LiveWell Colorado Film Challenge Winners
LiveWell Colorado is thrilled to announce four student filmmaker award winners in the LiveWell Colorado Film Challenge, a new statewide competition for short films on the importance of ensuring access to healthy eating and activing living. The focus of the competition was on the barriers that too many Coloradans face to healthy living and how these barriers can be overcome. At a public screening and awards event on August 18, 2016 emceed by CBS-4 Weekend Anchor and Health Reporter Kathy Walsh, four winners took home a total of $12,000 in cash prizes, with prizes going to both the filmmakers and the media/film departments at their respective schools.
The 2016 LiveWell Colorado Film Challenge winners are:
FIRST PRIZE: “My Mom Loves Colorado”
Sunflower Matzen, Front Range Community College, Multimedia Graphic Design Department
SECOND PRIZE: “Bridging the Gap”
Bronson Henriques, Colorado Mesa University, CMU-TV Department
THIRD PRIZE: “Take Life Into Your Own Hands”
Avery Lewis with Spencer Daniels, Kieren Kuiper, and Josh Smith | Colorado State University-Pueblo, Mass Communications Department
HONORARY MENTION: “Health Barriers”
Scott Oney, Front Range Community College
“This was a tough challenge for the young filmmakers: to produce a compelling short film that could entertain, inform and encourage action on a complex subject – barriers to healthy eating and physical activity. It was an inspiration to see the quality of the films and the reactions of the judges and audience,” said Shepard Nevel, LiveWell Colorado President and CEO.
“While each filmmaker was given the same assignment, each expressed the challenge in a different way,” said Donald Zuckerman, Colorado Film Commissioner. “From a documentary to an animation to a short narrative/comedy to an expressionistic word poem, the variety and creativity displayed here really was impressive.”
Filmmakers were asked to produce a compelling one to three minute film of any genre. Finalists were selected by a panel of judges representing the film industry, health advocacy, and civic leaders. Judges screened and rated the films based on effectiveness in illustrating how a health barrier impacts people, persuasiveness in driving action, and resourcefulness in production.
LiveWell Colorado Film Challenge Judges included:
- Luis Benitez, the state’s first director of the Colorado Outdoor Recreation Industry Office
- Michael Brown, a world-class mountaineer and three-time Emmy winning filmmaker
- Matt Campbell, film programmer for the Denver Film Festival
- Olga Gonzalez, director of community engagement for LiveWell Colorado
- Shepard Nevel, CEO, LiveWell Colorado
- Aron Warner, Academy Award winning producer of Shrek & other films
- Donald Zuckerman, a film producer and Colorado Film Commissioner
In partnership with the Colorado Office of Film, Television and Media, the LiveWell Colorado Film Challenge seeks to inform, inspire and rally Coloradans around the urgency of ensuring access for all Coloradans to physical activity and healthy eating.
ABOUT THE FILM CHALLENGE SPONSORS:
LiveWell Colorado (www.livewellcolorado.org) is a statewide nonprofit organization committed to preventing and reducing obesity in Colorado by promoting healthy eating and active living. With the goal of eliminating health disparities and advancing health equity, LiveWell Colorado focuses its efforts on policy, environmental and lifestyle changes that remove barriers and increase access to healthy behaviors. Working in partnership with obesity prevention initiatives across the state, LiveWell Colorado aims to provide every Coloradan with access to healthy foods and opportunities for physical activity to make Colorado the healthiest state in the nation.
The Colorado Office of Film, Television & Media (www.coloradofilm.org) takes pride in promoting the great State of Colorado to the film and television industry locally, nationally and internationally. We work to enhance the success of Colorado film projects through promotion, funding and education. The Colorado Office of Film, Television & Media attracts and facilitates content creation in Colorado to generate economic growth in all of its communities. It also connects filmmakers, animators, gamers and photographers to the resources they need, such as location assistance, crew referrals and inter-governmental cooperation.
PHOTOS AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST
MEDIA CONTACT:
Michele Murray
LiveWell Colorado, Director of Communications
720-573-3622 (direct)
303-880-9159 (cell)
michelemurray@livewellcolorado.org
