All aboard for six enterprising young film-makers

Announcement from the Royal Society of New Zealand
For immediate release: 24 June 2009
All aboard for six enterprising young film-makers

Two special prizes in the Freemasons BIG Science Adventures DVD competition have been awarded by the Royal New Zealand Navy. Theresa Speedy, Kayla Leonard and Barbara Jones from Hauraki Plains College and Matt Lee, Alex Cairns and James Wilson from Otumoetai College have won a four day adventure on board the Navy ship HMNZS Manawanui. In early October the enterprising students will join the ship and sail from Auckland across the Bay of Plenty, and down to Gisborne where they will join in the Cook's Landing Commemoration celebrations.

Freemasons BIG Science Adventures is an exciting and challenging DVD competition run by the Royal Society of New Zealand each year which offers major prizes for secondary school students. This year’s competition was themed around astronomy, looking at how our view of ourselves and our world has changed in the light of astronomical discoveries. 2009 is the International Year of Astronomy and is 400 years since Galileo made a telescope which magnified objects twenty times, providing an astonishing new view of the moon and planets.

Chief of Navy, Rear Admiral Tony Parr, says “We are delighted to continue our long association with the Royal Society supporting their 'Freemasons Big Science Adventures' programme for high school students. Noting that this year’s programme has focused on astronomy and the history of navigation, it is very fitting for a Navy ship to be involved”.

Pacific Star Navigation by the team from Hauraki Plains College, was one of a few films with a New Zealand flavour. It explains how and why the pacific people were able to migrate throughout the Pacific using celestial navigation. During the trip to Gisborne, the students will be shown the art of astro-navigation.

One Small Step was made by the team of media students from Otumoetai College and looks at the history of space exploration and possibilities for the future. On board HMNZS Manawanui will be a film mentor from Natural History New Zealand who will help the two teams make a film of the trip.

Further details of the competition is available at www.royalsociety.org.nz and all the shortlisted videos can be viewed at www.hotscience.co.nz

The other finalist teams were:

Highly Commended

Nelson College for Girls, Nelson
Amy Hill, Lancia Hubley, Bonnie Shaw

St Bedes, Christchurch
Joseph Stretch, Roger Dehn, Charles Cheng

Commended

Rotorua Boys High School, Rotorua
Ashton Ledger, Sam Biddle, Jone Leko

Burnside High School, Christchurch
Jim Huang, Philip Allan, George Xian

Tawa College, Wellington
Mark Baker, Arun Ashok, Patrick Sharp

ENDS

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