Gospelnut wrote:1, can we use copyrighted music if we get permission, and, 2,Is a joint effort allowed.
1) Yes, if the creator of the music has the authority to give you that permission. (Sometimes the record label would really be the authority here.) However I'd assume the music is from an unsigned band or composer, in which case you should be fine if you have permission.
2) Yes, you might want to decide ahead of time what you'd do about any winnings.
It's neat to see people are coming up with lots of ideas, though I hope this doesn't just turn into a straight-up science fiction and time travel contest. Creativity and originality will be important factors in judging this contest and taking the most obvious approach possible to the theme isn't necessarily going to get you the best ranking in the 'theme' and 'story' categories.
Remember, the theme "Space, Time, & Reality" isn't supposed to define the genre for you, it's supposed to define a key plot element.