A Tseshaht woman has taken the top prize in a video contest run by the interim First Nations Health Council called “Safer Nations – Injury Prevention.”
Michelle Colyn, 22, daughter of Boyd and Valerie Gallic, won $5,000 for her video entitled “Stolen Moments.” Michelle’s husband Aaron Colyn helped film the video, and father-in-law John Colyn wrote the music.
The video is a two-and-a-half minute public service announcement that warns of the dangers of texting and not wearing a seatbelt while driving.
In the film, Michelle plays a young woman called Amy who has a bright future, or would have if it weren’t for a poor decision one day.
We see Amy celebrate milestones in her life—a birthday, an engagement, a wedding, a baby—and then in a flash all this possibility is rolled back to the moment when she chooses to drive while texting.
This is the first video contest that Michelle has entered. It all started with an email from her mom about the call for submissions. Aaron and Michelle belong to a film group in Nanaimo for people interested in movie making, so they weren’t without knowledge and skill.
When Michelle received the entry form in January, her first thought on the safety theme was that her film should deal with texting and driving, because it is a dangerous preoccupation that she believes people can relate to. She also had in her mind the idea of the rewind technique that she wanted to appear in the film.
“I liked watching her life go backward,” said Michelle. She said it reinforces the idea that this good life could be quickly taken away.
The goal of her PSA was to make a video that was relevant, effective and that would make an impact.
Submissions closed on April 27, and it was about two weeks later that she learned that she was a finalist. That meant a free trip to Vancouver where her film and those of the other finalists would be shown at the Gathering Wisdom health forum held May 15 to 17.
Dr. Evan Adams, the deputy provincial health officer of British Columbia, emceed the video screenings and was part of a panel of judges that reviewed the submissions. The other panelists were Laura Jameson, health director of Skwlax Wellness Centre, and Dr. Perry Kendall, the provincial health officer.
Michelle said she was very pleasantly surprised at being the first place prize winner. She said there were some very good videos presented.
There were six videos that made it to the finals. Second place and $2,500 went to Trevor Mack for a video called “Safety is a Universal Language.” It showed the many Indigenous words for “be careful” and the things that we do to keep ourselves safe.
The third prize of $1,000 was won by Candace Curr for “Safe Body Honoured Spirit,” which focused on the dangerous situations that we put ourselves in, like riding a bike without a helmet, or taking a spin in a watercraft without a lifejacket.
Honorable mention went to “Masked Driver” by Dionne Jackson, in which a supernatural being appears in the passenger seat and gives the driver a scolding about his bad driving habits.
An audience award was given to the video “Ride On Be Safe,” which came from the Seabird Island Community School of the Sto: lo Nation with students representing “excellent bike safety.”
To see the videos, visit the interim First Nations Health Council at http://www.fnhc.ca
Friends and family have been excited and happy for Michelle’s achievement. They want to see more of her creative film work, but that will have to wait because Michelle is currently focusing on her summer internship with Uu-a-thluk Fisheries at the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council.
Michelle is the capacity building intern and is currently helping to coordinate six five-day summer science camps in association with the Science Venture program at the University of British Columbia. There will be two camps in Port Alberni, and one each in Toquaht, Tsaxana, Nitinaht Lake and Zeballos during the months of July and August.
As for Michelle’s prize money, well, that’s already been spent, she laughed. Her little car had been set to retire and the cash prize hastened that event. She’s now commuting to her internship in a new Fiat.
