By ALANA MITCHELSON
An engaging short film animation about supporting people with a disability has won a 14-year-old girl Geelong’s inaugural Gateways Film Festival of Amazing Shorts prize.
Vania McCaskill had been playing around with animation after downloading the software for a school project.
Then when Vania heard about the competition she thought it would be an great opportunity to develop her new skills.
“I created the film not only to heighten awareness for people with a disability but to also recognise the work and effort Gateways contributes to helping them,” Vania said.
“I was inspired by the competition’s theme, Celebrating People With a Disability.”
Vania’s film depicts a young autistic child who is unable to fit in with other children at his kindergarten.
But with help from Gateways, Stanley becomes a valued member of the kinder.
Aside from creating a few five-second animations for fun, the winning entry was Vania’s first time working on a lengthier short-film project.
The production process involved firstly writing the script then creating the frames and movements before adding a scripted voiceover.
“Some of the frames were quick to make but at times it would take hours to do one frame as I kept changing my ideas,” Vania said.
She said she was unsure what career she would pursue but that she was interested in media-related creative professions.
Vania said she planned to spend her $1000 prize money on friends and family.
Gateways’s Rosemary Malone said the film festival’s unanimous judges’ decision was announced at a presentation just before Christmas.
“We launched this new competition to highlight the positive contributions that people with disabilities make to their families and the community,” Ms Malone said.
“We all agreed that Vania’s film using animation was a standout amongst entrants of all ages and varied levels of film-making experience.
“We congratulate Vania on her winning film which presented a simple and engaging visual message showing how supporting people with a disability can make a real difference.”
The judges awarded a $500 runner-up prize to Andrew Roberts for his documentary about the inspirational journey of local artist Liam O’Neil.
Click below to watch Vania’s award-winning short film.
