Roosevelt senior Roberto Angel hopes that we will see his films on the big screen one day, and "hopefully it'll be more than 27 seconds." Above, a scene from his public service announcement "Don't Smoke."
Future filmmakers
Hawaii's teens had their version of the Academy Awards on Thursday at Consolidated Ward 16 Theatres. The first Teen Video Awards brought students from Oahu, Maui, Kauai, Molokai and Hawaii together to view the 131 public service announcements entered into the contest. For some it was their first time walking down the red carpet.
Hana High School students Brandi DeMello and Mahina Morondos were so excited they had their friend Poni Messenger take their picture on the red carpet before joining the festivities, which included a buffet of pizza (the first thing to run out), noodles, chicken and other munchies; the showing of the PSAs, complete with a soft drink and popcorn; and a performance by the Hyper Squad Dance Company.
Roosevelt senior Roberto Angel, Best of Show award winner, was not on hand to accept his prize (he had a family emergency), but his video production teacher, Steven Mun-Takata, was there. "(He's) really, really creative (and a) good scriptwriter," Mun-Takata said about Angel.
It took Angel about two weeks to make the costumes for his video, "Don't Smoke," and another four days to film and edit it. He also wrote the script. "He did everything," Mun-Takata said.
Kauai's Kamakahelei Middle School took three honorable mentions at Thursday's ceremony. Accepting awards were Amber Bail, left, Tessie Lumabao and teacher Kevin Matsunaga.
Hoping to gain enough knowledge to be like his favorite director, Quentin Tarantino, Angel plans to attend Leeward Community College and then go to a mainland college that has a good film school.
"I couldn't be more proud of the work done by the students and their schools from all across the state," said Kendyl Ko, education specialist for the Department of Education's Safe and Drug-Free Schools Program.
The contest was created by HMSA, the Hawaii Department of Education, Sassy/G Magazine and Mothers Against Drunk Driving to help address the problem of drugs, underage drinking and smoking among Hawaii's youth.
The top winners received a digital camcorder and a tripod for their school, while the Best of Show winner also received a $1,000 voucher for video editing software provided by the DOE.
Each PSA was 27 seconds, with an added three seconds to display the credits. The top four PSAs will be aired on local TV stations this through June.
Next week, the top four PSAs can also be seen on HMSA's Web site, www.hmsa.com.
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Saint Louis School won the Best Anti-Drug PSA award.
Winners of the Teen Video Award
» Best of Show: "Don't Smoke," by Roberto Angel (Steven Mun-Takata); Roosevelt High School» Best Anti-Drug: "No Means No in Any Language," by Jhony Guzman Jr., Steven Yun, Nainoa Campbell, Isaiah Dela Pena, Camille Makita-Simon, Fale Laeli and Keao Monteilh (Gordon Horiuchi); Saint Louis School
» Best Anti-Underage Drinking: "Photo Album," by John Munoz, Sonny Dudoit and Nick Smith (Candy Suiso); Waianae High School
» Best Anti-Smoking: "Cigarettes Burn Your Life Away," by Michael Blickos, Jani Mishima, Nina Hung, Karmen Ferreira and Tyrus Lum (Charleen Ego); Kawananakoa Middle School
Others honored:
» Most Comical: "The Effects of Drugs," by Tori Kagawa and Teddy Escobar (Joyce Evens); Waimea High School, Kauai» Most Dramatic: "Children of a Drug User," by Tessie Lumabao (Kevin Matsunaga); Kamakahelei Middle School, Kauai
» Most Impactful: "Alcohol Effects," by Amber Wilkinson (Wayne Guevara); Radford High School
» Best Computer Graphics/Animation: "Fishing Life," by Andrew Kerekes (Shelly Bishop); Mililani High School
» Best Neighbor Island PSA (also winner of the Best Middle School PSA): "Choices," by Amber Bail (Kevin Matsunaga); Kamakahelei Middle School, Kauai
» Best Middle School PSA (second place): "Just Quit," by James Pirtle, Ariel Rivera, Gianina Revilla and Rikki Rutt (Dwayne Abuel); Highlands Intermediate School
Note: Teachers are listed in parentheses.
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