Panasonic announces finalists for KWN global contest

Panasonic Corporation has announced the seven finalist schools representing six countries for the Panasonic Kid Witness News (KWN) Global Contest 2016. Grand Prix winners from the Primary and Secondary categories will be selected from among them. The KWN Global Awards Ceremony will be held in Rio de Janeiro in September during the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games to announce the Grand-Prix and each award. This is the first global awards ceremony to be held in Latin America, and with special support from the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).

The nine global judges include specialists in such fields as education and video production as well as this year's special guests from the IPC and the Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS).

KWN is a hands-on video education programme that Panasonic operates as part of its efforts to support the education of future generations and is currently being promoted in 18 countries and regions. The company provides video cameras and other equipment for video production to primary and secondary school students participating in the programme. The KWN programme is also an annual competition that honours the video works created by children. Currently, some 5,000 children and teachers around the world per year are taking part in this programme. Over the 27 years since the activity began in the USA, more than 180,000 children have participated to date.

This year's KWN Global Contest saw 371 schools from 12 countries and regions take part in the contest by submitting five-minute videos. To produce the winning videos, students choose a theme on their own and handle everything from planning and scripting to filming and editing.

In the past, the contest included two themes of "Communication" and "Environment." Starting this year, commemorating the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Panasonic expanded the contest themes by adding "Sports" to stimulate young generations to develop the values of sportsmanship.

Under the broad theme of "Communication," "Environment," or "Sports" the videos specifically focus on issues closely linked to children's lives through the eyes of children, such as the interactions with family members, global refugees, physically challenged individuals in society, sports drama, social impact of video games and environmental issues in the world.

The results of the KWN Global Contest 2016 Grand Prix and each award will be posted on the official website. The seven finalists' videos can also be viewed on this official website.