Competitions & Challenges
Our competitions and challenges provide a platform for members (or groups of members) to showcase their videos, receive feedback from their peers, rather than from family and friends (which might not be 100% truthful or knowledgeable). Our challenges are not competitive, but competitions can also provide the opportunity for videos to be awarded one of the many different categories of SBMM trophies.
Submit your Video to our Members Competitions and Challenges HERE.
SBMM Annual Member's Competition
The annual Member’s Competition is currently held in December. It is open to individual members or groups of members. Films must be six minutes or shorter. Any category, any subject.
The films are judged by a panel of non-members, often members of other film & video making clubs.There are a total of nine awards, including Best First Time Winner.
The Surrey Border Movie Makers selection of Competition Trophies and Awards.
The Surrey Border Movie Makers Member’s Competition previous years winners
The Jackson Trophy – Overall Winner
2023 Jim Reed, Dave Skertchly, Gillian Gatland, Peter Stratford
2022 Brian O’Connell, Peter Frost & Dick Grainger – Only Four in the World
2021 Tim Stannard – The Case of the Missing Pickle Magnate
2020 Dave Skertchly
2019 Nigel Davey
2018 Jim Reed _Making a Difference
2017 Peter Frost
2016 Gillian Gatland
2015 Brian O’Connell
2014 Ollie McCoy-Page
2013 Weyfarers
2012 Geoff Bentley
2011 Gillian Gatland
2010 Alan Hussey
2009 Steve Bissett
2008 Bruce Frazer
2007 Sally Maltby & Gillian Gatland
2006 Gillian Gatland
2005 Bruce Frazer
2004 Paul Holden [sic]
2003 Martin Harder
2002 David Longley
2001Alex Dove
2000 Paul Holden [sic]
1999 Alex Dove
1998 David Jackson
The Penny Johnson Trophy for Best Editing
2022 Jim Reed – The Iron Bridge
2021 Tim Stannard – The Case of the Missing Pickle Magnate
2020 Peter Stratford
2019 Philip Morley & John Mills
2018 Jim Reed – Making a Difference
2017 Gillian Gatland
2016 Gillian Gatland
2015 Peter Frost
2014 Steve Michell
2013 Gordon Sutton
2012 Alan Butcher
2011 Neil Cryer
2010 Alan Hussey
2009 Alan Hussey
2008 Bruce Frazer
2007 Steve Bissett
2006 Gillian Gatland
2005 Bryan Harrison
The Pat Dohery Cup for Best Use of Sound
2022 Brian O’Connell, Peter Frost & Dick Grainger – Only Four in the World
2021 Peter Stratford – Lion Hunt
2020 TBA
2019 Peter Frost
2018 Jim Reed – Making a Difference
2017 Peter Stratford
The Jack Stribling Newcomers’ Trophy
2020 Tim Stannard
2019 Jack Visser
2018 Martin Boyman
2017 Peter Stratford
2016 Philip Morley
2014 Ollie McCoy-Page
2013 John Mills
2012 Brian O’Connell
2011 Rod Garnet
2010 Jo Jones
2009 Alan Hussey
2008 The Golden Girls
2007 Steve Bissett
2006 Jack Pook
2004 Kay White
2003 Martin Harder
2002 Sally Maltby
2001 Vicky Jackson
2000 Trepid B
1999 Alistair Cuthbert
The Arthur English Memorial Trophy for Photography
2022 Philip Morley – Only Lyon
2021 Tim Stannard – The Case of the Missing Pickle Magnate
2020 Tim Stannard
2019 Nigel Davey
2018 Peter Stratford
2017 Peter Frost
2016 Peter Ives
2015 Peter Ives
2014 Ollie McCoy-Page
2013 Alan Brown
2012 Jeremy Bayne-Powell
2011 Alan Hussy
2010 Gordon Sutton
2009 Paddy Haynes
2008 David Jackson
2007 Sir Paul Holden
2006 Gillian Gatland
2005 Harry Newland
2004 Gillian Gatland
2003 Neil Cryer
2002 Gordon Sutton
2001 David Jackson
2000 David Jackson
1999 Penny Johnson
1998 Alex Dove
1997 David Jackson
(But the cup dates from 1989)
Ron Clements Award for Creativity
2022 Jim Reed – An Interview with April Powers
2021 Tim Stannard – The Case of the Missing Pickle Magnate
2020 Paul Vernon
2019 Jim Reed
2018 Jim Reed – Making a Difference
2017 Peter Frost
2016 Dave Skertchly
2015 Elliot Stanley
2014 Neil Cryer
2013 Brian O’Connel & Peter Frost
2012 Geoff Bentley
2011 Mike Sanders
2010 Alan Hussey
2009 Sir Paul Holden
2008 Steve Bissett
2007 Val Hitchman
2006 Gillian Gatland
2005 Jerry Plowman
2004 Dixie Dean
2003 Martin Harder
2002 Jerry Plowman
2001 Write Angle
2000 Trepid B
1999 Sir Paul Holden
1998 Ken Mackay
1997 Ron Clements
1996 Write-Angle Productions
1995 Joan Woolmer
1994 Len Webb
SBMM Annual Documentary Competition
The annual Documentary Competition is open to individual members or groups of members and is for documentaries of up to 25 minutes in length.
The winning film is decided by a poll of members present, immediately after all films have been screened.
The video makers discuss their videos, and the audience give constructive feedback.
The Surrey Border Movie Makers Documentary Competition previous years winners
Overall Winner
2024 Jim Reed
2023 Peter Stratford
2022 Alan Brown
2021 Alan Hussey
2020 Peter Stratford
2019 Peter Stratford
2018 Alan Brown
2017 Colin Lewis
2016 Dave Skertchly
2015 Brian O’Connell
2014 Ollie McCoy-Page
2013 Weyfarers
2012 Geoff Bentley
2011 Gillian Gatland
2010 Alan Hussey
2009 Steve Bissett
2008 Bruce Frazer
2007 Sally Maltby & Gillian Gatland
2006 Gillian Gatland
2005 Bruce Frazer
2004 Paul Holden [sic]
2003 Martin Harder
2002 David Longley
2001 Alex Dove
2000 Paul Holden [sic]
1999 Alex Dove
1998 David Jackson
SBMM 'Film in an Evening' (FIAE)
The original concept behind Film in an Evening was simple – shoot, edit and screen a completed film to the club within a few hours. The club is split into three or four groups and given a theme a couple of months before the event.
They then write, prepare & rehearse so that everything is ready to shoot to a very tight schedule on the evening of the competition. Members decide among themselves the best film.
The resulting films were often re-edited after the event to iron out any rough corners and add a bit of gloss.
It helps teach preparation and practice; working to a very tight schedule; and the importance of working as a team.
However, as technology has progressed, so has the complexity of video making – particularly in regard to the editing – and so the club decided to relax some of the time constraints as detailed below.
In 2023 it was decided to extend the time for making videos to a ‘Month, or Even Longer’, enabling a more relaxed environment and greater time for creative editing and special effects. The name remains the same ‘FIAE’.
Additionally, this new approach better enables the sharing of skills and knowledge amongst all the team, rather than simply focusing on those who are most proficient, as has frequently happened.
It will also remove the need to polish or re-edit the work, with a greater focus on ‘right first time’.
Challenges
The Challenges vary but the objective is always to encourage members to experiment with different styles, creativity or editing techniques when making their videos. 
Sometimes, the raw footage will be provided and the entrants challenged to produce something to a set criteria.
For example, in 2021, members were provided with 10 minutes of footage and asked to produce a coherent 3 minute film. (The 10-3 challenge).
The following year, footage was not provided, but members had to produce a montage. Other occasions, such as the Christmas challenge, members are asked to produce a short piece of work reflecting a particular theme.
More recently, club members have been divided into groups, and challenged to make a group film based on varying themes, For example:
Make a documentary about something local, including at least one interview, one piece to camera and some motion graphics.
The main aims are to encourage people to work together and to offer practical experience to more novice film makers. Whilst groups are set by the committee, this is not a restriction. Members are encouraged to assist or work as part of other groups where desirable.
Click the link below to see some of our examples.
Inter-Club Competition
For many years, Surrey Border Movie Makers invited four local clubs to submit a film into a friendly competition judged by experienced members of the club. We hosted the evening at the St Joans Centre and enjoyed meeting and chatting to members of competing clubs who were invited to attend. We also enjoyed a bit of a feast.
Sadly COVID-19 put an end to that. In 2021 we took advantage of the fact we’d hold the meeting online and invited clubs from the far and wide around the UK. The following year we mixed the two, with four local clubs and two from further afield and held a hybrid meeting where we successfully integrated a remote audience on Zoom into our live event at the Centre.
Given the difficulty of travelling on a Friday night it was not really a surprise that, with the option of participating on-line, no-one from the local clubs attended in person! We will continue the format for the foreseeable future, in the hope that members of local groups will again attend in person to enjoy the company (to say nothing of the food).
