CHESTERVILLE — Splendid (or not so splendid) isolation couldn’t stop the creative impulse on Saturday, as local wordsmiths and songwriters forged ahead with the second annual Writing in 150 competition — in virtual form.
As the authorities ratcheted up measures to combat the spread of COVID-19 in recent weeks, organizer Amanda Burger switched the event to an exclusively online affair, but still under the auspices of her charitable arts endeavour, A Bunch of People (ABOP).
The ‘150’ refers to the number of minutes that each participant had to pound out a written work — choosing from several categories, each with its own assigned theme — during this year’s competition. The competitors and judges all did their part from home, submitting and accessing the material online. To help the competitors feel connected, they were invited to stream a short message on how they were feeling about the competition via Facebook.
Murray Barkley, Tom Schoch, Suzanne Millaire, Cindy Edwards, Rachel Eves and Cory M Coons were tapped to judge the entries.
A drum roll, please, the announced winners were:
Fiction – Theme WANDER
1st Jen Pretty
2nd Lis Angus (tied)
Taylor White (tied)
3rd Paul Stockton (tied)
Sima Craig (tied)
Poetry – Theme SUPPRESSION
1st Brian Talmey
2nd Daphne Evans
3rd Joanna Ventrella
Short Play – Theme RELINQUISH
1st Sandra McNeil
2nd Guy Newsham
Song – Theme WEIGHT
1st Rick Ventrella
2nd Tony Glen
Spoken Word – Theme RENEWAL
1st Dan Riitano
2nd Amanda Million
Non-Fiction – Theme Origins
1st Jacqueline Toupin
2nd Patrick Burger
The success of this online competition has made ABOP organizers even more aware of the need for diversion during this time because “a little artistic diversion always feels good.” So they’ve launched a new event for aspiring animators; under the banner of ‘Pandemic Fun — Art For Bored People Only,’ you’re invited to make a short stop motion film. Entrants need only a computer, the free Movie Maker app (or any other video editing software) and a camera (or use the one on your phone). All movies are to be posted to Facebook and the public will choose their favourite.
Ten percent of all ABOP profits go to local charities.