Digital Art pupils launch first mini film festival
By Stephanie Mc Guckin
Award-winning movies and Oscar cermonies are things associated with the bright lights of Hollywood but students of Hazelwood Integrated College in north Belfast experienced the lifestyle yesterday with the launch of their own mini film festival. The College screened a series of short films, made by its students, to its own cinema audience in celebration of its new status as a specialist school for digital arts.

Digital Arts encompasses film-making, digital music technology and animation.The subject has been included in Hazelwood's curriculum to enhance academic achievements. "Digital Arts offers our young people the opportunity to develop skills in new technology, equipping them for employment in the creative industries," principal Eileen Lenehan said. The six short films premiered focused on topics that affect student life including teenage anti-social behaviour. One film titled Asbo Bumble Bee charts the antics of an anti-social bumble bee in the Botanic Park world he inhabits.

Christian Johnson, who directed the film, said: "The course is really fun to do. A lot of people maybe aren't as good at normal subjects and do better at other things. I want to be an animator so this is just the right platform for me."