‘Authentic, creative and original’ was the brief for Exmoor’s first video competition this summer. The remit was for film makers to show what Exmoor really meant to them in one minute or less and the entrants certainly rose to the challenge.

The sweeping panoramic views of the stunning Exmoor landscape on Ken Blakey’s ‘ Exmoor Dream’ was inspirational, as was Chris Jelley’s ‘Combe by Day, Stars by Night’, a charming look at Exmoor through the eyes of an eight year old boy. Both videos were equally deserving of the top spot, and therefore the judges decided to split the £500 prize money and award the filmmakers £250 each.

The runner-up video was ‘Reuben and Ollie’s Exmoor’ which was made by a couple of young boys on a shoe string budget. The video shows their love of mountain biking on the Exmoor hills, whatever the weather. They received a voucher for a trip on the West Somerset Railway.

Joint winner Ken Blakey from Lee House B&B in Lynton (www.leehouse-lynton.co.uk) fell in love with Exmoor and moved down from London with his wife five years ago. “How do you sum up an area like Exmoor in less than 60 seconds? Well, you can’t, but you can get a glimpse of the stunning scenery and the wide range of activities that go on here. The second shot of the Exmoor Dream video shows dawn breaking over Porlock Bay (I got up at 5.30am for that one) and I’d love to think this video will help inspire people to come and experience what Exmoor has to offer.”

The competition’s other winner, Poet and storyteller Chris Jelley, (www.poetrypin.info) made a film which really captures Exmoor from a child’s perspective; running through the woods, discovering insects, swinging from trees, swimming in the river and picnics on the beach, as well as a late night treat to see the amazing Exmoor stars with a telescope.

Dan James, Sustainable Economy Manger at Exmoor National Park says, “We worked with the Exmoor Tourism Partnership on this project to promote people’s personal views of the best bits of Exmoor and to help raise the profile of the area. We were delighted with the response and are hoping to use the videos in the new Exmoor National Park centre at the Lynmouth Pavilion too.”

All three videos can be seen on the visit Exmoor website here