Young film-maker award winners announced

November 26th, 2018

Connected Media is delighted to announce the winning films of its annual film-making challenge for young people, the Someday Challenge.

The Someday Challenge drew more than 130 entries from rangatahi throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. The brief was broad: films should be based on a theme of sustainability, no longer than five minutes, and entrants aged under 25. Beyond that, anything was possible.

After a long and wonderful day holed up in the boardroom at Stuff, a panel of 11 judges named the 20 Winning Films of the Someday Challenge, 2018.

There were films that made us laugh, others that made us cry, and all prompted thoughtful discussion. Judges expressed huge admiration for the creative talent on display, some from entrants as young as nine years old. They also noted the film-makers’ courage in identifying and tackling issues of mental well-being, particularly screen addiction. Other subjects explored were grief, dementia, cultural identity and environmental concerns.

Fourteen-year-old Aucklander Luka Wolfgram won two awards: the first for Dear Grief, a beautiful and poetic reflection of his relationship with grief following the loss of his younger brother, and the second for What Matters Is, a drama about the importance of staying connected to our culture.

Luka’s previous film about Kosta, Our Superheroes, was a winning film in the Someday Challenge 2016.

Judges commended Luka’s courage in sharing a deeply personal journey and praised his storytelling talent. They observed that as a film-maker he had grown enormously during the two years since he last entered.

“It’s all for my brother, Kosta,” says Luka. “It’s my way of keeping his spirit and story alive.”

Other winning film-makers are from Southland, Canterbury, Wellington, Manawatu, Waikato and the Bay of Plenty.

South Auckland was especially strongly represented with awards going to students at Manurewa Intermediate, Manurewa High, Alfriston College and Mission Heights High, as well as Papatoetoe sister and brother Irava and Makea Upu.

Our huge congratulations to the film-makers whose work has won awards, we look forward to celebrating with you at the Someday Awards in Auckland on December 6th.

Judges included past Someday Challenge winners Isaiah Tour and Ruby Harris, as well as representatives from Stuff, New Zealand Film Commission, Māori Television, Department of Conservation, Ministry of Youth Development, Auckland Council, the Health Promotion Agency the Vista Foundation, Villainesse and Enviroschools.

You can watch the winning films on Stuff, and you can also cast your vote for the Stuff Audience Choice Award through until midnight on Monday, December 3rd.

The Someday Awards livestream will be available on Stuff and on The Outlook for Someday’s website and Facebook page on December 6th.

WINNING FILMS

DEAR GRIEF

By Luka Wolfgram, age 14

ACG Strathallan College, Karaka, Auckland

WHAT MATTERS IS
by Luka Wolfgram, age 14

ACG Strathallan College, Karaka, Auckland

TIME CAPSULE
by Jessica Arlund, age 13

Papamoa College, Bay of Plenty.

SINGLE USe
by Mika Zollner, 22, and Xavier Warne, 23

Victoria University, Wellington

ARE YOU UP FOR THE FIGHT TO END SEXUAL ASSAULT?
by Emma Brown, 17 and Emma Brown, 16

Onslow College, Wellington

KEEP THE FAITH
by Terry Cheng, age 16

Alfriston College, Auckland

A CONVERSATION ABOUT THE WEATHER
by Hunter Williams, age 19

SAE Creative Media Institute, Auckland

GRIT
by Geoff Chen, age 16

Elim College, Auckland

TE RIRI O MATAAHO
by Joshua Lynch, 10 and Scott Mesman, 11

Long Bay Primary School

STUART THE PENGUIN
by Timothy Wallace, age 11

Owairoa School, Auckland

ANYONE
by Pieta Prouting and Heidi Vogel,15 and Emma Miron, Georgia Lowe and Libby Geary, 14
Craighead Diocesan School, Timaru, South Canterbury

A DIFFERENCE
by Poppy Peate, Claire Cruse and Kaitlin Hay, 12; Weiyi Jiang and Liam Parry, 11; Alysha Watene, 13, and Yubin Han, ages 11-12

Maeroa Intermediate School, Hamilton

SUSTAINABLE PEOPLE ON BANKS PENINSULA
by Marco Varray, age 12

Akaroa Area School, Canterbury

JIMMY'S GARDEN
by Team Ridsdale; Sam, 14 and Sarah, 17

Homeschooled in the Manawatu

MI CULTURE
by Jonathon Funaki and Likisone Likisone, 12
Manurewa Intermediate School, Auckland

GAMING ADDICTION
by Raiyan Khan and Andrew Ma, 14, and Farhaan Mohammed, 13

Mission Heights Junior College, Auckland

ALL FOR ONE LOCKERS PROJECT
by Yashna Kumar and Shaylah Castle-Mokaraka, 15, and Shanelle McKinny, 10

Manurewa High School, Auckland

ARI'S WORLD
by Irava Upu, age 14, and Makea Upu, age 12

Auckland Girls’ Grammar School, and Papatoetoe Intermediate School

THE BEACH RESTORATION DAY!
by Neve Curtis, Anamika Jones, 10, and Addisyn Lawrence, 11
Waikouaiti Primary School, Dunedin

NATURE IN TROUBLE
by Martin and Jeremy Cole, 18 and Daniel Cocker, 17
Southland Boys’ High School, Invercargill

/ENDS

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