Earlier in the year, the Faculty of Arts, Humanities, and Education at Canterbury Christ Church University in collaboration with Fresh Film held the Undiscovered Gems Screenwriting Competition. The competition provided a platform for students to showcase their screenwriting talents and winners were announced at an awards ceremony in the Verena Holmes building on Thursday 2 May.

The competition challenged participants to write a 5-minute script centred around the theme of “A Day in the Life”. Writers were encouraged to explore any genre, including horror, romantic comedy and thriller. The scripts were required to meet industry standards and limited to five pages, with guidance provided to ensure high-quality, professional submissions.

The competition, sponsored by Fresh Film, an international film production company, was greatly enhanced by the expertise of Richard Carter-Hounslow, a producer at Fresh Film and an alumnus of CCCU. Organisers and participants were thrilled to have Richard involved, as he brought with him a wealth of experience, including producing a BAFTA award-winning short film and numerous television advertisements.

The competition offered prizes for the top three scripts. Winners received personalised feedback from Richard, providing insights for expanding their ideas and suggesting improvements. The overall winner was awarded a £100 Amazon gift voucher and three one-on-one mentoring sessions with Richard to delve deeper into their winning script or any other creative projects.

Judging criteria included the quality of dialogue, originality of the story, strength of characters, attention to detail, and overall entertainment value. Second year BA Creative and Professional Writing student, Timia Belewu, was delighted to win the competition for her short film script which centred around the pointless conversations people have on dating apps!

Hear from Timia and Richard at the awards ceremony.

This competition was an opportunity to test storytelling skills and present an interpretation of “A Day in the Life” in a genre of the student’s choice. For more details on the competition and updates on future events, visit the official webpage.

For information on the winner’s course visit the BA Creative and Professional Writing webpage.