen average) – 1 Point
2. Guess the per screen average of the #1 limited release film of the weekend (based on per screen average) – 1 Point (closest to the final result)

DIVISION FOUR

1. Predict whether a new release will be awarded an Academy Award – 1 Point
2. Predict whether a new release will be nominated for an Academy Award – 1 Point
3. Predict whether a new release will be awarded by any awards-giving body other than the Academy (Razzies excluded, only groups covered by Cinema Sight will qualify) – 1 Point
4. Predict whether a new release will be nominated by any awards-giving body other than the Academy (Razzies excluded, only groups covered by Cinema Sight will qualify) – 1 Point

All of the above will be based on the upcoming weekend box office from Friday through Sunday only. The #1 film of the week could be either a holdover or a new release. The answers for the rest of the game will always come from a pre-listed group of films. If no one correctly predicts the #1 film at the box office, no one will get that point. If no one correctly guesses the film that will be the top new release, no one will get that point either even if their gross prediction was closest (it was just for the wrong film).

We will be using boxofficemojo.com to verify results based on the Actual numbers released the following Monday afternoon (or Tuesday afternoon if Monday is a Holiday). Estimates will not be used to determine winners.

Since this is a competition without prizes, just bragging rights, there will be no breaking of ties.

Submit the Following for this Week

DIVISION ONE

1. Guess the #1 Film at the U.S. weekend box office
2. Guess how much the #1 Film will make, if it is not also the highest grossing new wide release
3. Guess the highest grossing new wide release
4. Guess how much the highest grossing new wide release will make

DIVISION TWO

1. Guess which films will place in the Top 10 of the weekend
2. Guess in what order the Top 10 of the Weekend will be
3. Guess how much each film in the Top 10 will earn

DIVISION THREE

1. Guess the #1 limited release film of the weekend (based on per screen average)
2. Guess the per screen average of the #1 limited release film of the weekend (based on per screen average)

DIVISION FOUR

1. Predict whether a new release will be nominated for or awarded an Academy Award
2. Predict whether a new release will be nominated for or awarded by any awards-giving body other than the Academy (Razzies excluded, only groups covered by Cinema Sight will qualify)

This Week’s New Wide Releases

Apollo 18 (2,750 screens)
The Debt (1,700 screens)
Shark Night 3D (2,400 screens)

This Week’s New Limited Releases

Bodyguard (80+ screens)
Gainsbourg: A Heroic Life (3 screens)
A Good Old Fashioned Orgy (unspecified screens)
Love Crime (5 screens)
Saving Private Perez (125 screens)
Seven Days in Utopia (550 screens)