Two of the nation’s most talented aspiring film makers arrived back in the UAE recently after a week long trip to Japan celebrating their winning entry in the UAE edition of Panasonic’s Kid Witness News (KWN) competition.
Al Manar Girls School in Sharjah, won the nation wide KWN competition for their piece ‘Self communication’ and was represented by their students Amna Alzarouni and Amna Hammadi in Japan.
20 schools from across the UAE participated in this year’s competition, which saw each team enter an up to five-minute video focusing on either "Ecology" or "Communication”.
“Through the video we wanted to highlight the important role of the mother in our culture. The video examines the ways in which self-talk, or inner-speech, can help us. Individuals can tap into the power of their own self-talk by recognizing it for what it is thus reducing negativity,” Amna Alzarouni explained the reason for making the video.
“The trip to Japan was a great experience. We had the opportunity to learn a lot about the Japanese culture and share our culture with the students in Japan. We have made some new friends and are keen to keep in touch with them via email,” Amna Hammadi said when asked about their experience in Japan.
KWN is a hands-on video education program supported by Panasonic, who lends video cameras and other equipment to primary and middle schools for video productions.
The girls were accompanied by their teacher Wafa Almazam and Ministry of Education representative Saleh Alhammadi, who described the trip to Japan as both educational and fun.
“It was an amazing opportunity for these two girls who have been fortunate enough, thanks to their own skills and Panasonic’s generosity, to experience a new and foreign culture first hand,” he said.
Ms. Taeko Danno, Deputy General Manager, Panasonic Marketing Middle East said that Panasonic had been sending the UAE’s KWN winning teams to Japan every year since it joined the Global competition.
“KWN is a great opportunity for these kids to get out there and put their creativity into a real world scenario,” he said. “KWN gives students a way to make their voices heard on issues of concern and share their hopes for tomorrow. All of us at Panasonic are extremely proud of this program and take heart knowing that KWN can make a difference in a child’s life.”
The KWN program first started in the United States in 1989 and has quickly developed into a global program. Now 626 schools in 24 countries and region take part in the program with over 10,000 children around the world participating every year.
Best known for its Panasonic brand name, Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. is a worldwide leader in the development and manufacture of electronic products for a wide range of consumer, business, and industrial needs. Based in Osaka, Japan, the company recorded consolidated net sales of 9.07 trillion yen (US$90.52 billion) for the year ended March 31, 2008. The company's shares are listed on the Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya and New York (NYSE:MC) stock exchanges. For more information on the company and the Panasonic brand, visit the company's website at http://panasonic.net. Panasonic Gulf FZE (PGF) is MEI’s first subsidiary company in the Middle East, followed by Panasonic Marketing Middle East FZE (PMM), which is the regional marketing headquarters of MEI for operations in the Middle East and African countries.
