School pupils warn of smoking dangers in film

School pupils from across South Yorkshire are warning of the dangers of smoking after forming a new campaign group.

Youthlight’s first project is challenging young people to create a short film encouraging smokers to quit or prevent teenagers from taking up the habit for a county-wide competition.

Students from Yewlands Academy in Parson Cross have already been out filming.

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Head boy Alex Sisman said: “The short video competition is a great initiative to help launch Youthlight and I hope it will attract more members to join our group.”

Colin Pons, course leader in film-making at Sheffield Hallam University and a film producer, will judge the contest.

He said: “Young people are among the best story tellers, particularly when it comes to creating online video content. I am really looking forward seeing the entries. “People are being asked to tackle a tough subject so it’s going to be a real challenge to create a compelling video that gets the message across. As part of the judging process, I will be looking for creativity, content and quality of delivery. The winning video will also need to be engaging enough for people to want to share on social media.”

Youthlight is supported by South Yorkshire Tobacco Control Collaborative, a combined initiative between Rotherham, Sheffield and Doncaster councils, to help reduce the number of smokers in the region.

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Coun Jackie Drayton, Sheffield Council’s cabinet member for children, said:“I would encourage young people to enter this competition and look forward to watching their videos.”

The 15 second clips should be uploaded to www.youthlight.co.uk by midnight on March 31.