The Manchester College students' poster designs among winners of Coronation Generation Challenge

Artwork by students from The Manchester College has been selected as winners of a national challenge to create digital posters to celebrate the Coronation of King Charles III.

The Coronation Generation Poster Design Challenge, funded by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), and organised by educational charity, Ideas Foundation, was aimed at getting young people creatively involved in celebrations for the Coronation.

The challenge encouraged young people aged 8-18 to design a digital poster to reflect four themes - youth, diversity, sustainability, and community - as the nation looked forward to the special event.

Students from the College’s Industry Excellence Academy for Creative & Digital Media took part in a photography and design workshop organised by the Ideas Foundation in April, from which three poster designs were selected by the judges across all entries to be displayed on digital billboards on sites across the UK including Manchester, Liverpool, Ealing, and Glasgow, donated by Clear Channel UK.

Yeng Roberts, course leader in Content Creation, Digital Film and Broadcast, said “Our students had an amazing day producing pieces that truly communicated the themes of the Coronation Generation Challenge.

Projects like this offer our students the chance to work with leading industry experts and the experience has given them ideas to support their final major project and future productions.

The workshop saw the students working alongside professional photographers and creatives including Nigel Stafford from Clear Channel, Canon Ambassador - Clive Booth, creative and design lead, Hannah Wood from Wood & Co and co-founder of Ideas Foundation Robin Wight, to develop and hone their skills and build confidence. 

Paris Bate, a Level 3 Content Creation and Digital Film student, said: “I loved participating in the bootcamp and the Challenge it gave me the confidence to come up with ideas and develop them in a short amount of time.  I enjoyed working with Clive, Hannah and the rest of the Ideas Foundation mentors to produce the outcome we did, getting involved when I’m not confident in front of a camera allowed us to bring the idea to life.”

Level 3 Film, TV and Broadcast student Hannah Hawkins added:

I found the Canon bootcamp extremely fun. I learned about how to use light more effectively and enjoyed using the camera to channel my creativity.

"I am now formulating ideas to better story tell, whilst thinking of alternative perspectives which is something I took away from the workshop.”

Katy Rushton, course leader for Animation, said: “Our College has a long-standing partnership with the Ideas Foundation and by working together we’re able to unlock doors and provide opportunities for our students to build the skills, confidence and professional network they need to enjoy successful careers in the sector.”