Outstanding success for student filmmakers

Students from the University of the West of England (UWE Bristol) have been crowned the overall winners of the Kodak/Nahemi Student Commercial Awards.

Held in London in front of an audience of 180 student filmmakers, film teachers, and advertising industry professionals, the third-year students came away with an unprecedented eight awards in total.

The students had to devise and make a 30 second commercial using one ten-minute roll of 16mm film provided free-of-charge by Kodak. They were given live briefs by three advertising agencies, for McVities and Just Eat, and the charities Ovarian Cancer Action and Action on Salt.

Awarded Best Overall Commercial was ‘Sentenced by Salt’ by UWE Bristol students Joey Hemming, Fay Rippon, Eliza Riley, Julia Wojcik and team, created for the charity Action on Salt, which campaigns to reduce the amount of salt in processed foods. The judges described the commercial as: “A compelling concept that dramatized and exaggerated the story in a truly fun way, tied together tightly by a great endline. It goes to show, that a simple idea done well really does stand out.”

64 entries from 17 film schools were screened during the awards ceremony, before the winners across all categories were announced.

UWE Bristol’s results:

Overall winners

First: Joey Hemming, Fay Rippon, Eliza Riley, Julia Wojcik & Team with ‘Sentenced by Salt’.

Second: Eliza Riley, Charlotte Aldred, Tristan Sherfield & Team with ‘The Vow of Silence’.

Ovarian Cancer Action brief

First: Olive Ramage, Charlotte Anderson, Freya Wellaway & Team with ‘Don’t Ignore the Signs’.

Second: Katie Brown, Alice Paget, Will Emmett & Team with ‘Saved by the Bell’.

Just Eat brief

First: Eliza Riley, Charlotte Aldred, Tristan Sherfield & Team with ‘The Vow of Silence’.

Action on Salt brief

First: Joey Hemming, Fay Rippon, Eliza Riley, Julia Wojcik & Team with ‘Sentenced by Salt’.

Third: Richard Lloyd, Caleb Etheridge, Alex Stevenson & Team with ‘Shellshocked’.

Craft Award

Best Cinematography - Julia Wojcik for ‘Sentenced by Salt’.

The competition has been running for more than 40 years and is organised by Peter Hort from the University of Westminster and David Heinemann from the University of Middlesex, with financial support from Kodak, Nahemi and the University of Westminster.

The competition was judged by a panel of representatives from the agencies that supplied the briefs, together with Sam Clark, Kodak’s Director of Sales, Motion Picture and Entertainment for Europe, and the chair of Nahemi.

Kodak film was used to shoot four out of five BAFTA nominations for Best Film in 2024, and 19 of the 32 films nominated for Oscars.

John Podpadec, senior lecturer in filmmaking, said: “The Nahemi-Kodak Commercials Competition is not only a chance for our students to professionally respond to commercially set briefs but also to work on 16mm film. The continued relevance of film within teaching cannot be underestimated as using the medium demands rigour and attention to detail. The reward is moving image of unparalleled beauty. 

“16mm film is enjoying a renaissance with 26 nominated films at this year’s Cannes Festival choosing to shoot on the medium. We at UWE Bristol greatly appreciate the support that Kodak continues to give to us in higher education and the hard work of Peter Hort, David Heinemann and NAHEMI in organising the competition.”