After another big year for entries, the winners of this year's Young Creative Awards have been announced today...
The Young Creative Awards, the competition that showcases the very best of Nottingham's young talent, announced it's list of 2021 winners today. Now in it's twelfth year, the awards drew just under 600 entries from all over Nottingham, entering in eleven different categories: Animation & Digital Media, Creative Writing, Dance, Design & Architecture, Fashion & Textiles, Film, Graphic Design, Music, Photography, Theatre and Visual Arts.
The annual Young Creative Awards always gives a vibrant snapshot of the issues and themes occupying the minds of Nottingham’s young creatives, and this year has been no different. Entrants used their creativity to address important issues including racism, gender stereotypes, mental health, homelessness, female body image and, of course, the ongoing impact of COVID.
13 year-old Daisy Bartram, from Nuthall, was a winner in the Photography category, commended by judges for her striking images capturing the loneliness of lockdown.
15 year-old Phoebe Anderson, from Gedling, wrote and performed a powerful monologue reflecting on the suicide of a friend – a piece of writing that the Theatre category judges, who named Phoebe a winner, described as “raw, bold, and brave.”
In the Visual Arts category, Nottingham College student Bekithemba Ncube (18) won for his emotive series of collages, inspired by Black Lives Matter protests in 2020. The judges agreed Bekithemba’s entry was “dynamic, responsive, and important – a great example of what contemporary art does.”
Nottingham Trent University student Tom Hennegan (21) was judged to be a winner in the Film category for his short, thoughtful documentary about Nottingham-born Richard, who has been homeless for over four years.
There was plenty of humour too. 22 year-old Alfie Eyden, from Ruddington, was a winner in the Animation & Digital Media category with his bright and entertaining animation for children which asks the question “What If Humans Had Tails Like A Monkey?”. And 18 year-old Emily Clarkin, who studies at Confetti, won a Creative Writing award for a memorable absurdist script which imagines - with dark humour - a mother and daughter being confronted by a mysterious body part in their kitchen…
The Young Creative Awards is run by registered charity Young Creatives Nottingham. Andrew Tucker – himself a 2019 Creative Writing winner – is now a Trustee of the charity and was one of the judges of this year’s Creative Writing category. Andrew said, “When I entered, the YCAs had become a focal point in the city’s creative calendar, with a full-hearted mission to bring new talent to light. Getting the recognition - that someone doesn’t think you’re wasting your time - is a crucial piece of scaffolding when you’re trying to keep at a rickety creative hobby, and even turn it into an eventual profession. I maintain that it’s a brilliant way for Nottingham’s young people to grow into their talents and to secure contacts that’ll prove valuable. For those who want to launch a creative career, it’s an opportunity that must be snatched.”
With previous winners including singer-songwriter Rob Green, poet and performer Bridie Squires, dancer Jamal Sterrett Phoenix and make-up artist and Instagram sensation Romanie-Jade Tulloch, this year's crop if successful YCA entries - who are all aged between 11-24 and live, work or study in Nottingham - are joining a strong list of creative talent.
Young Creative Awards 2021 Winners - Full List
Animation & Digital Media
11-15 Jackson Young (age 12) – Rushcliffe School
16-18 Ellie Edwards (age 18) – Bilborough College
19-24 Alfie Eyden (age 22)
Creative Writing
11-15 Aine Mullan (age 12) – The Becket School
16-18 Emily Clarkin (age 18) – Confetti Institute of Creative Technologies
19-24 Sophie Carroll (age 23)
Dance
11-15 Sofia Costello (age 15) – Christ The King Catholic Voluntary Academy
16-18 Maisie Gregory (age 18)
19-24 Rachel Burbridge (age 24)
Design & Architecture
16-18 Leanne Platt (age 18) – Nottingham College
19-24 Simon Adams (age 21) – University of Nottingham
Fashion & Textiles
16-18 Weronika Szymczak (age 17) – Nottingham College
19-24 Sophie Smith (age 24) – Nottingham Trent University
Film
11-15 Zeeshan Majid (age 14) – Carlton Academy
16-18 Molly Carter (age 17) – Bilborough College
19-24 Tom Hennegan (age 21) – Nottingham Trent University
Graphic Design
11-15 Ena Williams (age 14) – The Becket School
16-18 Sara Mahmood (age 17) – Arnold Hill Academy
19-24 Phoebe Andrews (age 21) – Nottingham Trent University
Music
11-15 Oscar Marshall (age 15) – Nottingham High School
16-18 Samantha Atkinson (age 18)
19-24 Jonathan Ewers (age 23)
Photography
11-15 Daisy Bartram (age 13) – The Kimberley School
16-18 Rosie Baird (age 18) – Nottingham Trent University
19-24 Fioralmpa Banousi (age 22) – Nottingham Trent University
Theatre
11-15 Phoebe Anderson (age 15) – Carlton Le Willows Academy
16-18 Tawana Tongoona (age 17) – Nottingham College
19-24 Emma Gray (age 24)
Visual Arts
11-15 Holly Smart (age 15) – Arnold Hill Academy
16-18 Bekithemba Ncube (age 18) – Nottingham College
19-24 Yasmeen Thantrey (age 24)
We have a favour to ask
LeftLion is Nottingham’s meeting point for information about what’s going on in our city, from the established organisations to the grassroots. We want to keep what we do free to all to access, but increasingly we are relying on revenue from our readers to continue. Can you spare a few quid each month to support us?
