Physics comes first at Planet SciCast film awards

Physics films dominated this year’s Planet SciCast awards ceremony, scoring prizes such as the coveted ‘Best Film 2010’ at the glittering event at the Royal Institution on Friday, 16 July.

Planet SciCast, a film competition aimed at young people across the UK and Ireland, invites budding movie makers to submit their own mini films of exciting science experiments and features twelve award categories, including the IOP sponsored best physics films.

The other categories are open to entries from all of the science disciplines with special awards for the most entertaining film and best film from a science technician.

This year’s ’Best Film’ winner, Gravity, Mass and Weight – a Lego animation version of the Apollo Moon landing – was made by 18 year-old  Oliver Madgwick from St Albans, who was introduced to the competition by his school physics department.

Oliver said: “Physics interests me because it is practical and applicable to things around me. The Moon landing is a huge milestone in human history, and is an inspiring achievement. It was a major scientific leap for mankind and is a fascinating story of using science to achieve something thought impossible.

“When I made the film it was the 40th anniversary of the Moon landing, and it was great fun making a Lego parody of the famous footage and photos.”

Another physics film to attract special attention was The Leidenfrost Effect, winner of the IOP Best SciCast Physics (16+) category. The film explains the physics behind how a drop of water on a very hot plate evaporates only very slowly, but the film also captures a beautiful wave pattern in the drop of water. The team of 16 girls from St. Joseph’s College in Lucan, Ireland, came across the wave pattern accidentally during their physics class and decided to explore it further.

To watch all entries, including the winner of the Best Physics Film (primary) The Last Straw, by four 11 year-olds from St. Mary’s Primary School in Richmond, London, and the winner of the Best Physics Film (secondary) The Doppler Effect, by two 14 year-olds, go to http://www.planet-scicast.com/films.cfm

Caitlin Watson, physics in society manager at the IOP, said, “The entries to the competition this year have been outstanding and the ingenuity with which the students have approached the topics show brilliantly how creativity and imagination are vital elements of physics.”