The Into Film Awards 2018 – celebrating achievements in film by young people and the work of those who teach them – are open to entries from schools across the UK.
Run by charity Into Film, with the support of partners the Guardian Teacher Network and NATE, the awards invite schools to champion their best film-makers, reviewers, film clubs, and teachers using film for learning.
Into Film works with schools across the UK to make more of film as a tool for education through clubs, cinema screenings, resources and training to support classroom teaching.
Categories include live action, documentary, animation and educator of the year. Some of the winners of the 2017 awards were The Magic Pencil (best animation 12 and under), a comedy about a girl who finds a pencil that does all her schoolwork for her; My Not So Ordinary Life (best live action 13 and over), about life with autism; and the Lost Station (best documentary 12 and under), looking at the historical influence of a train station on a town in Cumbria. A full list of last year’s winners can be found on the Into Film Awards website.
Last year’s educator of the year was Nic Williams, a teacher at Blue Bell Hill primary school in Nottingham, who was praised for his hard work helping children and their families get the best out of the school’s film sessions. “We use film to encourage a love of learning,” he says, “whether that’s through film club, writing reviews, watching and discussing a film in the classroom, or through our family learning, which brings adults and children together with film and uses that to develop conversation and family reviews. We’ve seen a real difference – if you can get a child to love learning then everything grows.”
The closing date for entries is 31 January 2018, and winners will be announced at a red-carpet event in London in March. For information on how to enter, and to access film-making tips and resources, visit the Into Film website.
The categories are as follows:
The film-making awards
There are three film-making categories across age groups and genres. Films may be made with professional equipment cameras, or shot on a mobile phone – judges will be looking for creativity and original thought. The subcategories include:
- Best animation 12 and under
- Best animation 13 and over
- Best live action 12 and under
- Best live action 13 and over
- Best documentary five to 19
Ones to watch
This category honours three young people aged 13 to 19 who have demonstrated exceptional talent and ambition in any aspect of the film-making process. Entrants must include an example of their work.
Into Film club of the year
Recognising and showcasing the work done in Into Film clubs to aid learning.Members and club leaders are asked to nominate their club for consideration.
- Into Film club of the year 13 and over
- Into Film club of the year 12 and under
Educator of the year
The educator of the year award recognises the good practice of educators using film as a learning tool. Nominations may be by educators themselves or by a colleague, parent or student. Entries must include an example of work that demonstrates how the nominee has used film to assist young people’s academic or social development – be that screenings of interesting films, film-making, review writing and other film-related activities.
Review of the year
Each week, Into Film receives more than 6,000 reviews on its website from across its network of film clubs in schools, colleges and youth groups. The review of the year award celebrates outstanding reviews written by primary and secondary students.
Best family film of the year (in association with First News)
While a large part of the Into Film Awards celebrates film-making and reviewing talent, the best family film of the year category invites young people to vote for their favourite family film of the year.
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