East Clare filmmakers excel at LIT competition

TWO young East Clare filmmakers have scooped the top prize at a competition which was run recently by multimedia students at LIT Clonmel.
Alfie Hollingsworth submitted two films for the Pen and Pixel Art Exhibition competition, which is run by students at LIT Clonmel. Alfie compiled one of these films with his friend and fellow filmmaker, Dylan Bickerton, and both films were selected as first prize-winners in the competition.
The films were selected from 20 entries sent from pupils across the country by the judging panel.
Michael Bourke, a third-year multimedia student at LIT Clonmel explained this is the first time the Pen and Pixel Art Exhibition competition included animation. They run a competition for second-level pupils, which Alfie and Dylan’s entry was submitted, and they also run an open competition for primary school pupils upwards.
“We picked the winners based on the story line, their story board, how well they implemented the animation and how well they designed their characters. There were approximately 20 entries and considering that was the first year running it with animation, there were a good number of entries. We were very surprised by the standard and there were some amazing things coming in like stop motion graphics and full 3D rendered features. Alfie’s story lines were very good and his use of the materials were very well executed. He used a 3D modelling programme for the film The Box, which was a robot going around the screen moving boxes and we really liked the graphics. In the second film, Reflection, he used stop motion graphics to film Lego moving,” Michael said.
This is not the first time Alfie and Dylan have been successful with their films as they were recently involved the production of a new original short film, which had its world premiere screening in association with the Fresh Film Festival. 
For this the two were among 11 young Irish filmmakers who came together from all over the country, in the first initiative of its kind in Ireland, setting out to achieve funding and on their own to conceive, shoot and create an original short film shot to professional industry standards.