Childnet 2018 Film Competition Launches

Online safety charity Childnet call on young people to ‘Connect with respect’ and enter their Film Competition


Leading online safety charity, Childnet, a partner in the UK Safer Internet Centre, has launched the ninth Childnet Film Competition to encourage young people aged 7-18 to create a short film to educate their peers about staying safe online.

Delivered by Childnet, the competition aims to encourage young people to have respectful interactions online and gives young people the opportunity to harness their creativity and share their understanding of online safety issues.

Judged by a panel of experts from the BBC, BAFTA, BBFC and BFI, the winning films will be shown at the finalists’ event in London and will be used as educational resources in schools across the UK.

This year’s theme focusses on how young people can ‘connect with respect’ and work together to make the internet a better place for children and young people.

As Becky Nancarrow, Senior Education Projects Officer at Childnet, said:

Over the past nine years, hundreds of young people have shown us how they can use their creativity, passion and skills to educate and inspire their peers to stay safe online. We are hugely excited to see the films that young people will be entering for this year’s Childnet Film Competition and how they can help shape a respectful and better internet for all.

Connect with respect – how to take part
The Film Competition is split into two age categories and schools or youth organisations must oversee and submit entries on behalf of all participants. For both categories, young people must create a film in response to the theme: ‘Connect with respect - a better internet starts with us!’

  • Primary category: 7-11 year olds are invited to create a 60 second film
  • Secondary category: 11-18 year olds are invited to create a 2 minute film
  • For both age groups, Childnet are looking for creative, imaginative films which show how young people can make a positive difference online. Young people might express their ideas through comedy, animation, or music. They will be encouraged to consider different filmmaking styles such as creating an advert, campaign or documentary.

    Childnet have developed resource packs including storyboard templates, guides to filmmaking and other useful documents to help schools and youth organisations engage and support young people in making their films.

    Closing date and how to enter
    Entries need to be sent to Childnet by 11th June, including entry and media consent forms which can be found at www.childnet.com/film-comp. There is also important information about copyright that entrants will need to consider.

    The shortlisted films will be shown on the big screen in front of industry guests and young people at the Childnet Film Competition 2018 Event at the BFI London Southbank and will also receive a BBFC rating.

    The Film Competition winners will each receive a filmmaking kit for their school which includes a Canon DSLR camera, tripod and clapperboard.

    The winners will be decided by an expert panel which includes:
    • Catherine McAllister, Head of Safeguarding and Child Protection at BBC Children’s
    • David Austin OBE, Chief Executive of the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC)
    • Joanna van der Meer, Film Tutor and Family Learning Programmer at BFI Southbank
    • Lisa Prime, Children’s Events Programmer at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA)

    Written by Childnet International on March 08, 2018 11:53

    Childnet 2017 Film Competition Winners Announced

    Young people’s internet safety films to be used as educational resources, as Childnet announce national winners of its 2017 Film Competition


    Childnet Competition 2017 EventLeading online safety charity Childnet announced the winners of the eighth annual Childnet Film Competition at a private screening held for the competition finalists and industry guests at the British Film Institute on London’s Southbank.

    Judged by a panel of experts from the BBC, BBFC and the BFI, the two winning schools and the four other finalists will now see their films used as internet safety resources to educate other young people about how to ‘Be the change’ and use the internet positively and safely.

    The Childnet Film Competition was founded in 2010 to harness 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.

    Through the process the young people create valuable resources to educate their peers about staying safe online and develop their own understanding of what it means to be a good digital citizen.

    Will Gardner, CEO of Childnet, said:
    “The Childnet Film Competition is a great opportunity for young people to showcase their creative skills by creating engaging and educational videos to spread key online safety messages. The standard of entries this year has been exceptionally high and it’s clear to us that these young people are really passionate about making the internet a better place for all. All of the finalists’ films will be invaluable resources to help educate other young people about online safety.”

    The competition invites schools and youth organisations from across the UK to capture their internet safety messages in a short film. This year, the film competition invited young people to think about how young people can come together and make a positive change online.

    Childnet Education Projects Officer, Becky Nancarrow, said:
    “This year’s Film Competition theme, ‘Be the change’, was all about inspiring young people to think about how they as young people can change the way that they use the internet for good. Today we not only saw the time and dedication that has gone into creating these films but the passion young people have for creating a better internet for everyone. It’s amazing that the young people’s films will continue to have an even wider impact, as they become resources for schools and youth groups to use”.

    With over 127 entries from across the two categories; primary and secondary, entries ranged from animated films, to dramas about cyberbullying, to a news story about the positive uses of the internet. 6 schools attended the finalists’ event at the BFI in London before seeing their films on the big screen.

    The films were judged by David Austin OBE Chief Executive at the BBFC, Catherine McAllister Head of Safeguarding and Child Protection BBC Children’s, and Joanna van der Meer Film Tutor and Family Learning Programmer at BFI Southbank.

    The winners of this year’s Film Competition were St Michael in the Hamlet Primary School in the primary category with their film Be the Change: It starts with us. In the secondary category the winners were Dover College with their film Trouser Boy.

    The winning films from the Childnet Film Competition can be viewed here: www.childnet.com/filmcompetition

    Childnet Winners 2017

    Quotes from the Film Competition 2017 finalists’ event

    ‘The film competition puts online safety into a practical setting, in school or at home children don’t always get it, but putting those messages into a film they get into it and understand it more because it’s encouraging them to do something for themselves; something that’s big, that other people will see, and something that’s fun.’ – Teacher

    ‘I think it’s a great way of teaching children how to be safe, because it’s also a fun way of being in a competition, so it’s competitive. Through the competition I learnt that even if you do something wrong you can always find a way to make it better’ - Young person, primary category winner

    ‘I think this competition is really good for teaching people about online safety, on top of that we had a lot of fun doing the video! It took us a few hours and overall the experience was really good for us, and today was just the highlight’ – Young person, secondary category winner

    Written by Childnet International on July 13, 2017 09:38

    Childnet 2017 Film Competition Launches

    Online safety charity Childnet call on young people to ‘Be the Change’ and enter the 8th Childnet Film Competition.


    Childnet Competition 2017Leading online safety charity, Childnet, have launched the eighth Childnet Film Competition to encourage young people aged 7-18 to create a short film to educate their peers about staying safe online.

    With the aim of showcasing how young people can inspire others to make the internet a better place, the competition gives young people the opportunity to harness their creativity and understanding of online safety issues. This year’s theme focuses on how young people can ‘Be the Change’ and make the internet a better and safer place for all.

    As Becky Nancarrow, Education Projects Officer at Childnet, said:

    "Over the past eight years, hundreds of young people have taken part in our Film Competition, demonstrating their incredible creative skills as well as educating and inspiring their peers about staying safe online. It’s clear to us that young people can be creators of change and help shape a better internet for all."

    Be the change – taking part
    The Film Competition is split into two age categories and schools or youth organisations must oversee and submit entries on behalf of all participants. Childnet have developed resource packs including storyboard templates, guides to filmmaking and other useful documents to help schools and youth organisations engage and support young people in making their films. The top three films in each category will be invited to a private screening at the BFI in London and the winners will be awarded film kits for their school or youth organisation.

  • Primary aged young people (7 – 11) are invited to create a 60 second film in response to the theme: ‘Be the Change – It starts with us’, looking at how young people can work together to make the internet a great and safe place.

  • Secondary aged young people (11 – 18) are invited to create a 2 minute film in response to the theme: ‘Be the Change – We’re online for good’, looking at what young people are doing to have a positive effect online.
  • For both age groups Childnet are looking for creative, imaginative films which reflect a positive and inspiring message. Young people might express their ideas through comedy, animation, or music. They will be encouraged to consider different filmmaking styles such as creating an advert, campaign or documentary.

    Childnet Competition 2017 ImageAs one of the Secondary school category finalists from 2016 said about their film:

    "The message of the film is to think about how many people there are on the internet and how easy it is to make differences to the world. The way your actions, even very small actions, can affect millions of people quickly is both scary and useful at the same time, and you must remember that it is your choice to affect people positively or negatively."

    In order to register a group of talented young people you know, then please send an email to film@childnet.com for an information pack. The closing date for entries is Monday 12th June 2017 at 5pm.

    Join the conversation on social media
    To inspire young people to help others stay safe online, entrants are being encouraged to share their film competition stories on social media using the hashtag #bethechange. Whether this is a message about the issues being explored, a picture from the creative process or even a tip from the young filmmakers, schools and youth organisations can share their updates with @Childnet.

    The judges
    The winners will be decided by our expert panel which includes:

  • David Austin OBE, Chief Executive of the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC)
  • Joanna van der Meer, Film Tutor and Family Learning Programmer at BFI Southbank
  • Catherine McAllister, Head of Safeguarding and Child Protection BBC Children’s
  • Important dates:
    1. Competition closes Monday 12th June 2017
    2. Finalists notified Monday 19th June 2017
    3. Screening and finalist’s event at the BFI Monday 3rd July 2017

    Childnet Competition 2017 Banner

    Written by Childnet International on March 02, 2017 10:02


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