Last year's photography winner snapped this photo of a snow leopard cub. Image courtesy of Michelle Branson.

From monkeys to exotic birds, students showcase stunning variety of wildlife at Wild Film Festival in Falmouth

Budding wildlife film-makers, presenters and photographers will display their work at a national festival, organised by students at the University of Exeter.

The Wild Film Fest is open to university students from across the UK and provides an opportunity for them to demonstrate their passion for capturing the natural world on camera.

Even photographs snapped on smart phones can be entered, for those who do not have top-of-the range cameras.

Photos and films of exotic wildlife from across the world will be displayed at the event, including cheetahs, green turtles and spider monkeys. But creatures a little closer to home haven’t been forgotten with mallard ducks, hermit crabs and ladybirds also featuring in the limelight.

Last year winners included University of Exeter BSc Zoology student, Will Nicholls and former student Lizzie Daly. They won the ‘Adventure’ category of the film competition with their incredible footage of red deer in the rutting season.

The pair travelled from Falmouth to New Forest National Park to capture the spectacular footage of the elaborate mating displays of red deer.

Michelle Branson, also a Zoology student at the University of Exeter, won the photography competition having taken a beautiful photograph of a snow leopard cub. 

Celine Gamble, Wild Film Fest Coordinator and MSc Conservation and Biodiversity student said: “We’re particularly excited as this year we’ve received more media submissions than ever before – over 200 photos and 34 films! And we cannot wait to showcase the shortlisted candidates, along with our inspiring line-up of speakers.”

The annual festival, now in its third year, is open to the public and will take place on Saturday 4 March at The Poly in Falmouth and consists of two competitions: wildlife film and photography.

The free event will also host a series of seminars, screenings of shortlisted films and an open gallery of the top photography entries. The evening will conclude with an awards ceremony where the winners will be presented with a trophy and prizes.

Professor Brendan Godley, Director of the Centre for Ecology and Conservation said: “Packed full of guest speakers and exhibits, Wild Film Fest provides a fantastic opportunity to celebrate the stunning wildlife documentaries and photography produced by talented students locally and across the UK.

“For the last 2 years this event has been a profound success – I urge anyone interested in wildlife, nature and science communication to come along. I myself am inspired by what our students do and you will be too!”

Aside from the Adventure category of the film competition, entrants will be also be able to showcase films relating to Ecology, Conservation, or Research. The winners are expected to show strong narratives relating to one of these subjects linked with interesting visuals, cinematographic brilliance as well as innovation in filmmaking.

The photography competition is split into four categories: Habitat, Animal Behaviour, Abstract and Smartphone. The winners will need to demonstrate an eye for strong compositions, interesting subject matter and inevitably good luck.

For more information and to view the winning entries of previous years, visit the Wild Film Fest website. To book tickets, visit The Poly website.

Date: 24 February 2017