Televisa held a national competition with four televised qualifying rounds, two semi-finals, and a final to select its entry for the
12th edition of the
OTI Festival. This twelfth edition of the National OTI Festival featured 28 songs in the qualifying rounds, twelve in the semi-finals, and six in the final. The top-three entries were awarded at the end. In addition to the general competition, awards were also given for Best Male Performer, Best Female Performer, Best Musical Arrangement, and Breakout Artist among all the competing artists. The shows were held at
Teatro de la Ciudad in
Mexico City, were presented by
Raúl Velasco, and were broadcast on . The musical director was , who conducted the orchestra when required.
Qualifying rounds The four qualifying rounds were held on Saturdays 20 and 27 August, and 3 and 10 September 1983. Each round featured seven entries, of which the three highest-scoring advanced to the semi-finals. In each round, each of the ten jurors cast one vote for each of their three favorite entries.
Semi-finals The semi-finals were held on Friday 23 and Saturday 24 September 1983. The twelve songs that qualified in the qualifying rounds were distributed between the two semi-finals, and the three most voted songs from each semi-final went on to the final.
Final The six-song final was held on Sunday 25 September 1983. The final was held in two rounds, shorlisting three songs for a superfinal. The winner was "", written by
Amparo Rubín, and performed by .
Merit awards In the final, the jurors voted aloud for the Best Male and Female Performer, Best Musical Arrangement, and Breakout Artist among the shortlisted artist in each category.
Gualberto Castro received the Best Male Performer Award, Carminna the Best Female Performer Award,
Sergio Andrade the Best Musical Arrangement Award for "", and Rafael Amador and Mariana Maesse the Breakout Artist Award jointly.
Official album Las 12 triunfadoras del Festival OTI 83 is the official compilation album of the twelfth edition of the Mexican National OTI Festival, released by Gamma in 1983. The vinyl LP features the studio version of the twelve songs qualified for the semi-finals. == At the OTI Festival ==