By EmmaLee Italia | Correspondent
Young adult media enthusiasts are getting the chance to let their creativity shine in competition for the annual John Cardinal Foley Award in Social Communications.
Presented by the St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, Wynnewood, Pa., the contest is open to non-professional young adults ages 18-25 and takes place throughout the month of April. Competition is based on the writing, filming, editing and production of a high-quality video, 15-90 seconds in length, whose subject is connected in some way to Pope Francis’ theme for this year’s World Day of Social Communications: “Communicating Hope and Trust in Our Time,” biblically tied to the passage, “Fear not, for I am with you” (Is 43:5).
“The young adult award seeks to recognize the creative genius of someone who works with social media, particularly in video format,” according to the news release for the competition. Submitted videos should project “the enduring values of truth, beauty and goodness in fulfillment of the Church’s mission to spread the Gospel.”
Applicants may work as a group or individually, with one person identified as the leader for group projects. Leaders must upload the video, no more than 90 seconds in length, to a Google Drive account and share the file with the John Cardinal Foley chairman, Father Thomas F. Dailey, at tdailey@scs.edu.
Following review, videos will be uploaded to the seminary’s YouTube and/or Vimeo channels. The competition winner will be the video receiving the highest number of “likes,” not merely “views,” after posting; the contest for “likes” ends at 12 a.m. April 30. Award winners will be notified May 1.
Award winners will be recognized during the John Cardinal Foley Symposium May 24, beginning at 3 p.m. with a public forum, 5 p.m. Vigil Mass celebrating the Solemnity of the Ascension, and banquet at 6:30 p.m. Winners will receive a free table at the banquet, during which the video will be shown; an honorarium of $500; recognition of institutional support for the project and a commemorative plaque.
For more information, visit https://vimeo.com/198348230 or email tdailey@scs.edu.