Edition 1

10 December 2015

NEWS

THE

BCFE Students Warned of Rent Scams in Dublin Plans to introduce a new system

of funding for further education colleges could be dangerous for BCFE, Principal Maureen Con-way has warned. With the risk of performance-linked funding and 11-month college operations, Maureen Conway has stated that it should not make a difference to how BCFE operates. Continues on

BCFE FacesPotentialFunding Cuts

Students at BCFE have been advised to ensure that their bikes are securely locked when they use the bike park outside the college. The warning follows a series of recent bike thefts where at least six bicycles had been stolen and two attempted thefts reported this term. Continues on

Bike BurglariesStrike BCFE inRecent Thefts

LIFE

by Kim OLearyNews Editor

The Union of Students in Ire-land has issued a warning for students seeking accommdation in Dublin and to be vigilant about new online scams. The warning follows a series of scams in Dublin where several students had been duped into giving cash deposits over to individuals after seeing adver-tisements for accommodation online. The scammers are believed to be targeting young college students and some students have lost their deposits. The Union of Students in Ireland (USI) has issued an official warning for

students. The president of the USI, Kevin Donoghue, spoke about the scams: Weve received a lot of reports on students who gave cash to someone adver-tising for rented apartments and flats near universities and colleges. The ads appeared online and advertised properties at great prices. One such ad was for an apartment near Trinity Col-lege at 500 per month and it appeared on several property sites, said Donoghue. But it quickly turned out to be a fake, and some college students lost their money. He described the scams as being

heartless and urged students to be mindful when online: Theres 40% less space available than this time last year. Rents have increased by 8.2% nationallyand much more in major cities. The recent scams may follow the lack of accommodation for college students in Dublin who, as a result, are desper-ate to find accommodation. Over 40% of BCFE stu-dents surveyed rent proper-ties near the college, with at least 15% of those surveyed staying with relatives through-out the school year. BCFE students have voiced their opinions on the new scams:

Its terrible. Its an awful thing to do, especially when students are desperate to find places to rent, John, who is studying Media stated. Theyre targeting the stu-dents because they know that they probably dont have much experience renting, Jessica, another BCFE student, expressed. A criminal investigation has been launched in relation to the accommodation scams and students are warned to be vigilant and to not hand over cash until landowner confirms the property is for rent.

Inside: Josh Reid gets the scoop on Childrens Week at BCFE

Inside: Shane Wheelan catches up with author and former BCFE student Frankie Gaffney

BCFE PrincipalTalks About Possible GAA Link with ITT Dublin

More on

BCFE Graduates Storm the RDS

Edition 1 | December 10

Editor Ruairi OHehir

Deputy Editor Josh Reid

News Editor Kim OLeary

Features Editor Rania Sharif Sports Editor Joe Murphy

Sub/Designer Kevin Gillespie

Marketing Jessie Ni Dhonnchu

Marketing Anthony Neville

Special ThanksWe here at The BCFE Bulletin would like to give a special thanks to all who made this years publication possible. It would not have been made possible without the help of our class tutors and coordinators, fellow BCFE students, Terry Warren for his fabulous pho-tography, and all the generous staff members of BCFE. Over the coming months, into next year, we plan to produce three newspaper editions and you can expect the release of our next edition January 21 2016.

Friends,

Life as a student may not always be so pretty, it may not always be what we expect or think we deserve. That can especially be said for BCFE, sometimes trying to find our identity is a struggle; we are caught in limbo. We are not considered an IT or Univer-sity, were merely considered a college. Underfunded, underdeveloped and under resourced, we as a col-lege stand in the dark scratching our heads searching for identity without an active student body or any societies or clubs. Though many BCFE students may be educated for just as long as any other third-level institution, we have no calls for action to brighten our college experience. No clubs, societies, sports or other kinds of social activities. Instead, the day is greywe go into college and we come home from college. We intend to be honest. Thats what we here at The BCFE Bulletin have worked tirelessly to be: honest, fair and comprehensive in bringing you the latest news, features and sport from around the college.

RUAIRIS ROARNEWS

EDITORAL STAFF

Year-two Illustration stu-dents Eve Anna Farrell, Paul Nugent, Aoife OCon-nor, Dylan Quinn and Nina Schindlinger were recently short-listed for their efforts working in collaboration with the OBrien Press. The students were presented with the opportunity to work with one of Irelands most pres-tigious publishers to produce a short alphabet book themed The ABCs of Ireland. This would be aimed at chil-dren new to reading and the ob-jective would be to produce an alphabet of letters, with a focus on Irish imagery throughout. When asked if he had felt this was restraining, first place winner Paul Nugent said: I was quite happy working within the briefs constraints. Im interest-ed in writing and illustrating for children. When asked if he had had any doubts about his ability to produce a final product for the client, Nugent commented: Its very easy to get carried away with ideas ... it was a matter of

stripping things back. Runners-up Nina Schindlinger and Aoife OConnor described the opportunity to collaborate as one which gave them extra mo-tivation. I had almost run out of steam but the competition element certainly gave me more of a push, added OConnor. When asked whether there was any co-operation involved between the students, second placer Eve Anna Farrell said: One thing I loved about Bal-lyfermot was how we never re-fused somebody a helping hand if they were stuck for an idea. Dylan Quinn, who came in third place, described the project to be very much solo work. He then added that despite this we would always help each other out whenever we could. Course co-ordinator Louise Boughton commented on the relationship developed be-tween her first-year students and OBrien Press. This was an exciting opportunity for the students to apply skills to a live brief and to receive valuable feedback from OBrien Press.

BCFE Illustration Students Reel in Series of Awards from OBrien Press Competiton

The ABCs of AIH

by Kevin Gillespie

Quality is good in the college but there is always a danger asso-ciated with performance linked funding, says BCFE principlal Maureen Conway. Meanwhile SOLAS has also warned that there is a possibility of PLC courses being run for an entire yearwith just a month off. Currently most courses last nine months in the PLC sector, but SOLAS CEO Paul OToole has previously stated that he would

like to see a similar set up as otherFET provisions where training courses are on all year. But Prin-cipal Maureen Conway believes that this would not be a suitable solution. It wouldnt be possible to run year-round courses in BCFE as most teachers contracts dont allow them to work summer months, she said. It would take a very long time to bring in, she added. However,should this model of funding

Potential SOLAS Funding Cuts Threaten BCFEby Ruairi OHehir

by Josh Reid

Primary School Children Descend Upon BCFE For Childrens Week

Smiles All Round: AIH Students Receive Awards

BCFE opens its doors to over 500 primary school children from local schools as part of a new initiative to encourage further education. The initiative known as Is Fidir Linn is the brain-child of Kathleen Noone and it was launched officially on Thurs-day November 5, just two days after the event lead-up began. Primary school students from St Gabriels Primary School, St Raphaels Primary School and Mary Queen of Angels attend-ed the three-day event along with their teachers. In addition, the social care students were also active participants during the event.

The Principal of BCFE, Maureen Conway, highlighted that the initi-ative is one way that the college is getting involved with the local community. [The college] was set up in 1979 by the people of Ballyfermot, for the people of Ballyfermot, she said in her speech.

The first school to become involved in the initiative was St Gabriels Primary School when it started three years ago. If children keep coming here, it will be so familiar to them, said Bronagh Daly, one of the teachers from the school. The initiative ties in with the curriculum of the school, she added.

Meanwhile, Deputy Principal Kevin Devine added to the sentiment about the initiative, talking about the openness to the idea of college. One person who was proud of the hard work that the 184 social care students had carried out was Kathleen Noone. The college is one of the happiest places I have ever worked, she said.

Openness to the ideaof college.

Yes We Can! Hands in the Air

By the People, for the People: BCFE Principal Talks History

come in, Ms Conway believes that BCFE, which has suffered a 30-40% budget cut in the last two years, would be able to adjust. We will keep our heads up and get on with it, added Ms Conway.

Edition 1 | December 10

by Peter Hickey

Many students and staff mem-bers travel to college, with at least 15% of students cycling to college each day. The media building seems to be the prime target for the thieves, who have broken locks and taken the bikes from the bollards without the owners con-

hile, staff are also concerned about the thefts: I was so anxious about my bike being stolen, I de-cided to uglify it with stickers and things to put thieves off, stated John Molloy, a teacher at BCFE. He said that the number of bikes stolen is very worrying for bike owners. Rory, who is one of the caretak-ers, also spoke about how Christ-mas is the worst time of year for thefts: Theres a problem usually around Christmas time, with more bikes being stolen, he explained. Although the media building uses 24 hour CCTV, there are certain blind spots in this area. Students are advised to lock their bikes and to alert a member of staff if they notice suspicious behaviour near the bike area.

BCFE Bike Safety Followiwing Thefts

Students Advised to Lock Bikes in Wake of Thefts

sent. Students have voiced their opinions on the issue of bikes being stolen from the cam-pus. Ive heard that there have been a few bikes stolen from outside the college, but I havent exactly noticed an increase in more bikes disappearing, said Tony Reilly, who regularly parks hisbike outside the college. Meanw-

Credit Union Cap To Not Affect College StudentsA New Cap on Shares Will Soon be Put in Place in Credit Unions Around Ireland.

by Jessie Ni Dhonnchu

Consultation Paper 88 restricts Credit Unions to a 100,000 cap on shares. This cap will result in some members being re-direct-ed to the bank. Philip Kenny from Ballyfermot Credit Union spoke about the new legislation: It does not affect every member, but it is unfair to

penalise them Its basically stopping people from supporting the Credit Unions. Consultation paper 88 will not affect loans which are availa-ble for Post Leaving Certifi-cate course students or school leavers. There are now several loan options available for students struggling to pay for course fees

or materials required for theircourse. Ballyfermot Credit Union can offer student loan interest rates as low as 8.75% APR. This will allow students to bor-row up to 6,000 and to pay 11 back to the credit union each week. Only members of the Credit Union can avail of this option

Interest rates as low as 8.75% APR.

and students must be attending a Post Leaving Certificate college in the surrounding areas such as Ballyfermot, Inchicore and Chapelizod. For more information on the loans available to students telephone Ballyfermot Credit Union on 01 6265 458 or e-mail them at info@ballyfermotcu.ie.

The Doors Are Open: Ballyfermot Credit Union

Edition 1 | December 10

The 2015 BCFE Graduation ceremony was held at The RDS Concert Hall in Ballsbridge on Friday 20th November, which saw hundreds of graduates and guests attending the event. The morning session began at 11am, while the evening session began at 5pm. A number of staff members and guest speakers attended the ceremonies. The graduates were dressed in black robes with different colour-ed sashes given to each class. For both ceremonies the atmosphere within the concert hall was elec-tric; the graduates were excited and their parents watched with pride. Meanwhile, the academic staff were proud of their

BCFE Graduates Take Over RDSMore than 700 Students Have Graduated from BCFE After Two Award Ceremonies at the RDS

Waiting in Line: RDS Welcomes BCFE Graduates

by Kim OLearyNews Editor

students: Its a really proud moment. And as the lord mayor just said, its not a finish its a start, stated Clare Fox, a teacher at BCFE. The morning ceremony included classes from the Social Studies, Computer Game Design and Art departments. The gradu-ates and the audience were first addressed by Deputy Principal Kevin Devine.

This is a very proud day for thecollege.

On behalf of BCFE, I am de-lighted to welcome you all to the first part of two sessions on our graduation day. This is a very proud day for the college, proclaimed Mr Devine. Guest speakers in-cluded Lord Mayor of Dublin Crona N Dhalaigh. The col-lege is a beacon of the local community, she said, praising the college and its staff. Alasdair Melville, the Eu-ropean Director for Pearson, spoke about the success of BTEC. We have at least two million students around the world, he explained. The BA (Honours) degrees were conferred by Janice Aitken, Associate Dean for Quality & Academic Stand-ards Dundee University.

I really enjoyed my time at BCFE. I actually have a full-time job now, said Hayley Mahoney. Michelle Kelly also completed the same course which she stated she really enjoyed.

Others spoke of their time at BCFE: Ive enjoyed my time at BCFE, said Julie Smyth from Business Operations System. In addition to graduating, Lynn OReilly received the Brown Bags Films award.

Renowned and Gowned

The Wexford Wonder Boyby Kevin Gillespie

Davids track Wonder Child, releases in aid of childrens charity Barnardos, rose up in the iTunes charts and landed in at a whopping number five. Rachel Boyce, Communica-tions Manager for Barnardos, commented on this: We were thrilled about it the CD was fantastic. When asked what is next for him, David stated that he wishes to get back into events and possibly working with a band or artist.

Elaine Deignan, Head of Corpo-rate and Events at Barnardos, who would have had worked closely with David throughout the project added, [he] was an excellent communicator always keeping in touch with myself and the guys over in the Bank of Ireland. Elaine went on to explain that Barnardos was one of Bank of Irelands pillar charities and that a strong relationship exists be-tween the two. Working into this idea really well, David, and all those involved, were successful in leaving their mark. Currently, David plans on moving back into events manage-ment, I have a few ideas up my sleeve, he jokingly added, so [lets] see what happens!

Wonder Child can be purchased from the iTunes and Google Play stores for just 0.99 or you can pick up a physical copy from the Music Management department for 5, with all proceeds going to Barnardos child aid.

I have a fewideas up mysleeve.

Wonder Child Guest Vocalist Mary Byrne

BCFE Oxjam Raises Over 1000by Ruairi OHehir

Oxjams first ever college event raises an excess of 1000 in the BCFE social area. Operator Laura OLeary de-scribed the gig as a huge success: Its very exciting to see everyone get together. Acts such as Des Willaby and BCFEs own Pete Hollidai rocked the canteen.

In three weeks of the gig maker program, Oxjam has raised over 3000. This money is sent to where i t i s needed at the t ime, pres-ent ly the Syrian refugee cr is is , Nepal and towards womans programs in Su-dan. Laura fel t i t was very important for Oxjams f i rs t ever col lege gig to be held in BCFE as she is a former music management s tu-dent and hopes that i t wi l l become an annual col lege event . She s ta ted: As Ox-

jam in the UK has October as their main month of holding gigs , we would l ike to spread gigs out more but to have most of them in October to coincide with this . Having a col lege l ink to the project is huge ac-cording to Laura: I t s the perfect place to have i t , as everybody is here who we need and i t br ings everyone together. For more information on Oxjam vis i t www.oxfamire-land.org .Pete Hollidai Rocks BCFE Canteen

Edition 1 | December 10

LIFELIFE tinderWe F undLOVE

in a H peless PlaceDating apps have changed how students in Ireland look for sex, dates and relation-ships. Weve seen loads come and go, but the most popular apps that grace our smartphones are the likes of Tinder, Plenty of Fish (POF), Cupid, with other apps targeting specific groups such as Grindr for homosexual males and L Word for homosexual females. BCFE Bulletin speaks to some of these students in Ballyfermot about the effects they have on their own person-al lives. Out of a number of students asked, we found that 96% of the students have used these apps in the past with only 4%

of this number claiming these apps have never touched their phones. For some, its just a diver-sion, much like our Twitter or Instagram. For others, its simply a way of meeting new people, and still others are just looking to break a dating dry spell or add a little excitement into an otherwise boring night. Questions that have been involved in the mind frame of how these apps work is that are we just looking for the next thing? Or does true love still exist through these new means? Some are optimistic. One female student mentions: I know a few couples who have and they are going as strong

as those who met from a random shift in Coppers. Indeed for some of us we wouldrather find our true love on a dating app than the infamous Coppers shift at 4am on a Saturday night, sometimes its gone further as one female student informs: Im currently engaged to someone I met off Plenty of Fish so not so bad at all. One students positive outlook on these apps shed a light to the sometimes igno-rant attitude towards our new means of communication: On-line dating is the norm in our society now, Im currently with my girlfriend nearly a year and a half and we met online. Although it may seem that we are just living for love, I know that some of us are living to hear the cringey horror that comes with the territory of these apps, although one

horror indeed lives up to the word. One female student shares her friends horrific story I know a girl who was in a rela-tionship from Tinder, all was going well for two years. He got her pregnant and then left her. This is a 28 year old who was hoping to have a good life with him. Not all of them are as straight forward as they sound, some sound like fictional dystopias of those MTV dating shows. One male student humours: I met a girl for a few drinks, I think within an hour she mentioned her ex about thirty times, no exaggeration. I set up a joke with my house

mate in case it went wrong, when she started talking about how she almost stabbed her ex after a fight, I Whatsapped my housemate group and one of them called me saying my dog went missing, after my Oscar winning performance, I never heard from her again. One spoke about her sisters disaster date mentioning

he followed her home on his long board (25 on a longboard seriously) may I also mention when she refused to talk to him he pretended to have a heart attack and stayed out-side our house all night! Arguably, dating apps are helping to shape the roman-tic landscape, but much of it is found on our self-social changes and the liberalisation of attitudes. The connections and rela-tionships we form with others, if its meeting through mutual friends, in a bar or online, they are ours to choose, and its exciting that us looking for love, dates or even sex are seizing the chance.

Online dating is the norm in our society ...

I know a girl who was in a relationship from Tinder ...

FrankiesDUBLIN SEVENShane Whelan talks to BCFE student and author, Frank Gaffney about the college being an inspiration for his new book Dublin Seven. Every now and then the lit-erary world churns out a gem, and Dublin Seven is exactly that. The coming-of-age tale of 18 years young Shane is an intense ride through the seedy world of gangland Ireland fused with an urban love story that is sure to entertain. The story feels and reads authentically throughout, with the writers own experience helping to form the world of Dublin Seven, Frankie says that that inspiration for the sto-ry comes from some of the

young men who dropped out of Ballyfermot College while he was there, my main char-acter in Dublin Seven drops out of a PLC course in Co-laiste na Samn, the fictional college isnt a million miles from BCFE. Dublin Seven is also laced with good comedy;

writers often cite that they cant contain their laughter during the writing process: You caught me says Frankie, I did laugh out loud when I wrote that the main character thought Pride and Prejudice was a film about an attack on a gay rights march. And, thats just the tip of the

iceberg. Dublin Seven has a lot to offer in the way come-dy, as well as drama and the aspect of crime-thriller infused through the pages. With a nod on the front cover of Dublin Seven from the acclaimed author of The Butcher Boy, Patrick McCabe, a dream come true for Frank-ie, a buzz is being generated and the first batch of books launched in Hodges and Figgis sold out very quickly. Frankies advice for budding writers is read, read and read. Read fiction and non-fiction. Read classics and modern works. When it comes to writing, write the book you want to read.

Edition 1 | December 10

DepressionDont Let It Take You OverIt was over a year ago, the morning after the horrific night before, where I sat on the ground shaking, completely exhausted after months of not sleeping, mood swings, pains in the head, just dragging myself through the morning and day with this weight on my heart. I had reached breaking point. I lived on my own, so it was just me and my depression that went through the ordeal that night. I had friends, cous-ins, a father and brother whom I was always close to, but I decided to go it alone. It was almost the best kept secret in the world; nobody knew accept for one of my friends who helped me through the stress-ful times. I had spent the whole night without any sleep, my nervous system was shattered. I had

told myself that if I made it through the night, I would go to my doctor and ask for help, because I knew Id let it go too far. The heart knows what the hearts knows, so in that mo-ment I looked at this woman, who I had known since I was a child.

She was a woman whose knees I had sat on over a hun-dred times, a woman whose stethoscope Id taken and used on her when I was six years old, and when I couldnt

find a heartbeat, I said: I cant hear anything, are you sure thats where you heart is meant to be, I think you could be dead. So in the moment of sen-timental recall, I looked at my doctor and started crying like a child, saying over and over again: I think Ive got depression, please make it stop, I cant do this anymore. So over the next half hour my doctor sat beside me, hugging me every now and again, tell-ing me its going to be alright, We will get through this, I am always here for you. Over a period of an hour she had managed to bring me around to a point where she talked me through a plan, even though if she had said to me then she was going to send me away for treatment, I would have gladly went, but she

didnt believe in certain meth-ods. After the storm was over, she confirmed that I was in fact depressed.

The weeks, months, years and night leading up to that morning, was one in a line of many painful traumas I had endured to date, those relentless tears I cried that day was a back log of hard-ships, which I kept locked inside and were now free. When I said those words I think Ive got depression, some of the weight lifted of

my heart. I am at a point now where I am only halfway through my battle, and like many who suffer from depression Ive a mountain still to climb, so if after telling my story, one person takes on board what I am about to say, then all the hardship and depres-sion has been worth it. Dont ever be ashamed of your depression or worry what society thinks, for if a person is going to judge you for by your depression, they need to stand back and ask their heart, are they human. So to all students, staff, mothers and fathers, broth-ers and sisters, and all who breathe in our society its ok not to be ok and its ok to ask for help.

Its ok not to be ok and its ok to ask for help.

We will get through this, I am always here for you.

at BCFEChildrens Week

Josh Reid catches up with the kids of Childrens Week at BCFE as part of the Is Feidir Linn initiative. Primary school children from the surrounding areas gathered en masse at BCFE and were in full attendance for the event. Students from the social care department guided groups of schoolchildren from three local schools, St Raph-aels, Mary Queen of Angels and St Gabriels around the college to give them a taster of what the college was about in order to let them know what was available to them locally. With so many children coming from the local schools converging on the college for a look at college life, each school had to be given an al-located day in order to make sure that all of the children got

around the college easily and safely, with St Raphaels visit-ing on Tuesday, Mary Queen of Angels on Wednesday and the three day activity filled week finished off with a visit from St Gabriels on Thursday. [Its about] letting the chil-dren realise about what there is Ballyfermot, explained Bronagh Daly, one of the teachers at St Gabriels, The children are getting the experi-ence their parents never had.

Over the course of the three days, the children had various workshop and activities lined up in order to make the visit fun and educa-tional as Ms Daly explained that What the kids are learn-ing here also ties totally into their study. Among the subjects cov-ered would be science as the kids learned from a group of nursing students about how the human body works. Ella Louise, a ten year old student from St Gabriels gave her seal of approval to what the BCFE students were doing: Its really fun, you learn how you breathe, how you sweat, she said. However, the activities

that took place also met with their approval. 1st class stu-dent, Faith, from St Gabriels enjoyed the puppet show, while another 1st Class Student, Callum, enjoyed a round of crazy golf. Visiting on Thursday, was the local actress, Mary Murray. The Love/Hate star had a close connection with the college via two of her siblings, My brothers came to the college at 16, she explained. The main thing that she hoped would be gained from these three days was to make sure that the kids love it, and judging from all the excitement that was built up then, they did.

What the kids are learning here also ties totally into their study.

Kids Learn Cardio

Puppet Making Masterclass at Childrens Week

Edition 1 | December 10

InterculturalDay

Kim OLeary looks at BCFEs annual Intercultural Day, and why it is a pivotal part of the college calendar. The Intercultural Party was set up in 2007 and it is aimed at raising awareness and cele-brating different cultures at the college. This years event had various activities taking place in the social area of the Main building and the Arts building. Many students flocked to the event which was organised by Intercultural Officer Anna Gacquin with the assistance of students from RHB and RTC.

The event in the social area included Middle Eastern food from Silk Road caf and Chill Out Caf, while a number of games included Connect 4 and Jenga. Meanwhile, musical bands and solo artists performed in the social area, with Fever Sol-stice, Shane Alger, The Disap-pointments, Chantelle McNully and two DJs in attendance. Organiser Anna Gacquin spoke about the importance of the Multicultural Party for the college: The Intercultural Party is in its tenth year now

BCFE. It was created following

the economic crisis in an attempt to bring people closer together. Its a celebration of different cultures and it also about raising awareness. Students also gave their views

on the event. I really enjoyed it. It brings people together, said Abraham Benkhiaran, a student from RTC. Meanwhile, students from RHB spoke of how it helps to create awareness and under-standing of different cultures and traditions. Its set up to help people from different cul-tures to mix, said Eimer. The food is good and its a great turn-out, Christine Moynihan, a teacher at BCFE explained.There are currently 81 non-na-tional students enrolled at

BCFE and many of the stu-dents come from Poland, Nige-ria and the U.K being the most popular countries. The food is good and its a great turn-out.

I really enjoyed it. It brings people together.

Dare,Dream,

Do.Award winning animator, David Slattery, talks to the BCFE Bulletin about how the col-lege shaped him to achieve his success. David recalled the first time he entered Giant Animation Studios as an intern during his third year of college in BCFE where he became involved in a short animated film called Geist, which the studio pro-duced. He went on to say: From there, I was working on a few commercial projects for the studio, ads and informa-tional videos, modelling and rigging things. In October, the studio aired its first TV series, Go Jetters, which premiered on CBee-bies. The show is about four explorers who travel the world discovering new things about each location. The project began around October of last year when Giant began model-ling the main sets and charac-ters for the show. David stated: It was during this time that the studio were hiring more modellers and I was given the position of head modeller, which was strange for me as I

had just completed college at BCFE a few months earlier and now I got the chance to work on a very large TV show for the BBC. David gained many learning experiences for animation at BCFE as well as at Giant, but the biggest one came for him when he was chosen to work alongside the Animation Hub on Terry Pratchetts The Duel, an animated short which takes place in the best-selling au-thors Discworld universe. The short screened last October at Trinity College to much critical acclaim for its fantastic animation and design. David found this new project very beneficial and very much enjoyed working on the short: The Duel was a great learning experience. It began over the summer between my third and fourth year of college and my initial role was a layout/background prop concept artist. It was great coming to work and design props and sets for

Terry Pratchetts Discworld. For the first two weeks, we were doing animation train-ing. The training was intense as we focused on a different project each day, starting with the basics of animation and character animation.

I honestly found animating on The Duel very helpful as it focused on the key aspects needed for animation. I had a lot of bad habits when ani-mating my own stuff, so it was great start again from scratch and learn the correct way of doing things. Recently, alongside Rory Conway, Sammy Khalid, and Kieran Noone, David won the Undergraduate Animation Award at the 20th Annual RTS Student Television Awards for their animated film, Shoot. As their final year film at BCFE, David and the team began

working on the characters and concept for Shoot together by the end of their third year. The f i lm was about an assassin who tr ies to assassinate the president but is foi led by a pigeon who keeps distract ing him. David said winning the award was a great hon-our: I t s good to know that al l the work you put in into a f i lm pays off in some way and were glad people genuinely enjoyed the f i lm. For students planning

to pursue careers in the animation arts, David had some very good advice to share: Keep working on your portfol io. I t s good to show you have a range of styles and abi l i t ies you can work from. Watch as many tutorials as you can, and i t s good to work on your own pro-jects, even something as small as drawing a quick sketch from t ime to t ime. And remember to relax and enjoy what youre doing.

I had a lot of bad habits when animat-ing my own stuff.

Edition 1 | December 10

SPORT Lisa Haskins Full of Praise for BCFE

Former BCFE graduate and co-founder of Womens Sport Journal Lisa Haskins has been singing the praises of BCFE and its staff. The truth is BCFE gives you the tools, knowledge and resourc-es to make something great out yourself, but it really is a case of you get out what you put in, they definitely helped me prepare for work in the media. The staff seemed to make a big impression on Lisa too. I have a lot of time for the staff at BCFE, theyre not lecturers, theyre teachers, they dont just throw the information at you they give you knowledge. Currently Living in London and working as a marketing executive, Lisa recalled why she wanted to originally set up WSJ. She also went on to talk about what her

main dr ive was in te rms of c rea t ing the webs i te , she jok ingly sa id she wanted good grades more than anyth ing and went on to say the webs i te achieved every th ing she was a im-ing for, a l though she seems to be l ieve tha t in te rms of success i t could be be t -te r. S ince leaving BCFE, and I re land , Lisa has s t i l l been working on Womens Spor t Journa l and i s t ry ing to bui ld on i t s success , she went on to ta lk about what p lans a re in the p ipe l ine for her webs i te . Next year we hope to br ing l ive s t reaming to the webs i te so tha t t r ium-phant moments in womens spor t s wi l l be seen and shared .

by Joe MurphySports Editor

Dublin U21 Next Stop for Our Deanby Keith Duffy

BCFES very own Dublin minor star Dean OBrien has been talking about his aspirations to play for the Dublin U21s, and what it is like to play for Dublin at a minor level. He also goes on to talk about how he felt rep-resenting his county at Croke Park against Kildare in the All Ireland minor semi-final. Only playing for his club Ballymun Kickhams since the age of 12, Deans talent was noticed almost straight away. By the time he was 13 he had been called up to the Dublin Minors, since then he has not looked back. Dean recently recalled this years heart-breaking loss to Kildare in Croke Park: Repre-senting my county in Croke Park in front of my family was the proudest moment Ive had, he added, unfortunately, we didnt get the result that day but hope-fully thats just the beginning of us.

The BCFE student clearly knows where he wants to goin his GAA career. He spoke about his ambitions to break into his clubs senior side and to repre-sent the Dublin U21s side within the next two years: Im pushing to get into the senior side in my club then hopefully I will get the call-up for the U21 Dublin team. The future Star who has recently won the league title and Dublin Championship with his club has said: It was a fantastic year for our club and myself, I am proud to be the captain of the side, it was a great honour to lift the trophies. The North Dublin side club has won three championships and five leagues in recent years and is already one of the greatest teams a Dublin side has produced. The young prospect who captained his side is only the second ever player to captain his clubs championship title, the only other being Dublin legend all-star player Barney Rock.

Potential Student versus Tutor Charity Match by Aidan Crowley

Its time to dust-down the foot-ball boots, take the soccer kit out of mothballs and limber-up while resurrecting those foot-balling skills of yesteryear. I am referring to the proposed teachers versus students charity soccer match which is due to take place sometime early in the New Year. Though BCFE is a college with a well-established reputation for providing a broad range of courses, there is one area where the college is sadly lacking in facilities: the much-neglected but very important area of sports and recreation. In order to get some sporting activities kick-started at BCFE, a proposal has been launched to or-ganize a teachers versus students soccer charity event sometime in the New Year. The proposed soccer charity match will take place on one of the astro-turf pitches at Dublin City Councils Sports & Fitness Centre Ballyfermot on Black-ditch Road. All money raised from the event will go to the local branch of the St. Vincent de Paul. Kevin Devine, College Deputy Principal, has had his say on the potential match: I think it is a fantastic idea. We have run sim-ilar events in the past and they have always proved to be very successful. This is just the thing we need to reignite an interest in sport within the college, added Keith Corrigan, a second year student in MRH. It should provide a great day of sport and social activity while raising vital money for a very worthy local cause, he contin-ued.

Lisa with footballer Stephanie Roche

BCFE Principal Open to Link Between BCFE and ITT Dublin GAAby Joe MurphySports EditorThe possibility of an official link being created could be great news for football players and hurlers in the college who have no GAA team they can avail of. BCFE Principal Maureen Conway has said she is open to creating an official link between

BCFE students and the ITT Dublin GAA team. Students from BCFE qualify to play for the ITT Dublin GAA team but there is no official link between the two colleges, meaning not enough students are aware of this. Gerry Anderson, head of GAA development at ITT Dublin, is also interested in setting an official

link stating: I would definitely be interested in getting something set up, Id have no problem coming down to BCFE to speak to a member of staff. BCFE principal Maureen Conway suggested that one of the reasons the college has no sports team could be to do with the fact that there is no sports liaison officer. We had got a sports liaison of-ficer, but she retired and we have no funds for another one, added

Ms Conway who also stated she was very open to the idea. We already have links with ITT Dublin in terms of educa-

tional services, so yes a link between ourselves and [them] when it comes to sports could be a possibility.

Gerry Anderson with ITT Dublin GAA Squad

Dean OBrien with mentor Paddy Christie