Annual Digital Knight coming May 7
The best work from North Fort Myers High School students in technology and design will be on display when Digital Knight returns to the school’s media center on Thursday, May 7, at 6 p.m.
Digital Knight is a technology and design competition where students submit their best work in hopes of winning prizes, internships and even scholarships, with the best of the best being displayed during the event in an art gallery type format where people can come in and admire their work.
Jennifer Curls, arts and media coordinator, said this year’s competition promises to be the biggest and best Digital Knight yet.
“The talent has definitely escalated in the years past, and they now know about this competition. We have eighth-graders tell us they’re excited about Digital Knight and can’t wait to compete,” Curls said.
Judges included professional photographers, video producers and faculty from Full Sail University, whereas in the past they were teachers and friends who had some knowledge, but weren’t professionals.
“The judges were quite impressed we were doing this at a high school level and by the number of quality submissions,” Curls said.
Among the categories the students competed in were graphic design, photography, website, games, music video, 3D animation and model and commercials.
There will also be an award for the highest Microsoft score among the freshmen. Curls said the freshmen have been kept out of the mix because the classes the contestants take are for upperclassmen.
Also, there will be a senior scholarship winner, where the student with the best senior project will get a $400 scholarship sponsored by the North Fort Myers Rotary Club.
First-prize winners will receive a Go-Pro camera. Second-place wins a Wacom drawing tablet, and third-place winners get a $25 gift card to AMC Theatres. Everybody gets a Digital Knight T-shirt, cap and pen with a USB port in it.
Victory Layne Chevrolet is the main sponsor for the event and supplied the funds for the prizes.
Submissions for this year’s event were more than double from last year, with 423. There were more than 100 each for 3-D models and photos alone.
“It’s to the point where so many kids are entering that we’re going to have to limit the submissions, to make things more competitive going in,” Curls said.
To see some of the submissions for this year’s competition, go to the school’s website at www.nfmredknights.com