STEPHENVILLE, NL – It’s time to get your creative juices flowing and start a blunt discussion about cannabis.
As many look to Canada to set the stage for cannabis regulation, legalization and distribution, College of the North Atlantic’s (CNA) Counselling Services has partnered with the college’s Digital Filmmaking program and Western Health for a Let’s Talk Cannabis 48-Hour Film Competition.
“This event is part of a larger provincial initiative under the national Cannabis Dialogue Project. Let’s Talk Cannabis is a national project funded by Health Canada’s Substance Use and Addictions Program, and being undertaken by the Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research at the University of Victoria,” explained Allison Lomond, a Guidance Counsellor at CNA’s Bay St. George campus in Stephenville. “The goal of the project is to engage communities across Canada in dialogue about cannabis and cannabis policy to facilitate mutual understanding.”
The challenge is open to everyone. Participants can apply by filling out an application form located on the event’s Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/events/169043487093205/) any time on or before Friday, April 6 at 6 p.m. Interested filmmakers can learn detailed information on the awards, rules of the competition, contact information, tips of how to produce your film, and how to create a YouTube page for submission, by visiting: http://www.cna.nl.ca/Lets-Talk-Cannabis/.
This timed filmmaking competition challenges participants to create a short film that expresses their thoughts or opinions on cannabis use and its legalization in Canada. Entrants will have to develop a story idea, shoot the film, and edit the footage into a short film (under 10 minutes) – all within 48 hours.
To make things a little more fun, teams will be given three clues via the Facebook Event Page on Friday, April 6 at 6 p.m. that must be incorporated into the final version of the film. These clues could be anything from lines of dialogue, props, costumes, themes, etc. The clues also keep any interested participants from getting a jump on the competition!
All films must be submitted via YouTube with the video link emailed to CNA Guidance Counsellor Lori Hovey at lori.hovey@cna.nl.ca, or by a private message to CNA’s Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/baystgeorge/) by Sunday, April 8 at 6 p.m. They will then be reviewed by a third party panel made up of CNA staff. The screening of the final cuts will take place during a red carpet premiere event Wednesday, April 11 at 7 p.m. in the Bay St. George campus (DSB Fowlow Building) lecture theatre. The premiere and award ceremony will also be live-streamed on Facebook.
For more information about CNA’s Counselling Services, visit http://www.cna.nl.ca/Student-Support/Counselling-Services.aspx
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Media Contact:
Minal Abhange
Public Relations Specialist
College of the North Atlantic
709.643.7870
minal.abhange@cna.nl.ca