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Press release


  • 8 May 2008

A student's-eye view of world revealed at degree show


An award-winning documentary is among the wealth of talent presented in film, photography and interactive art displays at this year's University of Sussex media degree show (16-19 May 2008).

The exhibition, which opens to the public on the University's campus on Friday 16 May, is entitled Plug US In. It features 25 pieces of work produced by 42 final-year Media and Film students on the Media and Practice and Theory BA degree course.

Their work includes documentary films, photographs and interactive media installations, with one documentary work, Coed Hills, recently announced as a winner at the South Coast's End of the Pier International Film Festival.

The degree show begins with a special launch event on Thursday 15 May (4.30pm - 11pm), when staff and students will be able to enjoy a special reception, view a photography and interactive work exhibition and watch documentary screenings at 5pm and 8pm. The exhibition then opens to the public the following day.

The show, put together by the students with help from the Media faculty, provides an opportunity to showcase work produced for final-year projects. The featured exhibits include:

  • Coed Hills, a documentary film about living in a low-impact living community in the picturesque Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, which involved filmmakers Laura Bailey and Lauren Simpson joining the community for one week in December 2007. The film recently won The End of the Pier International Film Festival 'Best UK University Short Film Award'.
  • Encounters, a collection of photographs by Lorna Coward featuring commuters. The fascinating expressions of the subjects is the focus of these portraits, while the images raise questions about photographing the public;
  • Relentless Optimism, a documentary film by Emma Davies, Anna Pearce and Julie Sowa, looks at the colourful energy of the nu-rave culture through the eyes of one of its key players: singer, stylist and fashion muse Namalee Bolle;
  • Visual Play, an interactive art exhibit by Cathryn Jones, offers viewers the chance to help create art through digital technology and physical movement;
  • Is Anyone Home? by Anna Parkinson, a selection of arresting photographic images featuring items of animated clothing engaged in disturbing acts;
  • London 2012 - The Legacy Games by Ivor Davies is an observational documentary that highlights the key issues surrounding the UK hosting of the Olympics - as seen by local residents.

Tash Jones, student head of publicity for the event, says: "After all the organisation, it is wonderful to see our efforts culminate in such an impressive show. We have all spent many nights up into the early hours in the Media Practice Facility working on our projects, so it's wicked to see the result of all this work. Everything is to such an amazing standard. We had a completely open brief, so all the projects are completely different from one another and should provoke and fascinate in equal measure."

Mary Agnes Krell, Head of Practice in the Department of Media and Film, says: "Our students have produced some extraordinary projects. They have worked throughout the year with their tutors and each other to curate the show and design the space. The result of their efforts is an event that is well worth putting on anyone's calendar. I'll be excited to see the work in the context of a public showing."

Coed Hills, Anyone Home, 
 Relentless Optimism, Encounters, Visual Play

Exhibits from the MPT Degree Show at the University of Sussex

Notes for editors

  • Plug US In can be viewed in the Department of Media and Film's Media Practice Facility in the Education and Development Building (EDB) on the University of Sussex campus at Falmer, Brighton. The show opens to the public on Friday 16 May, and runs through to Tuesday 19 May (closed Sunday), from 10am to 5pm each day. Entrance is free. For a sneak preview, visit the show's web site: Plug_us_In
  • For further details about Coed Hills, see: http://www.coedhills.co.uk/

University of Sussex Press office contacts: Maggie Clune and Jacqui Bealing. Tel: 01273 678209 or email press@sussex.ac.uk

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