Wow!
We received 178 quality entries for this year's Documentary Scholarship. Your stories took us on an exciting journey around the world to places like Africa, India, Alaska, South America, South East Asia and Papua New Guinea. We were also invited into your backyards to learn about the people and communities in your local neighborhood.
But.....we only have one space booked on the amazing adventure to Ecuador, so one winner had to be selected! Thank you to everyone who entered, particularly those who were shortlisted, your stories are very powerful.
A big congratulations to our winner - Mohamed Soliman from Cairo!
Judge's comments: One of the hardest aspects of making a documentary is to get your subjects to open up to you and drop the facade that people often put on in front of camera. Mohamed did this wonderfully. His subject David seems honest and sincere as he recalls his tragic story. The visuals gave a great sense of place and enhanced the tone of the piece without being overly complicated and detracting from the rawness of the story being conveyed. A great doco that conveys an amazing amount of story and emotion in such a short space of time.
Runners Up (equal placing)
Eliza Capai - African Women
Judge's comments: African Woman was a visual feast with a clever narrative device that tackled an enormous subject in a clever and engaging style. It was great to see such grand ambitions for such a short amount of screen time.
Tanner Brandt- An Experience with The Bookery
Judge's comments: An
Experience with the Bookery was inspiring short that took an
interesting subject and told the story in well paced and visually
interesting style. It was a great effort from a filmmaker with enormous
potential.
The Shortlist (in alphabetical order)
Paul Bischoff - Violin to Ehru
Angela Buhr
Ryan Chapman - A Game of Two Halves
David Elkins - Anaktuvuk
Francesca Gentile - Female Genital Mutilation in Sierra Leone
Nicia Griljava - Lost Mexico
Rob Henry
Elyse Hickey- Beyond Smiles
Alice Holden - Jacob's Ankylosing Spondylitis Documentary
Riley Hooper - Seed to Plate- A Garden Story
Niall Johansson - The Fisherman
Belle Keynes - Yam I Am
Daniel Mandic - Bangladesh
Qween Martins - Spoons
Victor Ponce - Respira
Saleem Reshamwala - Cell Phone Silk Road
Aaron Rockett - Thug Life
Diego Tipacti - Left Ashore
Amber Todd - Local Encounters
Andres Toro - Dying Currents
Derek Turner - Local Encounters
Chris Stone - Where the Clouds Come From
Paulette Waltz - Romansi and his Boat
Louie Young - A Film Inspired by Home
Wei Zheng- Nguni Cattle Farming in South Africa
Congratulations to you all, and thank you for sharing your important stories with us. We look forward to seeing your entries next year!