Technology students hunting rural Taranaki Moa

Our MOA Awards made it into the Hawera Star.
Technology students hunting rural Taranaki Moa

Opunake Primary School students, from left, Jaimee, 13, Lucy, 13, and Brydee, 12, are hoping their film "The Good, The Bad and the Beautiful" is good enough to win the best short movie category at the annual MOA awards. The girls filmed their movie at Stratford's Pioneer Village.

Students at four rural Taranaki schools are hoping they've caught the elusive Moa in the lead up to this year's annual awards.

Taranaki's premier technology awards for students of Matapu, Opunake, Auroa and Kaponga schools, known as the MOA Kluster, are being held on Tuesday November 10 at Opunake's Sandfords Events Centre.

Tickets have sold out to the second annual 'Moa Awards' event and Opunake School principal Lorraine Williamson said the judges would have a hard time deciding who would win each category as well as the overall supreme prize.

"I think the calibre of movies is superb, I have looked at all of the movies and I think it will go to the wire," she said.

"I think it will be a very close call for whoever judges it. I just think that the kids have really lifted the bar. I'm just so impressed by what all of the schools have done."

Auroa School principal Heath Chittenden said at least two items entered by his school had a good chance of taking out the top spot.

The winner at 2014's inaugural event was Opunake School but Chittenden hoped this year could be his year.

"We've got about 39 finalists that are here so we've got a good variety of different areas that they've been put into," he said.

"I definitely think there's been a big jump in the standards from last year to this year. Kids seem to be a lot better organised, a lot better planned out, some of the ideas are phenomenal."

Kaponga School, newer to the cluster, has entered the awards for the first time in 2015.

Principal Shane Downs said the winning entry would depend a lot on each individual judge's tastes.

"We've got some pretty cool still stuff but it depends if they are looking for the more technology intense stuff," he said.

"No one really knows as to what they are going to do. Last year the one that won it was a silent film."

Students have worked all year to prepare entry projects alongside their classroom learning.

Matapu School principal Jarad Chittenden was unavailable to comment prior to deadline but is understood to be looking forward to the event.

MOA AWARDS:

Created in 2014, the annual event, held at Sandfords Event Centre, is open to students from 5 years old to 13 years old.

Students can win awards for best student blog, best short movies, best educational movies, best music video, best animation, best Te Ao Maori, best graphic design, best original image, best book trailer and best actor/actress/narrator/performer. Categories are divided into junior, intermediate and senior levels.

Junior level is for students year 0-3, intermediate is for year levels 4-6 and senior is for those in year 7 and 8.

Educators are also in the spotlight with two awards, best teach blogs and best use of IT by a teacher, up for grabs.

Independent New Zealand and overseas judges are reviewing the work in each category and allocating the awards.

Held on Tuesday November 10 2015, starting at 7pm, the event has completely sold out.

For more information visit http://moakluster.blogspot.co.nz/p/moa-awards.html

 - Stuff