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Cogswell College Announces U.S. Poet Laureate to Judge Literary Competition and Releases Past Winner's Animated Short Adaptation
[November 17, 2016]

Cogswell College Announces U.S. Poet Laureate to Judge Literary Competition and Releases Past Winner's Animated Short Adaptation


Cogswell College today announces that U.S. Poet Laureate Juan Felipe Herrera and NPR's (News - Alert) "Snap Judgment" host Glynn Washington will succeed poet A. Van Jordan and Lemony Snicket book series author Daniel Handler as the incoming judges for two international literary competitions, the COG Poetry Awards and COG Page to Screen Awards.

Also today, Cogswell releases the animated adaptation of "The Last Gun" by Washington, D.C.-based writer Anne Harding Woodworth, which won the prior COG Poetry Awards judged by poet A. Van Jordan. "'The Last Gun' opens with smoke and closes with a bang," said A. Van Jordan, the Henry Rutgers Presidential Professor at Rutgers University and winner of the Lannan Literary Award, Pushcart Prize and other accolades. "These poems care about what we carry with us on our journeys and how others hold us in memory. 'The Last Gun' is 'a gathering place for … admirers, rememberers, the once-armed.'" The animated short adaptation is a result of a collaboration between Cogswell students and faculty, and is narrated by author Joseph Di Prisco.

In their inaugural year, which began in November 2015, the 2015-16 COG Poetry Awards and COG Page to Screen Awards drew entries from 30 U.S. states, as well as Sweden, England, Israel, India, Canada, Mauritius, Indonesa and Australia. "The Outdoor Movie" by San Francisco-based writer Siamak Vossoughi was the winner of the COG Page to Screen Awards. Cogswell students will also adapt it into an animated short for release in mid-February 2017.



"Strong and persuasive writing is vital in our global economy," said Soma Mei Sheng Frazier, author and chair of the English and Humanities Department at Cogswell College. "And an understanding of the fundamentals of storytelling is an underpinning to all aspects of art and design. We are proud of our students' work - and we congratulate Anne and Siamak on winning these awards, which celebrate their craft and talent."

The animated short of "The Last Gun" can be found at www.cogzine.com, along with a quirky video interview with Daniel Handler, who provides advice for aspiring writers looking to get published.


The 2016-17 COG Poetry Awards and COG Page to Screen Awards open for entries today. Deadline for the COG Poetry Awards entries is January 31, 2017, and the COG Page to Screen Awards entries deadline is March 31, 2017.

About Cogswell College

Designed as a "fiercely collaborative, digital laboratory," Cogswell College is a top ranked game development and digital arts college located in the heart of Silicon Valley. Working with industry leaders, students bring games and animation to life, while earning fully accredited degrees.

In 2016, Cogswell was ranked among the top 20 game design schools in North America by The Princeton Review. In 2015, Cogswell was cited by Animation Career Review as "One of the Top 50 Private Game Design Schools and Colleges in the U.S." Also in 2015, Cogswell was included in Animation Magazine's prestigious list of "Top Schools to Hire From." The video game program at Cogswell, started in 1994, regularly places graduates in positions with industry leaders and startups alike.


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