Young film maker lands £1,000 in art competition

Called ‘LifeSupport: Change through art’, and run by charity YouthNet, Egg and the Citi Foundation, the competition invited 16 to 25 year-olds to illustrate how the financial crisis has impacted on them and their communities through film, photography or illustration.

Chris’ winning entry, ‘Times of change’, is his personal interpretation of the changing attitudes in the way we look at money during a recession. The time-lapse film captures the 11 hours it took Chris to build, and destroy, a bronze coin sculpture spelling out the film’s title.

Chris, who was awarded his prize at a star-studded event at London’s Design Museum last night (25 May), said, “I’m absolutely thrilled to have won and can’t wait to get my hands on a brand new Macbook Pro! I travel a lot from my home, university, and both of my parents’ houses, so it will make a real difference to my design practice.”

Runner-up prizes of £300 were awarded to Brigitte Sutherland, 23, for her illustration, ‘Seven Months’; Connor Matheson, 17, for his haunting photo montage ‘Ghost Town’; and Andrea Bowie, 23, for her short film ‘The Fightback Starts Here’.

Martyn Lewis, Chairman and Founder of YouthNet said, “Not only is Chris’ film a powerful expression of his experiences and thoughts on the recession, it will have a long lasting impact on the other young people looking for financial help on TheSite.org.

“This competition, and the talented young people who entered, have been able to bring to life a difficult topic and represent it in a new and innovative way.” 

The awards were announced at a ceremony hosted by YouthNet at the Design Museum in London last night (May 25). Chloe Madeley and Martyn Lewis presented the evening, with the judges presenting awards in each category. Music for the evening was provided by DJ Nonames from renowned British hip-hop crew The Foreign Beggars.

The winning artwork will be on display at Egg’s offices in Derby and Canary Wharf and on YouthNet’s guide to life for 16 to 25 year-olds, TheSite.org.

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Media Enquiries:
For further media information or to arrange interviews please contact Gabriella Jozwiak or Katy Miller at YouthNet on 020 7250 5716 or out-of-hours on 07766 660 755.  Email media@youthnet.org.

Notes to editors

1. YouthNet is the UK’s first exclusively online charity and was founded by Martyn Lewis CBE in        1995. It aims to create a socially inclusive environment where all young adults are engaged, informed and inspired to achieve their ambitions and dreams, and does this through three websites: TheSite.org, Do-it (do-it.org.uk) the UK’s leading volunteering website and Lifetracks.com, for young people making decisions about work, study or training
2. Run by young people’s charity YouthNet, TheSite.org is the online guide to life for 16 to 25 year-olds.  With over 2,000 articles written by experts and journalists, a series of blogs, podcasts and videos, a bespoke question and answer service (askTheSite) and a thriving online community, TheSite.org is the central place for young people to turn to for sound, straight talking, anonymous advice 24 hours a day
3. Every month, TheSite.org is visited by over 500,000 unique users, and receives around 800 questions on issues ranging from relationships to advice on housing. Content on TheSite.org is also available on mobile, at TheSite.org/mobile
4. The judging panel for the ‘LifeSupport: Change through art competition’ is made up of eight judges including Animation Director at Aardman, Nigel Davies; actor, Ed Speleers; Features Picture Editor at the Guardian, Sarah Gilbert; internet video blogger, Charlie McDonnell; the Managing Director of Saatchi and Saatchi Design, Ashley Goodall and artists Jimi Crayon, Matthew Stone and Jamie McKelvie
5. The Citi Foundation is committed to the economic empowerment of individuals and families, particularly those in need, in the communities where we work so that they can improve their standard of living. Globally, the Citi Foundation targets its strategic giving to priority focus areas: Microfinance and Microenterprise, Small and Growing Businesses, College and Careers, and Financial Capability and Asset Building. The Citi Foundation works with its partners in Microfinance and Microenterprise and Small and Growing Businesses to support environmental programs and innovations. Additional information can be found at www.citifoundation.com
6. Citi’s Office of Financial Capability combines the strength of Citi’s business, people and partnerships to empower individuals to achieve their personal finance goals and improve their quality of life.  Citi takes a holistic approach to Financial Capability that encompasses four elements critical to achieving sustainable results: 1) increasing financial literacy; 2) developing short-term and long-term financial plans; 3) increasing ability to select appropriate financial products or services to implement those plans; and 4) providing ongoing support that helps consumers redefine their financial goals over the course of their lives.  In 2004, Citi made an unprecedented 10-year, $200 million global commitment to support financial education.  As of 2010, the company has invested over $167 million in these efforts in 73 countries around the world
7. Shortlisted entrants are:
   Film
   Times of Change Chris Vickers, 21 
   The Fightback starts here Andrea Bowie, 23
   Hidden Depths Nathan Briggs, 18
   Illustration
   Seven Months  Brigitte Sutherland, 23
   Work, Eat, Sleep… Stephen Hitchen, 25
   The Opulent Tiger Cynthia Chen Barbachano, 20
   Photo
   Ghost Town Connor Matheson, 17
   Draining the cash Hayley Hilario, 18
   The Road to no-where Jade Culling, 16.