The film careers of several talented students from Western Australia’s South West region are looking bright following wins last night at our 2022 Cinesnaps Short Film Awards held at The Esplanade Hotel, Busselton
Great Southern Grammar’s Henry Baker – with his movie Lemon and the Pelican – took out the inaugural $1000 cash prize for best film in the year 10-12 category, while fellow student Colin Ferrier took out top place in the year 7-9 category with his film Mars… Maybe Not.
Runners-up for the year 7-9 and 10-12 categories respectively was Great Southern Grammar’s Edward Baker, Maxwell Cruse and Thomas North with W-Files, and Margaret River High School students Joshua Yates, Seth Weadley and Asher Muir for Alone.
Open to middle and high school students in Western Australia’s South West and Great Southern regions, the Short Film Competition requires the creation of an original, 3-5 minute short film based on a theme, which this year was Space.
Seven films made the finals this year and winners were chosen by an expert Jury Panel
headed by actor/director Myles Pollard as Jury Chair and Cinesnaps Patron along with Zara Zoe and Carlos Sanson.
Short films by the students will also be screened as part of the Free Community Screenings event, which will take place between August 26 and 28 in Bunbury, Busselton, Dunsborough, Margaret River, and Augusta.
Jury Chair Myles Pollard said it’s fantastic to see the creativity and energy of talented young filmmakers from the SouthWest shine at these awards.
“Congratulations to the winners, and also to all of the entrants for your passion and drive to bring your stories and ideas to life!
“I look forward to seeing you all again at Cinesnaps and CinefestOZ in the future.”
CinefestOZ chief executive officer Malinda Nixon said she was thrilled to see such a high level of film talent across the two regions and congratulated the award winners on their achievement.
The Short Film Competition is part of the Cinesnaps Program for students and teachers, and involves engagement with renowned filmmakers and industry professionals. A range of activities are undertaken with students, such as special guest workshops, Q&As and the readily available CineOnline content that includes Myles Pollard’s “Shoot To Win” masterclass.
Ms Nixon also said the Cinesnaps program wouldn’t be possible without the generous funding of Festival sponsor and community partner Rio Tinto.
Rio Tinto General Manager Greater Hope Downs, Nathan Jacobs said “I congratulate all the finalists and the winners on their impressive creative works – there are clearly many talented young people in the South West region.
“Rio Tinto is incredibly proud to partner with Cinefest to support young people in the South West region to grow their potential and digital technology skills which are critical to many industries, including the resources industry.”
The Cinesnaps program has engaged more than 41,000 students from around the region since its 2008 inception.
CinefestOZ would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of this land we live and work on and pay our respect to the Elders past, present and future.
CinefestOZ thanks Presenting Partner Tourism WA, Premium Partners Screenwest and City of Busselton and Community Partner Rio Tinto. The festival acknowledges its strong support from Lotterywest and Screen Australia.