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Enter Stage Write, an annual West Midlands scriptwriting competition with an international judging panel from the world of film and TV, is set to reach a global audience this year.

The innovative competition, which gives budding writers a chance to see their work brought to life, was faced with the Covid-19 lockdown restrictions. However the competition has been adapted for 2021 by streaming online.

About Enter Stage Write

Enter Stage Write was founded in 2017 by actor, producer and solo-entrepreneur Natalie Edwards-Yesufu of the multi-award nominated company Transition Stage Company, in Birmingham to promote regional inclusion and better representation in the creative arts industries in the United Kingdom.

The hugely successful competition encourages script writers to submit a script for a short film. Six of the shortlisted scripts, chosen by a panel of judges made up of prolific industry professionals, will then be performed by local creatives and filmed, rather than performed on stage as done in previous years. This will allow the judges, and members of the public, to view the works of art online. The winning wordsmith will receive £1,000 of prize money and a year of support and meetings with TV and film professionals.

Previous winners of Enter Stage Write have gone onto achieve colossal success within the industry. A previous winner, Abraham Adeyemi, won a Tribeca Award for Best Short Film and is working with ITV. Abraham will be returning this year as a judge alongside the highly-esteemed international judging panel. Last year’s winner, Jonathan skinner, had their script picked by the judges to make into a short film.

Words from Enter Stage Write Founder

“I am ecstatic to relaunch Enter Stage Write 2021 competition and play a leading part in creating an even playing field in the creative sector. Even though the world of theatre has taken a massive hit during the pandemic – ‘The Show Must Go On’.  Enter Stage Write is a scriptwriting competition for the screen too and now more than ever, there is a demand for fresh new voices and content while we watch more TV at home and, of course, the streaming wars. There has never been so much opportunity for writers” says Transition Stage Company Founder, Natalie Yesufu-Edwards

Enter Stage Write Judges

Louise le Puloch will be joining the panel for the first time. Louise works within Frenchkiss Productions based in Paris, who specialise in script development and produces TV shows for Netflix.

Fellow judges also include Darcia Martin, Director for BBC and Channel 4 TV Shows; Chris Sudworth, Director of Artistic Programme at Birmingham Hippodrome; Lisa Walters, Development Executive and Script Editor at Channel 4 and Producer on BAFTA-nominated “On The Edge”; Miguel Parga, Emmy Award-winning Director the USA; Piero Basso, cinematographer and Chair of the Cinematography Program at New York Film Academy; and Anya Camilleri, award-winning Writer and Director.

Scripts can be submitted here.

For further information visit www.transitionstagecompany.com or for other enquiries about Transition Stage Company please contact xenia@seventyonemedia.com.

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Numerous impressively large production trucks were in the car park of the Ramarghia Sikh Temple to film My Name Is Leon. Stewards in hi vis vests were present on Newhall Hill, in Birmingham city centre, as well as Legge Lane and Graham Street. Dining trucks were also in the Sikh Temple car park on March 19.

Lynette Linton will direct the BBC One series based on Kit de Waal’s debut novel My Name is Leon. The forthcoming BBC One drama is scheduled to start filming this month, and stars Lenny Henry and Christopher Ecclestone among others.

Cole Martin (making his screen debut), leads a cast including Malachi Kirby ( Small Axe ), Monica Dolan ( A Very English Scandal ), Olivia Williams ( Counterpart ), Christopher Eccleston, Poppy Lee Friar ( In My Skin ), and Lenny Henry.

Set in 1980s Birmingham, the piece follows a nine year-old mixed race boy Leon, who tries to reunite with his family after being separated from his brother.

Source: www.birminghammail.co.uk

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Create Central has proudly welcomed six new Members to their newly formed Executive Board.

Ed Shedd, Chair of Create Central, said “I am delighted to welcome these six outstanding industry experts to the Create Central Executive Board. They join us at an exciting time as we start to see our hard work over the last year bearing fruit. Each of them brings a wealth of experience from sectors across the creative content industries and I’m very proud to be leading a Board of such incredible calibre.”

The new appointees have taken up their Board positions, and form a new Executive Board of 15, including the Chair.

New Board Members

For more information about the Executive Board and other Members of Create Central see the Members page.

Source: www.createcentraluk.com

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Phoebe Dynevor will lead Sky original movie The Colour Room, which will be filmed in Birmingham and the West Midlands. This marks her first major role since headlining Netflix’s record-breaking Regency-era drama Bridgerton. She will star alongside Matthew Goode.

Dynevor will play the role of Clarice Cliff. She was a pioneering ceramic artist who roared to prominence in the 1920s while working in Britain’s Stoke-on-Trent pottery industry. The Colour Room will start production later this month in Stoke-on-Trent and Birmingham. The film will be released in cinemas and on Sky Cinema later this year.

About the ‘Colour Room’

The Colour Room follows the journey of a determined, working class woman, Clarice Cliff, as she breaks the glass ceiling and revolutionises the workplace in the 20th century. Clarice Cliff (Dynevor) is a vivacious young factory worker in the industrial British midlands of the 1920s… Bursting at the seams with ideas for colours and shapes, Clarice takes more and more dangerous risks. However, she manages to stay one step ahead of the workhouse and impress the eccentric factory owner Colley Shorter (Goode) on the way with her talent and innovation.

“Apprenticed to renowned Art Designer Fred Ridgeway (Morrissey) and with support from Colley and other women in the factory, Clarice fights her way through to design the unprecedented Art Deco ‘Bizarre’ range. In the middle of the Great Depression, she ensures the factory’s survival and her future as one of the greatest Art Deco designers and a household name.”

Peate said: “The story was inspired by a single image; a young factory worker leaving her grim, industrial reality behind her and stepping into the rainbow of the Colour Room. A world of joy and possibility. It was thanks to the script winning at BAFTA Rocliffe and being performed on stage that it was picked up.”

Behind the Scenes

The Colour Room is produced by Caspian Films, Sky, and Creative England/ The feature is based on a BAFTA Rocliffe-winning script from Claire Peate. Ophelia helmer Claire McCarthy directs. Additional cast includes David Morrissey (The Walking Dead), Darci Shaw (Judy), Kerry Fox (Rare Beasts), and Luke Norris (Poldark).

Producers: Thembisa Cochrane (The Harvesters) and Georgie Paget (Queens Of Syria) for Caspian Films, in association with Denaire Motion Picture Poetry and co-producer Neil Jones (Farming). Executive producers: Laura Grange for Sky, Paul Ashton for Creative England’s West Midlands Production Fund, and David Gilbery, Charlie Dorfman, Marlon Vogelgesang for Media Finance Capital, in association with On Sight.

Source: deadline.com

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One of the bright lights of this year’s awards season, BAFTA best actress nominee Bukky Bakray of the film “Rocks” will star in forthcoming BBC One and Netflix drama “You Don’t Know Me.”

Produced by Snowed-In Production and co-produced with Netflix, the show has now begun filming in Birmingham. “You Don’t Know Me”, with support from the BBC, is also running a remote high-end TV training program with Film Birmingham for 10 trainees from underrepresented groups.

The four-part drama turns on a young man named Hero (Samuel Adewunmi) who, with overwhelming evidence against him, stands accused of murder. At his trial, Hero tells an extraordinary story about the woman he loves (Kyra, played by Sophie Wilde), and how he risked everything to save her. Hero swears he is innocent, but can we believe him?

Bukky Bakray plays Bless, Hero’s younger sister, who is a guiding force for her older brother and believes fiercely in his innocence.

“You Don’t Know Me” will air on flagship channel BBC One and VOD service iPlayer in the U.K. while Netflix has global rights outside the U.K., Ireland and China.

Crew

The project is an adaptation of Imran Mahmood’s bestselling novel, and is written by “The Crown” and “Judy” writer Tom Edge. It’s directed by Sarmad Masud (“My Pure Land,” “Bulletproof”). Along with Bukky Bakray, the series also stars Roger Jean Nsengiyumva (“Tomb Raider”), Tuwaine Barrett (“The Personal History of David Copperfield”), Yetunde Oduwole (“Carnage”) and Nicholas Khan (“Transformers: The Last Knight”). Series producer is Jules Hussey (“Guilt”), while producer is Rienkje Attoh (“Noughts + Crosses”). Executive producers are Ruth Kenley-Letts, Neil Blair and Jenny Van Der Lande (“Mrs Wilson”) and Kate Crowe (“Taboo”). Lucy Richer (“Small Axe”) is executive producing for the BBC.

Snowed-In Productions previously produced Ruth Wilson starrer “Mrs Wilson” for BBC One and ITV mini-series “Too Close,” starring Emily Watson and Denise Gough.

Source: variety.com

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The BBC has confirmed it will relocate high profile national journalism jobs from London to the regions, including to the Midlands, the North West and Yorkshire.

Specialist journalism teams covering topics such as the environment, technology, and education will be relocated from London to new bases in Leeds, Birmingham, Cardiff and Glasgow. In total, 400 jobs will move out of London. Proposals are set out in the BBC’s blueprint for the future entitled The BBC Across the UK. The BBC says they “represent top-to-bottom change and will cement our commitment to better reflect, represent, and serve all parts of the country”.

See what specific projects are coming to the West Midlands here.

Plans set out in detail in the Across the UK blueprint

• Major parts of BBC News to shift across the UK – Significant parts of BBC News will be moved to centres across the UK, ensuring it covers the stories that matter most to audiences and more effectively represents different voices and perspectives. Half of UK-focused story teams will be based around the country
• A truly UK-wide BBC – Newsbeat and Asian Network will be based in Birmingham; Salford will become the main base for the digital and technology teams supported by digital teams in Glasgow, Cardiff and London; there will be an expansion of BBC Studios bases in Bristol, Cardiff and Glasgow; an upgraded Belfast HQ; in radio, ; while Radio 3 and 6 Music will be rooted in Salford.
• A doubling of the BBC’s commitment to apprentices – 1,000 apprentices will be supported in any year across the UK and the BBC will pilot an Apprentice Training Agency in the West Midlands.
• A big investment in BBC local reporting – A network of digital community journalists will enhance regional news provision; there will be a tailored BBC One across Yorkshire, North West and North East England; up to six new peak-time BBC local radio services will be introduced – including in Wolverhampton, Bradford and Sunderland; and new BBC local on-demand bulletins for over 50 areas on BBC Sounds.
• By 2027/28 the BBC says it will be spending at the very least, an extra £700m cumulatively across the UK – generating an additional economic benefit of over £850m. It says this will not only dramatically increase opportunities for jobs and training, but improve representation on and off screen.

Tim Davie, BBC Director-General, said: “Our mission must be to deliver for the whole of the UK and ensure every household gets value from the BBC. These plans will get us closer to audiences, create jobs and investment, and develop and nurture new talent.

“Over the last year, the BBC – which has been an essential part of the UK’s culture, democracy and creativity for almost a century – has helped inform, educate and entertain all four Nations, as we have collectively faced some of our toughest moments in recent history. Now, as we look to the future, we must play our part in supporting social and economic recovery; rebuilding the creative sector and telling the stories that need to be heard from all corners of the UK.”

Further plans

• A transformation in the way the BBC commissions TV programmes – For the first time, a clear majority of our UK-wide TV will be made across the UK, not in London: at least 60% of network TV commissions by spend.
• A transformation in the commissioning and production of network radio and online audio – 50% of network radio and music spend will be outside London by 2027/28.
• Strengthening the creative economy right across the UK – The BBC will renew creative partnerships with Northern Ireland Screen and Creative Scotland, create a new one with Creative Wales, and focus on partnerships in the North and Midlands in England.
• In addition, news and current affairs programmes like BBC Two’s Newsnight will be presented from different UK bases through the year and Radio 4’s Today programme will be co-presented from outside London for at least 100 episodes a year. The BBC One daytime show Morning Live will be broadcast year-round from Salford.
• Funds will be invested in two new long-running network drama series over the next three years – one from the North of England and one from one of the Nations; over the same period, more than 100 new and returning drama and comedy titles will reflect the lives and communities of audiences outside London, including at least 20 that will portray Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.
• In radio, key daytime programmes on each of Radio 1, 1Xtra and Radio 2 will be made across the UK and each network radio controller will have at least one commissioner based in one of the BBC’s hubs around the UK by 2027.

The changes are expected to take place over six years from 2022. The aim of this strategy appears to mirror that of Channel 4’s relocation two years ago, with The Guardian reporting it aligns with the Government’s levelling-up agenda and will see the broadcaster cover underserved communities.

Source: www.thebusinessdesk.com

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BFI Film Audience Network (FAN) are looking for a Midlands-based marketing freelancer to support the release of two new feature films in May-June including the upcoming Sound of Metal (18 May) as part of FAN New Release Support, a UK wide project led by Watershed in Bristol.

This is an opportunity for you to connect with other freelance practitioners from across the UK, work closely with venues and get insights about the opportunities the BFI Film Audience Network has on offer. The BFI Film Audience Network (FAN)  is a collaboration of eight Film Hubs (Film Hub Midlands is one of them) with a membership of over 1,300 cinemas, film festivals and other film exhibitors across the UK.

Applicants should be passionate about film, into arts, culture and entertainment, experienced in marketing and or arts/event promotion preferably in the Midlands, organised, pro-active, a self-starter, and good at networking and building relationships.

Read more about the role here.

Source: dialfforfreelancer.com

Happy International Women’s Day! Do you want to support women who work in the UK Film and TV industry? Here is a list of useful links for this International Women’s Day and beyond:

Listen

• Girls on Film is a film review podcast from a female perspective, hosted by critic and broadcaster Anna Smith. She has just started a 365 day campaign with daily recommendations of female-directed movies. Find out more here.

• This Universi-tea podcast from the University of Southampton features Dr Shelley Cobb who campaigns for equality in the film industry. Listen to Shelley on ‘The Feminist Film Fanatic‘  here.

Learn

• The Conversation, while examining television drama, points out that there has been an unfortunate decrease in the contributions from women in senior roles. Read the full article here which features Channel 4 commissioning editor Fozia Khan speaking about hiring biases she faced.

• A report on gender imbalance across theatre, film and TV industries have revealed ‘disgraceful’ gender inequality in the arts. The Women in Theatre Forum Report UK‘s findings range from the unfair burden of care falling on female workers to the lack of female presence in film, where only 16% of working film-makers are female, and 14% of prime-time TV is written by women. Read more here.

• Shades of Noir‘s article point out that while women are underrepresented in key creative and decision making roles, such as screenwriting, directing and technical roles across the film and television workforce, black women and women from minority ethnicities are even less represented. You can hear their take here.

• Read this impassioned Huffington Post article from Tiffany Kozio on why the UK Needs more Black Female Film Directors. In it, she cites research from Directors UK concluding that gender inequality in the UK is due to unconscious bias in the industry and that large scale, industry wide intervention is required to tackle this issue. Read it here.

Join

• Women in Film and TV is the leading membership organisation for women working in creative media in the UK. They host a variety of events throughout the year, present a prestigious annual awards ceremony, run a mid-career mentoring programme for women, run bursary initiatives, collaborate on research projects and lobby for women’s interests. Find out more about them and join here.

• Birds Eye View is a women-led organisation which champions women-led films through their movement “Reclaim The Frame”. They regularly host screenings throughout the UK and virtually. Join them here.

DEMON, a Birmingham film being described as a “millennial noir film” is set to hit the film festival circuit this month.

Filmed in the Midlands and London, it is directed by George Bartlett and stars Ryan Walker-Edwards, both from Birmingham. The two self-produced a neo-noir psychological drama with a DIY approach, which you can read more about here. DEMON is set to premiere in competition this year at Cinequest Virtual Festival (titled “Cinejoy” and occurring March 1-14) and the live Cinequest Film Festival (August 16-30 in Silicon Valley).

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