Hunger for Youth View Awards
LUCKY fans and special guests were treated to an advance screening of The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 1 at the Carib 5 cinema in Cross Roads, St Andrew, on Saturday.
The occasion was the start of the promotional push for the upcoming eighth season of the Youth View Awards (YVAs) .
“This is the third time we’ve done using the popular Hunger Games franchise to lead into the YVAs,” Karen Clarke, CEO of An Elegant Affair Events — creators of the YVAs, told the Jamaica Observer.
The YVA season will culminate with an awards event on February 2015 at the National Indoor Sports Arena in St Andrew.
“While this is the opener, our Hype Crew have been on the streets across the island from September,” said Clarke.
The data collected from those aged between 14 and 24, along with online voting that closes on November 28, 2014 will be used to determine the top five in each category.
These are then announced at the YVAs’ media launch on January 8, 2015. Clarke said the choice of The Hunger Games: Mockingjay reflected the taste of the demographic that the YVAs targeted and the tradition of using a blockbuster teen movie as a season opener began with the Twilight series.
It was red-carpet entrance for film buffs who were treated to KFC popcorn chicken and sodas from the Pepsi portfolio throughout the viewing.
At intermission it was revealed that there were tickets for prizes hidden under the seats. KFC On The Verge 2014 winner 20-yearold Fabian Garden, who goes by the stage name DeJour, then gave the audience a short surprise performance.
“My appearance on the 2015 Youth View Awards is something I’m looking forward to as the level of exposure it provides is what I need to kick-start my fresh career,” he said.
Fans were also encouraged to indulge in grabbing selfies with YVA judges, Stacious and Ce’Cile along with using the Hunger Games app that analysed facial expressions to determine which of the districts from the movie the person belonged to.
“The YVAs celebrate the local artistes in order to stay relevant to our core demographic,” Clarke added. — Rory Daley
