Worthing mum's drug awareness charity reaches final of Smiley Charity Film Awards for second year running
A Worthing mum's drug awareness charity is in the final of the Smiley Charity Film Awards for the second year running.
Nicci Parish was over the moon when Billy's Story, a powerful animation film about her son, won gold for Billy & Beyond in a People’s Choice category at the Smiley Charity Film Awards 2025.
Now the charity's film Live by Choice not by Chance, Beyond Billy is in the Smiley Charity Film Awards 2026.
Made by Morgan Films, it features Nicci, Billy's brother Henry and stepdad Steve, friends and Billy & Beyond director Amy Thorley.
Nicci said: "The film tells the story of why Billy & Beyond exists and the impact we aim to have, particularly for young people. We’re incredibly proud of it, as it captures the message at the heart of our work.
"Last year, thanks to an amazing response, we were honoured to win the People’s Choice Award in our category for Billy’s Story - Animated. We would absolutely love to achieve this again.
"The winner of each category for People's Choice wins £3,000. It would be huge for us to win, as half the money will go towards our wish list for the film editing."
Billy died in November 2020 after taking MDMA to celebrate his 24th birthday in lockdown. Nicci founded Billy & Beyond in 2021 with a mission to provide education to young people about the potential hazards of recreational drugs.
She explained: "Our goal is to empower young people with the necessary information and resources to make responsible and well-informed decisions. Our hope is that all adults will be able to have open and honest conversations with their young people, taking away the taboo of talking about recreational drugs.
"By telling Billy's story and sharing this very important message we hope we can prevent another family going through such tragedy. Billy & Beyond strive to improve children's and young people's mental well-being by helping families thrive."
Visit smileycharityfilmawards.com/films/live-by-choice-not-by-chance-beyond-billy to view the film and to vote for Billy & Beyond in the Smiley Charity Film Awards. Voting finishes on April 23.