Bright sparks

A mini film festival project, an online platform for reviewing plays and an idea for a sun visor have each won a £1000 business prize in a University enterprise competition.

Run by Cardiff University Enterprise, Spark Ideas Challenge is an annual event for Cardiff University students, and recent graduates. It is run in partnership with the Santander Universities Scheme and offers students an opportunity to explore and attract some investment for their ideas and projects.

The challenge is split into three categories (Ideas, Plan and Ventures) allowing students with ideas at different developmental levels to take part.

Jody Tozer, an English & Communication graduate, was awarded the first prize in the Venture category for her Cardiff Mini Festival project. This level is open to entrants already running businesses. Jody's winning project offers a unique opportunity for new upcoming film makers to make and exhibit their films on a lower budget.

Oliver Ferriman, an undergraduate from Cardiff Business School scooped the winning prize in the Plan category with his RE:acting idea. RE:acting is a website designed to help young performers to get feedback on audition speeches, performances and trailers.

The top prize in the Ideas category went to Charlie Pollard and Beth Greere, both undergraduates from Cardiff Business School for SunGuard, a compact and foldable sun visor.

With prize money of £500 each, second place for the Venture category went to Ben Harris & Jason Walsh for MCQ (a free national online database of high-quality multiple choice questions for exam revision; created for medical students), Tom Cumiskey, in the Plan category for Goideed (an innovative online platform for raising philanthropic funds) and Amit Roy in the Ideas category for SoundScout (an online platform that provides exposure for unsigned music artist).

Iheanyi Ibe, University Enterprise Support Officer who organises the annual award event said: "This year proved, once again, the enthusiasm and talent for business amongst our students. The judges had a difficult task in deciding the winners and also had very positive things to say about the ideas.

"In particular, the judge's praised the enthusiasm and confidence of the participants in presenting their ideas and the courage in taking the next step."

By supporting events and competitions like the Spark Ideas Challenge, Cardiff University Enterprise is able to help students get started in setting up small businesses and developing entrepreneurial skills. It also offers a wealth of expertise and mentoring, advice about potential funding, as well as business space for students looking to develop a business or social enterprise.