A night on the red carpet for the stars from Ysgol y Gwernant

Pupils from Ysgol y Gwernant, Llangollen, and their families were given the red-carpet treatment recently as a special film made by and starring the Year 6 class from the school was premiered at Llangollen Town Hall.

The film, entitled ‘A Time Travel Adventure: Discovering Castell Dinas Brân’s Camera Obscura, 1869 – 1910’, is the result of a project the pupils have undertaken with the Our Picturesque Landscape project, a Landscape Partnership Scheme funded by the National Lottery Heritage Trust.  

Over the last few months, the Year 6 class have worked alongside filmmaker Rob Spaull to research, write, produce and star in the short film, which takes viewers on a journey into the past to discover the amazing history of Castell Dinas Brân in the late 19th century, in particular the Camera Obscura which stood on the peak of the hill overlooking the stunning views below, and was a major attraction for tourists visiting the Dee Valley in search of the sublime.

The film premiered to an audience of over 100 people, and the children enjoyed a red-carpet entrance, photo booth and popcorn, before seeing their creation on the big screen.

The event also saw the launch of ‘An Animated History of the Dee Valley’, a virtual flythrough of the Dee Valley past and present, which allows viewers to experience the sights and sounds of the landscape through the ages.

Both films can now be viewed on their website.

Councillor Win Mullen-James, Lead Member for Local Development and Planning said: “This project really shows what a talented group of young people Llangollen has, and I’m sure this is an experience that the children will remember and value for a very long time."

Hannah Marubbi, Project Manager for Our Picturesque Landscape: “It was such a pleasure to work with the children of Ysgol y Gwernant in creating this amazing film, and wonderful to see their delight at having it premiered in front of their friends, family and the wider Llangollen community.  We were also thrilled to be able to share the digital animation created by DextraVisual, which looked truly impressive on the big screen. We are very grateful to the National Lottery Heritage Fund for enabling us to deliver these experiences that explore our rich local heritage.”