LOCAL Youth Groups are looking for support from the people of Donegal following their entry into the Irish Cancer Society’s X-HALE Youth Awards.
Letterkenny-based Involve (Travteen Youth Service) and youth group Daybreak, Killybegs Youth Project and Drop-In Centre, Carndonagh Foroige Club, have all entered their film projects into the Awards and will rely on public support via online voting to win one of the top awards.
The X-HALE Youth Awards will take place on Thursday, July 2 in the Lighthouse Cinema, Smithfield in Dublin. Over 41 youth groups from around the country will attend the Awards to see their entry showcased on the big screen.
X-HALE is an initiative of the Irish Cancer Society which engages young people to address the issue of smoking in their own communities and encourage their peers not to start smoking.
Killybegs Youth Project & Drop-In Centre have entered a film called ‘Frank and Sons’ alongside Carndonagh Foroige Club’s film Be Smart Don’t Start. In the Junior Category, Involve Letterkenny (Travteen Youth Service) have entered the film ‘Don’t Smoke’ and youth group Daybreak from Letterkenny have entered a film called ‘Don’t Cave, Dave’.
The youth groups involved are calling on the public to support their film entry as they compete for the Online Award which is decided by public vote.
The groups will also compete under various other categories with winners selected by an independent judging panel comprising of people from the entertainment, film and healthcare industries. The X-HALE Youth Awards is the culmination of months of hard work by the youth groups in creating their films from scratch.
Marie-Louise Neary, Cancer Prevention Officer at the Irish Cancer Society said: “The film entries from Donegal are very strong and effectively convey some really important messages around the issue of smoking.
“The youth groups have developed these films themselves – from filming, editing and producing to scriptwriting and acting, they have delivered impressive results in the form of film projects which will be showcased at the X-HALE Youth Awards in a few weeks.
“They have raised some tough questions of the tobacco industry and have sent a clear signal to them that their generation will be smoke-free. We would like to wish all the youth groups involved the best of luck ahead of the national event in July.”
If you want to see your local group win an award then offer them support by voting for their entry online.
The 2015 X-HALE Youth Award entries are now up on the Irish Cancer Society’s website at www.cancer.ie/xhale2015 and can be viewed and voted on from the 9th of June until the 26th of June.
The entry with the most ‘views’ online will win the Online Award as well as €200 worth of digital equipment for their youth centre.
Follow the X-HALE conversation on Twitter using the #thexgeneration or go to the Facebook Page www.facebook.com/xhale . For further information on the X-HALE Youth Awards, visit www.cancer.ie/xhale2015.
Receive quality journalism wherever you are, on any device. Keep up to date from the comfort of your own home with a digital subscription.
Any time | Any place | Anywhere
SUBSCRIBE TO CURRENT EDITION TODAY
and get access to our archive editions dating back to 2007(CLICK ON THE TITLE BELOW TO SUBSCRIBE)