Triangle to screen Media Peace Award finalists

Media Peace Award finalists to screen on Triangle Television

Triangle Television will screen five of the entries in this year's Media Peace Awards between November 8 and 14. All are finalists and their themes include the Vietnam War, family life, the story of MP Georgina Beyer, a profile of a Maori woman working with young people and epilepsy.

The Media Peace Awards, organised by The Peace Foundation, are in their 19th year and are categorised into television and film, radio, print, internet and public relations. There is a special section for students within the television and film, radio and print categories.

Triangle Television chief executive officer Jim Blackman was on the judging panel this year for the television and film section for media professionals and was also overall acting-convenor for the awards. He says 116 people entered the contest. Some made multiple entries.

"They deal with a wide variety of topics and are of a very high standard. At Triangle, we are keen to give air time to some of these works, many of which will create strong community debate and have the potential to shift perceptions and opinions. These are ideal programmes for Triangle which aims to reach the wider Auckland viewing audience with programmes that often don't get air time on mainstream television."

At 8p.m. on November 8, Triangle will screen filmmaker Zoe Roland's "From Memory". It explores the consequences of the Vietnam War and was judged Best Film at the Otago Film Festival earlier this year.

"In Every End" is a documentary about a year in the life of a family. Filmmaker Hayden Campbell, a Canterbury University Fine Arts Film School student, uses real situations to promote wider understanding. It screens on Triangle at 8.30p.m. on November 8.

AUT student Kylie Dellabarker's "Oh No My Braincells are Playing Up" screens on Triangle at 8.30p.m. on November 13. It is about epilepsy.

"Nan's Story, a documentary profile by AUT student Samantha Young, is the story of Nan Haupai Tawhara whose works with many young people. The programme goes to air at 8.45p.m. on November 13. Annie Goldson's "Georgie Girl", screens at 9p.m. on November 14. It tells the story of transsexual MP Georgina Beyer and has already received international acclaim, taking the audience's first choice at the Sydney Film Festival and being the only New Zealand work selected for the Canadian Hotdocs festival. Awards organiser and Peace Foundation director Marion Hancock says: "The awards seek to recognise and encourage people to use their potential in the media to address issues in order to help to promote peace and tolerance. We rely so much on the media to tell us what's going on so we can make sense of our world." Winners will be announced at a public function being held at the Maidment Theatre on Thursday (November 14) at 7.30pm. Guest speaker is journalist, playwright and cartoonist Tom Scott and the evening will be hosted by television celebrities Carol Hirchfeld and John Campbell.

The Media Peace Awards are being run in conjunction with the Like Minds Awards, which is part of the Ministry of Health's campaign to destigmatise mental illness.

Triangle Television is Auckland's only regional, non-commercial television station and has operated as a public broadcaster to Greater Auckland since August 1 1998. The channel screens a mix of regional-access television with international news and information programmes. It is non-profit making and operates with no funding from NZ On Air. Triangle broadcasts 24 hours daily from UHF channel 41.

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