During lockdown over 130 young people across the UK got creative and made short films to inspire their peers to make the most of the internet and be safe online.
Today leading online safety charity, Childnet, announced the winners of their eleventh annual Childnet Film Competition.
The Childnet Film Competition, which has been run as an in-school project for the past 10 years has adapted to the challenges of COVID-19 school closures. It has provided a creative and important outlet for children and young people to engage with online safety issues, an increasingly crucial topic. Each year the Childnet Film Competition invites schools and youth organisations from across the UK to capture their internet safety messages in a short film. For the 2020 competition Childnet invited young people from across the UK to work with their families, friends, or school group to create a 2-minute-long film or a storyboard sharing the online safety messaging that was important to them.
With over 100 entries across the solo, group and storyboard categories, this year has seen young people create an amazing variety of films ranging from news reports to animations. The theme for this year’s competition was, ‘We want an internet where we’re free to…’ asking young people to create films on their vision for a better internet and to explore what an inclusive and safe online world would look like to them.
By adapting the competition for lockdown, Childnet has given children and young people across the UK a unique opportunity to harness their creativity using technology and a platform to showcase the positive ways young people can interact online. This year the Competition also introduced a storyboard category so that children who did not have access to technology through their schools could still take part. The two winning films and four finalists are decided by a panel of industry experts and will see their films used to educate other young people about online safety and inspire others to use the internet positively and safely.
Childnet Film Competition inspiring young people since 2010
For the past 11 years the Childnet Film Competition has harnessed the positive role of peer-to-peer education and provide a creative and inclusive approach to empower and inspire young people aged 7-18 to use technology safely, positively and creatively. Although the categories and entry requirements changed for the 2020 competition the aim remains the same: to create high quality films showcasing how to use the internet positively and safely.
The winning films which you can watch here.
Solo Category:
Primary aged finalists:
- Eva – Grafton Primary School (London) – We want an internet where we are free to be ourselves
- Oliver- Winkfield St Mary’s CofE Primary School (Berkshire) – MR VIRUS VERSUS THE INTERNET
- Genevieve – Kingscourt School (Hampshire) – An Internet where you are free to learn
Secondary aged finalists:
- Jess – Selston High School (Nottingham) – Free to be You. Free to be Me.
- Syra – Bishopshalt School (Uxbridge) – STAY YOU, BE YOU
- Duff – Dulwich Prep (London) – The Effect of Judgement
Group Category Finalists:
- Allesley Primary School (Coventry) – The 7 Internet Guidelines
- The Belvedere Academy (Liverpool) – Click
- Norwich City Football Club Academy Scholars – Together, we are Stronger
Storyboard Category Finalists:
- Flossie – Cinderella – 2020 version (winning storyboard)
- Keya and Avani – We want an internet where we are free…to express ourselves without being judged.
- Elkanah – An internet where we are free to do whatever we want to do but in a safe environment
- Michaela and Annabel – Be Safe Online and Be kind online
Childnet Staff Pick:
- Norwich City Football Club Academy Scholars – Together, we are Stronger
Will Gardner OBE, CEO of Childnet, said:
“Each year the Childnet Film Competition is a unique opportunity for young people across the UK to show their creative talents, learn about online safety, and inspire their peers to make positive decisions online. During lockdown and school closures the 2020 Competition is no exception. This year we have seen families working together, as well as young people working independently, to create some amazing films and storyboards, which I know will be invaluable educational tools for education settings across the UK.
The Film Competition 2020 was different to any competition we have run before, with schools, organisations, families, and individuals being able to enter. But the entire team at Childnet has been inspired by the thoughtful, creative and positive entries we have seen young people create during the COVID-19 Pandemic.”
Lucy Drage, a parent whose children entered the Group Category said:
“As part of our home-schooling timetable we used this film competition as part of our afternoon fun project time. Once the guys understood that there were really no boundaries, except the 2mins rule, you could let your imagination run riot and do anything you want. It took many hours of brainstorming until they could start story-boarding their idea. And like most ideas it blossomed and grew. (…) As a parent it has been a wonderful opportunity to see these 3 develop and grow through this process, and see them achieve something I don’t think they would have thought was possible 3 months ago.”
Judged by a panel of experts
The films were judged by Lisa Prime Programme Manager: Children & Young People at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), Catherine McAllister Head Of Editorial Standards at BBC Children’s, David Austin OBE Chief Executive at the BBFC, Mark Reid Education at the big schools programme at BFI Southbank, Amy Phillips Vice President of Corporate Communications and CSR at Disney, and Stan McCoy President and Managing Director at the Motion Picture Association.
The winning films from the Childnet Film Competition can be viewed here: www.childnet.com/film-competition
