Outstanding achievement film award for Navan primary school students

A SHORT film made by fourth class pupils in St Paul's Primary School, Navan has won an outstanding achievement award at the FÍS Film Awards.

The FÍS Film Awards is a renowned annual competition for Irish primary school children and their teachers and educates them on the entire moviemaking process.

St Paul's scooped the prize in the 'Outstanding Achievement in Filmmaking - Storytelling' category for their movie 'The Magic Pencil'.

Hosted by RTE’s Sinead Kennedy, the event is run by the Institute of Art, Design and Technology and Oide Technology in Education.

First established as a grassroots initiative to nurture Ireland’s future movie making talent, over 1,500 pupils get involved each year.

The overall winner was St Fiacc’s National School in Laois for their movie ‘Podorozh’ (meaning ‘Journey’ in Ukrainian). Fully directed and produced by 6th class students, the short film tells the story of a young Ukrainian refugee fleeing the war in Ukraine to seek sanctuary in Laois, Ireland.

The FÍS Film Awards see classes across the country challenged to write, direct, and produce their own short films for a chance to win accolades and attend the prestigious awards ceremony. Whether it be script writing, acting, filming or costume design, students are encouraged to get creative both in and out of the classroom.

The FÍS project was designed to introduce and lead primary school pupils through the creative process of filmmaking. Offering a unique opportunity to develop their creative skills outside of a traditional classroom setting, budding movie makers are encouraged to test their communication, planning, and collaborative abilities.

Students are allowed to create their own stories, characters, and visual effects, encouraging creative expression and lateral thinking, essential components for personal growth and learning.