A pencil’s life wins award for girls
THE story about the life of a pencil has won an award for a couple of Ballisodare schoolgirls.
The girls, Iga Manulak and Emma Jackson, both students at St. Mary’s College, Ballysadare, are winners of the Environmental Protection Agency’s The Story of Your Stuff competition.
The winning video told the story of a pencil, illustrating the pencil’s journey from a tree in Brazil to a compost bin in Ireland and everything in between. The captivating video had some strong competition with over 100 entries received from secondary school students across Ireland.
Speaking about the winning submission campaign ambassador, photographer and music video director Christian Tierney said: “The winning entry is amazing with some beautiful shots. The story is told in a very creative and inspiring way.”
Mr Tierney provided video- making tips to students on the campaign website www. thestoryofyourstuff. ie. He also inspired potential entrants with his own Story of Your Stuff video production.
Students were invited to choose an everyday object and use a visual medium to illustrate its lifecycle - where it came from, how it was used in its lifetime and more importantly, where it was going to end up.
The EPA encouraged students to conduct their research through the www. epa. ie/ irelandsenvironment/ web resource.
Speaking about the winning entry, judge and Producer of RTE TV’s Eco Eye Marcus Stewart said: “The winning video demonstrated brilliant artistry and creativity in delivering the message that all the products we use, even something as simple as a pencil, are sourced from materials all over the world.
“The video promotes the idea that these items should be respected during their full lifecycle and disposal.
“The film perfectly blends visual artistry with text and music to deliver a perfectly paced film that builds through the lifecycle of the forgotten pencil. The creators Iga Manulak and Emma Jackson are natural artists and film makers.”
The winning students and their school will receive competition prizes. In addition, the school will get to enjoy a video workshop with Christian Tierney. Fellow judge the EPA’s Helen Bruen said, “We were bowled over by the level of research, skill, time and effort that went into each project.”