A Mackay North State High School student who entered her animation in a statewide film competition moments before the deadline is now in the running for three awards.
Year 11 student Ezriel learned her film, Unfocused, Hocus Pocus, was a finalist for Best Film, Best Sound and Best Animation at the inaugural Essential Screen Skills Awards just one day before her 17th birthday.
“It was awesome," she said.
“The email said congratulations, I was like 'What?' I was freaking out – it was crazy."
The competition attracted more than 100 submissions, with up to five nominees selected in each category.
Ezriel said she submitted her animation moments before entries closed after her Film, Television and New Media teacher, Mr Mark Shew, encouraged her to give it a go because “you never know".
Her work has now been assessed by an animation judging panel that includes Oscar-nominated filmmaker Lachlan Pendragon and animator and designer Kate Derrick, who joined the Bluey team in its second season.
Pendragon earned his 2023 Academy Award nomination for the animated short An Ostrich Told Me the World Is Fake and I Think I Believe It.
Ezriel will travel to Brisbane with her older brother, Enzo, for the awards weekend.
As a finalist, she has been invited to an Industry Development Day at QUT's Kelvin Grove campus on Friday, November 13, where students can meet and learn from screen industry professionals.
Her animation is then scheduled to screen alongside other nominated films at Event Cinemas Uptown on Saturday morning, November 14. The awards ceremony will follow that afternoon at the same venue.
For Ezriel, the opportunity to pursue a career in animation feels surreal after years of drawing and dreaming about working in television.
Her ambition is to one day see her name in the credits of a television show.
Ezriel said she created Unfocused, Hocus Pocus using Clip Studio, drawing inspiration from Eddsworld, the YouTube animation series created by Edd Gould about the misadventures of three friends.
“I really look up to him," she said.
All of North is behind you, Ezriel — we’ll be cheering you on!