An Arbroath primary school’s short film about two pupils meeting an alien on another planet has been nominated for a national award.
Tim and Sky’s Adventure was made by the primary seven pupils at Timmergreens under the guidance of professional animator Andrew Low as part of a British Film Institute funded initiative.
In the two minute stop motion film two pupils accidentally launch their school’s experimental space rocket and find themselves on a mysterious planet.
After receiving the Into Film nomination, nine of the pupils involved will walk the red carpet at the famous Odeon Leicester Square on March 14 for the award ceremony which will be hosted by Fife DJ Edith Bowman.
Depute head teacher Jill Cassidy, said: “The children have been studying space as part of their science curriculum work and it was made at the time Tim Peake was in space and that’s why one of the pupils is called Tim.
“They go into space and they meet an alien who looks frightening but is actually friendly. The film’s message is not to judge people on how they look.
“It’s so exciting to learn about the nomination. When the children realised there was a chance to go to London we got some help from local organisations and we’ll be taking nine children to the awards.”
In the colourful film the school’s spaceship is able to launch by mixing sweets and cola.
It accidentally blasts off after a misplaced kick of a football activates the lever which releases the cola into the engine.
It crashes on a distant planet, damaging the hold which contains the sweets. A scary looking alien appears, but all he is interested in is eating the sweets.
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Teacher Lauren Baird added: “The children worked in teams to plan and create the plot, setting, characters, scenery and the script.
“They thoroughly enjoyed using a range of technology to create their animation and were thrilled to see it all come together as a film. They should be very proud of their achievement”
The awards will be judged by a panel of industry leaders including Oscar winning visual effects supervisor Sara Bennett and Episodes actor Stephen Mangan.
Young filmmakers were encouraged to make short films inspired by Tim Peake who watched last year’s entries while on board the International Space Station.
CEO of Into Film Paul Reeve said: “Each year we are very excited to come together at the Into Film Awards to celebrate young people’s achievements in filmmaking and reviewing, and their passion for film.
“It’s always inspiring to receive their entries, which reveal an incredible array of skills, creativity and imagination.
“Children and young people have wonderful and important stories to tell in film, which reflect the way they see the world and enable the audience to look through their eyes.”
