"I prefer going to the cinema to playing video games because it is real, not virtual - they are breathing, but I am holding my breath."

That was the winning entry from Olivia Murray of Tullamore College, Co Offaly, in the Media Scope Junior Dublin Film Festival competition. She and her classmates - many of whom also sent in excellent entries - won tickets to a workshop at the festival, which started last Sunday and runs for another fortnight. Other workshop winners were Niall Leavy of Tullamore College and Ronan Collins of CUS in Dublin. Runners-up, who each won a family ticket to a film in the festival, included Rachel McGovern of Mount Lourdes Grammar School in Enniskillen, Co Fermanagh; Lydia Travers of Timoleague National School, Timoleague, Co Cork; and Ronan Mangan from CUS.

For more information on the Junior Dublin Film Festival, contact the booking office at the IFC (tel: (01) 671 4095; fax: (01) 670 3074; email: jdff@indigo.ie).