American Ninja Warrior is taking submissions for season 13 right NOW and the time frame to apply is shorter than ever. You only have until December 14 to throw your hat in the ring. The show is eyeing the idea of filming all of the Qualifiers in the springtime, so there’s going to be a tight turn around this year.

One topic we’re asked about ALL the time is how one goes about getting on the show. The answer is that during the annual submission period, anyone who wants a shot at the course applies via the online portal. It consists of a pretty hefty questionnaire and an application video. The goal of the video is to present yourself to the show’s producers. Who are you? What’s your personality like? What’s your story? And, of course, can you handle the obstacles they’re going to throw at you?

The video portion of the application is the part that takes up most of the mental and physical energy that comes with applying. Most of us aren’t experts at talking about ourselves on camera. To help out with that, we have a few resources you can use to guide your video application.

First, we have this article. It’s an interview with Angelou Deign, the president of A. Deign and Co. which handles the casting of American Ninja Warrior. She gives great information on how the process works behind the scenes (yes, they watch EVERY video that gets sent in), and how to make a video that catches their eye (no, you don’t need top-notch video editing skills).

Recently, we showed the article to the executive producers of Ninja Warrior over at A. Smith and Co. They agreed that it contains the stuff you’ll want to know while creating your video.

If you SERIOUSLY don’t have time to read the article, here are some quick highlights. But you should read the article.

Tips for a great American Ninja Warrior application

Joe Robbins/NBC

From Angelou Deign, Casting Director

• Send in your application as soon as you can.
• Your personal story is incredibly important.
• Don’t just tell, always SHOW.
• Show off your energy level within the first 30 seconds.
• Treat your video like the ultimate first date.
• Include at least a minute of athletics.
• Know why you are unique.
• Fancy video editing skills are not important

Read the full interview with Deign here.

While we were speaking with the executive producers, we asked if there were any good examples of submission videos that we could share. They sent over Nate Hansen’s submission video for season 12. You can watch that below. Notice how he’s direct and to the point, but tells us what the producers would want to know and shows off his skills.

We all know how things turned out for Nate. He was one of the about 150 Ninjas invited to compete on season 12 in St. Louis, where he had one of the most inspiring runs of the season.

Remember, applications for season 13 need to be in by December 14, so you need to get to work! Are you planning to apply and still have questions? Leave them in the comment section below and we’ll try to get them answered!