THE NEXT generation of creative movie talent descended upon Bournemouth this week for the UK’s first student visual effects and animation competition.

The prestigious BFX contest will see 10 teams battle it out over the next six weeks to create a slick animated or visual effects sequence of a professional standard. Hosted by Bournemouth University and the Arts University Bournemouth, the organisers hope the competition will transform the town into the world’s leading talent hub for visual effects.

The 54 finalists will be competing for highly sought-after internships at leading British studios including Framestore, Double-Negative, The Mill, MPC, and Cinesite.

Entries will be judged by a panel of academics and industry professionals and winners will be announced at the BFX Festival on September 25 to 29.

Festival director Sofronis Efstathiou said: “We hope this project will make Bournemouth a centre of excellence for animation and a digital and creative hub. We have the facilities, staff and contacts here to really make this a reality.”

All 54 students will be given the opportunity to showcase their skills to some of the best supervisors, producers and artists in the visual effects and animation industry.

Two ex-Bournemouth University students who worked on the Harry Potter films and Skyfall for Moving Picture Company (MPC) returned to act as mentors for the competition.

Richard Clegg, head of Lookdev MPC, said: “We offer internships to some of the winners, so people’s careers are dangling at the end of this competition.”

More than 100 students applied for a coveted spot in the six-week battle, hosted by the National Centre for Computer Animation (NCCA).

Two Bournemouth University teams reached the final 10 – CG Cyber Monks and Team Maos.

The video pitches for all the teams can be accessed at the BFX festival website: www.bfxfestival.com