The Energy in Everyday Things

Who Ayra A., Mascot Public School, NSW

What A fun and accessible film about the energy all around us. In The Energy in Everyday Things, seven-year-old Ayra explores complex energy concepts, including chemical, kinetic and gravitational potential, while encouraging everyone to be mindful of their energy use.

Runner-up in the 2024 University of Sydney Sleek Geeks Science Eureka Prize – Primary.

Congratulations on being selected as one of two runners up in this year’s Sleek Geeks Science Eureka Prize! What’s been your favourite part of the journey?

Being chosen as a runner-up in the Sleek Geeks Science Eureka Prize has been an amazing experience. My favourite part of the journey was creating my film and discovering how energy is present in everyday life. I enjoyed finding interesting ways to share that information with others. It was thrilling to see my ideas come to life on the screen and knowing that people could watch and learn from my work was very rewarding. In the end, even my little brother knew a lot about energy. I also loved sharing it with my teachers and friends and meeting some of the most incredible scientists in Australia. This entire experience has made me even more curious about the world, and I’m excited to continue communicating science and getting creative in the future.

Your short film is about the energy in everyday things. Can you tell readers a little more about what you explored in your research?

In my film, I wanted to explore how energy is all around us, even in the simplest things we do every day. I investigated different types of energy, such as how the sun provides us with light and warmth, and how the food we eat gives us the energy to play and learn. I also looked into how electricity powers things like lights and appliances, and how it can be generated by turbines. Additionally, I discovered how our bodies use energy when we move, run, or even just smile. My goal was to show that energy is not just something we read about in science books—it’s something we can observe and experience all the time. By understanding how energy works in our daily lives, we can better appreciate its importance and the impact it has on everything we do.

Your film had so many different elements to it. How did you put them all together?

Putting everything together for my film was a big adventure, and I couldn’t have done it without my Mum. We went to different places to learn about energy—like the library to find books, museums to see big machines that use energy, and even the playground to see how energy helps us move around. I learned that energy is everywhere and can change into different forms. For example, I found out about kinetic energy and potential energy, and how they work in different ways.

My mum helped me plan every part of the film. She was with me the whole time, from coming up with ideas to filming all the scenes. She also helped me understand some tricky science stuff. When it was time to put everything together, my mum showed me how to edit the video and record my voice to explain what was happening. Seeing the finished film was so exciting, and I’m really thankful my mum helped me make it happen!

What’s the most surprising thing you learned when making your short film?

The most surprising thing I learned while making my film was how energy is always saved and changes into different forms. I found out that energy doesn’t just go away—it turns into something else. For example, when I climb up a hill, the energy from my food and muscles turns into potential energy, and then when I ride my scooter down, it changes into kinetic energy.

Before making my film, I didn’t think about how energy could change like that. It was cool to learn that sunlight can turn into electricity, and the food we eat gives us energy to play and have fun. It’s amazing to see how energy moves around and changes into different things every day. It made me realise that energy is all around us!

What was the most challenging part about the filmmaking process?

The hardest part of making my film was figuring out how to show all the different ways energy works using the toys I already had. It was tricky to plan how to show things like energy from the sun and electricity. Sometimes, it was hard to get the right shots and explain everything so that it made sense.

My mum helped a lot with this. She helped me set up the camera, find good angles, and even practice what I wanted to say. It was a lot of work, but when I saw the final film, I was so happy that all our hard work paid off!

Sponsored by the University of Sydney, the Sleek Geeks Science Eureka Prize encourages students to communicate a scientific concept in a short film. It is intended to support budding young scientists across the nation, who will be our future leaders in research, discovery and communication.