The students were recognised at the Royal Television Society awards
Two University of Portsmouth student films about mental health have won Royal Television Society (RTS) awards.
A team of students won the ‘best student drama’ category for Frank, a short film about anxiety manifested as a puppet monster made from colourful yarn. It was inspired by the filmmaker Harvey Davidson’s own struggles with anxiety and how this condition was often misrepresented on screen.
Harvey graduated last year with a degree in BA Film Production. He said: “When watching films centred around representations of anxiety, I’ve found that people like to try and define anxiety as one singular thing, constraining it and making it one-dimensional. More often than not, the journeys of anxiety shown in film are wholly negative, but most people know this isn’t the case. People’s struggles with anxiety are nuanced and complex, their journeys aren’t linear, and their stories don’t all end with them set free of their anxiety forever.”
The poster artwork for Tinsel and Frank
Another team of students won the ‘best comedy and entertainment’ award for the action/comedy short film Tinsel, which again explores a central theme of mental health but this time in comedic form.
The film is inspired by cult action movies and is about a lonely 36-year-old actor with ADHD becoming the unlikely hero of an armed hostage situation, all whilst working as an elf in a British garden centre at Christmas. This original concept is based upon the life and observations made during writer and director Davey Ezra’s six-year stint of playing an elf during Christmas time.
The RTS judges said: "Frank is a confident and disarming film about a widespread issue told in a bold and creative way, and Tinsel is a funny, engaging and very well shot film with a serious theme underpinning the comedic drama.”
Harvey Davidson and Charlie Andrews with their awards for Frank
Another student team was nominated in the ‘Comedy and Entertainment’ category for Hymn & Her, a highly ambitious musical extravaganza short film. The RTS judges said: “Hymn and Her had strong performances and memorable songs. It’s a thought-provoking piece of work that was stylistically reminiscent of The Rocky Horror Picture Show.”
Ben Thompson, Principal Lecturer and Academic Lead for Film and TV, said: “Winning these awards is a truly superb achievement and recognition for these talented graduates. The staff team are delighted with these wins and nominations as it continues to showcase our film and TV department, and place the University of Portsmouth as one of the best institutions for nurturing new filmmaking talent. Well done to all those involved.”
The film production graduates from the School of Film, Media and Communication received their awards at a formal ceremony at the Hilton Hotel, Utilita Bowl, Southampton.