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Jan 31
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EE films 5G spot starring Bastille at Birmingham New Street Station

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A new spot promoting EE’s rollout of 5G across the UK saw the brand stage “The Worlds First 5G-powered AR performance” at Birmingham’s New Street Station. British band Bastille, who were also chosen to soundtrack John Lewis’ 2019 Christmas ad, put on the show which was streamed live to rail passengers in transport hubs across the UK.

360 cameras captured the performance which was layered over with augmented reality animations while being streamed perfectly in sync across the UK. Passengers at Birmingham New Street were encouraged to put on Nreal glasses to experience the AR effects, while across the UK mobile phones with an EE themed portal let people walk through and into the live music experience.

Film Birmingham, the city’s film & television office helped facilitate the shoot which took place in November. Sindy Campbell, Head of Film Birmingham says “as the location is run by Network Rail, the production company liaised with the station directly to use the station. Film Birmingham’s part was finding a suitable unit base, a local security firm, waste management, bus lane closure and sourcing and delivering 40 panels for heras fencing within 2 hours”.

According to recent estimates from the Office of Rail and Road, Birmingham New Street was the busiest station outside of London welcoming almost forty-eight million passengers in 2018/19, ranking fifth in the UK.

Campbell notes that “the production were concerned about the numbers of people using the station and showing up to see the band. We sourced a local security firm that had worked around the clock to ensure the location was secure and manage the crowds.  A bus lane closure was required for the cherry picker to gain access to the station. Film Birmingham facilitated this, liaising with all involved and co-ordinating the get in/out whilst ensuring public safety”.

Source: www.thelocationguide.com

 

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Jan 31
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Nominate British Asian Film and Creative Talent in the ACTA Awards – Deadline March 20th

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Eastern Eye’s Arts Culture & Theatre Awards (ACTA) recognise British Asian talent in a wide range of disciplines, including literature, film, television, theatre, comedy, music, dance, visual arts and contribution to the creative industries in general.

According to the Department for Digital, Media, Culture and Sport (DCMS), the creative sector’s worth rose from £94.8 billion in 2016 to £101.5 billion in 2018, and has grown at nearly twice the rate of the broader UK economy since 2010.

What is significant is that British Asian involvement in the arts is growing year on year, as we have seen with ACTA, which has certainly made a difference since it was launched in 2016. What is really important is that there should be week to week coverage of the sector, which is why Eastern Eye has now introduced a dedicated arts & culture section in the paper.

This is just a selection of the 2019 ACTA winners: Mandip Gill (assistant to Dr Who) for Eastern Eye People’s Choice Award, voted for by the public and Eastern Eye readers; Sudha Bhuchar and Kristine Landon-Smith for their outstanding contribution to the creative industry; Nitin Ganatra and Shobna Gulati for theatre; Vinay Patel for best scriptwriter; Ash Tandon for best TV actor; Paul Chowdhry for comedy; Indhu Rubasingham for best director; the Singh Twins for art; and so on.

In successive years, the V&A, Tate Modern, the Science Museum and The Queen’s Gallery in Buckingham Palace have also been recognised for their contributions to British Asian society at large.

Britain is extraordinarily rich in the creative industries and it has to be emphasised that the arts are for everyone. ACTA is a step in trying to achieve that goal. Eastern Eye aims through ACTA to give British Asian artists it full support.

Nominate your ideal awardees by March 20, 2020.

 

Source: www.actas.co.uk

 

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Jan 30
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ShortFuse logo

Submit Your Short Film to Film Birmingham’s ShortFuse Film Night

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Film Birmingham is open year-round for submissions to its ShortFuse film nights in 2020! West Midlands filmmakers have the chance to screen their short films at the Mockingbird Cinema and Kitchen to an audience of their peers and film enthusiasts.

ShortFuse is a bi-monthly event, aiming to engage with regional audiences and provide a platform for the work of emerging filmmakers. We are also proud to have premiered a number of regional films at our film night, and opened the floor to a number of award-winning filmmakers. We are accepting films of any genre from emerging or established filmmakers for our regional events in 2020.

Past ShortFuse Events

Past events at the Mockingbird Cinema showcased regional films, including the BAFTA-winning short 73 Cows, directed by Alex Lockwood, Sylvia, winner of the American Pavilion Emerging Filmmaker award at Cannes and award-winning Faith, by renowned stuntman Nick McKinless. Audience members are invited to participate in a Q&A with filmmakers following the screening and to network at a post-event mingle.

Filmmaker Adam Palmer, whose short film Answer was featured on ShortFuse’s opening night, said: “It’s great that ShortFuse offers a platform to showcase the work of filmmakers who sometimes get overlooked in the Midlands; it’s often London and elsewhere. There are some really great films screened as well. “If you have a short film, submit it. You get to watch it with an audience so you can gauge how your film is. A lot of the time you sit there one-on-one with your film. You don’t know how it’s going to be received so it’s good to be part of a community of filmmakers and film lovers.”

Attendee Lee Davis said: “When I saw the regional films, it made me feel like filmmaking is something I could do. I thought the range of the films was very varied, and it was good to hear from BAFTA-winners.”

To Submit

Please email shortfuse@filmbirmingham.co.uk with the following info:

All films must be under 30 minutes. If selected, you will then be asked to provide a hi-res version of your film.

Please email shortfuse@filmbirmingham.co.uk or call us at 0121 303 6089 for any further information.

 

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Jan 29
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Apply for a ScreenSkills Industry Mentor! Deadline 31st January

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The ScreenSkills Mentoring Network runs across all sectors of the screen industry and across the UK. It is aimed at:

  • New entrants
  • Those who want to progress within or across the industry
  • Those who want to return after a break

Mentoring is a partnership where a more experienced mentor shares their knowledge and expertise with a less experienced mentee. The mentee is encouraged, challenged and supported by the mentor to learn and grow. If you are interested in becoming a mentor yourself please click here.

If you are interested in being part of the mentoring scheme as a mentee, we want to hear from you!
We run phased targeted intakes focusing on, for example, an under-represented group, a skills gap, stage of career etc. as identified by BFI and ScreenSkills research. These form part of the eligibility criteria as well as where mentoring can make the most impact and is the right activity for your development needs. Previous intakes of mentees have focussed on people from minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds, people returning to the screen industries after a break and those based in regions outside of London.

The deadline for applications for the next intake of mentees is 31 January 2020. We aim to start matching mentoring pairs from this intake in early February 2020.

We are however welcome to anyone registering interest in becoming a mentee at any time. We may not be able to match you straight away, but we will do our best to find a suitable match. Once you register your interest, we will send you communications relating to development and mentoring. Keep coming back here and sign up to our newsletter or follow us on Twitter or Facebook for the most up to date information.

Once you are matched you will be offered guidance and support to ensure you are able to get the best from mentoring. We will also ask you to sign a mentoring agreement and we will share with you the code of conduct.

How to apply

To register your interest, please follow the below two steps:

1. Create a ScreenSkills profile. Please follow this link to do so
2. Click the ‘Sign-Up to find a mentor’ button on this page to complete a short form in which you will be asked to upload a short video or written essay on why you would like to take part in mentoring and your passion for the screen industries

It is important that you tell us as much as possible about yourself when you register your interest and what you are looking from the mentoring partnership. The project runs to March 2022.

If you have any questions, please contact: mentoring@screenskills.com.

 

Source: www.screenskills.com

 

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Jan 27
Love0

BFI Doc Society Fund Webinar

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Thinking about applying to the BFI Doc Society Fund? Got some questions? Need a steer?

Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered! The BFI Doc Society team are on hand and online, looking forward to speaking with you, whatever stage you are at with a project. Get tips on how to apply, how the team evaluate submissions and what to expect once you’ve submitted a project.

 

Details

Date: Thursday, 6th February 2020

Time: 13:00 – 14:00 [GMT]

Locations: This is a virtual discussion. Dial-in details will be emailed to you following registration.

Register here.

 

What will you learn?

We will be covering the following, but this is an interactive webinar so come prepared with your questions!

  • Who’s in the Room? – get to know the BFI Doc Society Fund team
  • Fund Overview: criteria, timelines, the vision
  • Application Process: dos, don’ts, tips
  • Evaluation and Decisions: How does the team evaluate projects?
  • What happens if you’re selected? Contracts, production process, timelines, legals
  • Support Programme: regional events, resources and other activities

 

About the BFI Doc Society Fund

Doc Society has been awarded up to £1m of National Lottery funds a year to provide funding for UK documentary films, along with a dedicated support programme for new and emerging filmmakers as part of BFI NETWORK. Working in partnership with the BFI, Doc Society will have a strong focus on deepening regional and national opportunities to enable talent UK-wide to tell transformational stories that maximise the potential of the genre. It will also employ a creative approach to reaching audiences that will reflect the rapidly evolving distribution space.

More info and to apply here.

Fund Guidelines: here

Feature Fund Open: 29th January 2020 (10:00am GMT)

Feature Fund Deadline: 26th February, 12:00pm GMT

 

Source: www.eventbrite.co.uk

 

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Jan 27
Love0

Writers and Directors Wanted for Casualty and Holby City – Deadline February 29th

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BBC Studios Continuing Drama are seeking a new generation of writers and directors to reflect the stories of today’s Britain on its multi-award-winning dramas Casualty and Holby City. If you are passionate about bringing your voice to one of these shows then they would like to hear from you. You must be able to demonstrate a familiarity with your chosen show and a relevant and recent credit.

Casualty – Writers

Casualty seeks writers with a fresh perspective to write for this award winning flagship BBC series. If you are passionate about bringing your voice to this show then they would like to hear from you. You must be familiar with the show’s characters and have watched a minimum of 10 episodes. You will need to have a writing credit, either in film or TV. For film this would be a short or feature at a prestigious and recognised film festival. For TV you need a writer’s credit on a broadcast show (within the last two years).

Casualty – Directors

Casualty are also looking for directors with a fresh perspective. You will need to have watched at least 10 episodes and have an enthusiasm for the show and understand its ambition and style. You will have taken a short or feature to a prestigious and recognised international film festival – with a showreel to evidence this.

Submissions for Casualty

All writers and directors must submit a maximum 500 word (do not exceed word count as it won’t be read) pitch on why your perspective will bring about fresh stories and ambition for the show. Writers must submit a minimum of a 45 minute original script for television, film or stage (i.e. not a Casualty script) with an accompanying Casualty guest story pitch of no more than 500 words. Directors must also submit a 5 minute showreel, with two industry references.

Email your Casualty submission to FreshPerspectiveCasualty@bbc.co.uk

Submission are open from Saturday 18th January to Saturday 29th February 2020 

The Casualty team will read and watch all submissions, however sadly they cannot provide individual feedback on submissions due to the small size of the Casualty team and the high volume of submissions anticipated.

Holby City

Whilst Holby City is not running a specific writers’ scheme at this time, the team are still very keen to hear from writers and potential directors.

Holby City is a 60-minute award-winning show that requires significant TV and film writing and directing experience and credits. You must demonstrate a minimum of credits as per the Casualty scheme listed above. Credits must be from TV or Film.

Submissions for Holby City

Writers must submit a maximum 500 word statement on why your perspective will bring about fresh stories on the show, a maximum 500 word guest story pitch, accompanied by a minimum 60 minute film or TV script. Directors must submit a 500 word statement of why their perspective is fresh, a five minute showreel (please do not send a short film) and two industry references up to 500 words each.

Email your Holby City submission  to holby.talent@bbc.co.uk

The team at Holby City will read and watch all submissions, however sadly they cannot provide individual feedback on each submission due to the small size of the Holby City team and high volume of submissions anticipated.

Submission are open from Saturday 18th January to Saturday 29th February 2020 

Additional Information

If you feel that you do not have the required experience at this stage, but you do have experience of telling exceptional short form work, for film, TV or stage, please submit a maximum 500 word statement on why your voice is needed on one of the long running Continuing Drama series and which show you want to write or direct for: Pobol y Cwm, River City, Doctors.

Your statement must be accompanied by an original script for television, radio, film or stage or showreel.  For River City writer submissions it needs to be a minimum 60 minute script, For Pobol y Cwm or Doctors it needs to be a minimum 30 minute script. Please do not send short films.

Please send your submission to CDS.Talent@bbc.co.uk

This open call will close on Saturday 29th February 2020

Find out more by attending one of the Roadshows

Please note that these opportunities are in addition to the BBC Studios Writers’ Academy and the BBC Continuing Drama Directors’ Scheme from BBC Writersroom and Directors UK (which also covers EastEnders)

To explore other writing opportunities from the BBC and other organisations visit the BBC Writersroom opportunities page

 

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

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Jan 22
Love1

Apply for BFI NETWORK Midlands co-working space

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If you’re a Midlands based filmmaker, you can apply to join the BFI NETWORK co-working space for the free use of shared work space at Broadway Cinema, Nottingham.

You should apply if you are looking to develop your projects and would benefit from having access to a shared work space with the opportunity to discuss ideas in a collaborative and supportive environment.

 Benefits include:

  • Free desk space in Broadway’s Studio or Workshop every Monday for six months.
  • Access to a programme of workshops and other skills development opportunities.
  • Opportunities to share work with other coworking members.
  • A chance to showcase of your work in progress to peers.
  • Discounted cinema tickets.
  • Discounted food and drink from Broadway’s cafe bars.
  • Free tea, coffee and Wi-Fi.

Is Broadway Cinema too far to commute?

Please contact us if you are interested in co-working space but unable to commute to Nottingham. We have been afforded this space through a donation of resource made by Broadway Cinema, but we are keen to ensure filmmakers who are not in the Nottingham vicinity are also supported. This support will also be available on a first-come-first-served basis and dependent on applicant eligibility and budget availability.

Am I eligible to apply?

  • You must be aged 18 or over and not in full time education.
  • You are a Midlands based filmmaker who has yet to have a feature film theatrically distributed.
  • You have a previous creative track record and evidence of this – You will need to have a BFI NETWORK Postroom account.
  • Clarity in articulating how co-working membership will support the development of your project, filmmaking and professional development.

Please make sure you read both the Further information and Terms documents before applying.

Further Information

Download BFI NET Coworking Membership (005).docx (3). 0.19Mb / PDF
Download Coworking space Terms (002).docx (1). 0.17Mb / PDF

To Apply

Complete the BFI NETWORK Midlands co-working membership application form HERE.
Source: www.filmhubmidlands.org

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Jan 13
Love0

Tributes to Tony Garnett, producer of Kes, Cathy Come Home and This Life

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Tributes have been paid to Birmingham-born TV and film producer Tony Garnett following his death at the age of 83. Originally an actor, Garnett produced such seminal Ken Loach works as Cathy Come Home and Kes, and later produced influential TV series This Life. World Productions, the TV company he founded, said he died on Sunday “after a short illness“. Loach said Garnett “believed in drama, in film and its power to communicate truth”.

“He understood the basic conflict at the heart of society, between those with power who exploit and those who are exploited,” the director told Radio 4’s Today programme, “He was a brilliant, complex man, intensely loyal and generous-spirited.”

Line of Duty creator Jed Mercurio said he was “an inspirational figure who’ll be greatly missed”. He wrote on Twitter: “Tony was instrumental in giving me my break into TV when I was a junior hospital doctor who’d never written anything. They don’t make ’em like him any more.”

Garnett was also remembered with affection by former Line of Duty cast member Daniel Mays, who called him “the nicest man… Very sad to hear of the passing of the great Tony Garnett,” he wrote. “His legacy and body of work is truly exceptional.”

New Tricks writer Lisa Holdsworth, who chairs the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain, wrote: “Every TV writer in the UK owes him a debt of gratitude. He elevated our medium by showing how fierce, relevant and vital it could be.” Other writers and actors added heartfelt tributes on Twitter.

Born in Birmingham in 1936, Garnett began his career on screen in 1960s TV shows including Emergency Ward 10 and Z Cars. His subsequent work with Loach, Jim Allen and others was characterised by hard-hitting social realism. Through World Productions, the company he founded in 1990, he executive produced such TV series as Between the Lines, Ballykissangel and This Life. The latter, he revealed at a BFI talk last year, came about when Michael Jackson, then controller of BBC Two, wanted a drama “about young people who are just starting their first jobs”.

“He said, ‘Could they be lawyers?'” Garnett recalled. “I said, ‘They can be anything you like Michael.'” The show, about a group of young lawyers sharing a house in London, ran for two series and gave early breaks to rising stars like Jack Davenport and Andrew Lincoln.

Garnett enjoyed much success at the BBC but could be highly critical of the corporation.

“I have criticised the BBC in the past because I think it’s very important for all of us,” he said in 2014,  “I’m a defender of the BBC but at the same time a loyal defender of the opposition.”

 

Source: BBC News

 

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Jan 08
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New Year Honours 2020: CBE for Birmingham’s Peaky Blinders creator

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The writer and creator of hit BBC drama Peaky Blinders has become a CBE in the Queen’s New Year Honours. Steven Knight was recognised for services to drama, entertainment and the community in Birmingham, which provided the inspiration and setting for the programme.

On finding out about his CBE, Mr Knight, whose film and TV credits also include Taboo, Dirty Pretty Things and Eastern Promises, said it was “amazing”.

Mr Knight, who grew up in Birmingham’s Small Heath area, joked he would be celebrating “Tommy Shelby style”, saying the fictional gangster “occasionally has a bottle of champagne… So that’s what I’ll do. I am very honoured to receive this award and would like to think it might reflect on the people of Birmingham whose stories and spirit have informed a substantial part of my work.”

The 60-year-old, who also wrote BBC One’s adaptation of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, created Peaky Blinders based on retellings of his parents’ childhoods growing up in Birmingham in the 1920s. It first aired in 2013 and has now run to five series, attracting a global following of fans.

“I’ve just finished writing series six and it’s the best yet,” Mr Knight, who lives in East Sussex, said, “but we always say that.”

In October, Mr Knight revealed plans to launch a new group to boost creative output in the West Midlands, including a £100m film and TV studio. Much of the first series of the drama following Birmingham’s gangsters was filmed in Yorkshire after “a combination of the Luftwaffe and the local council in the 60s and 70s” made filming in the city difficult, Mr Knight told Radio 4. He has been a vocal advocate for Birmingham, which he said suffers from “self-deprecation”, and hopes the new studios will be transformative for the region. He also made the city the venue for the first official Peaky Blinders festival.

 

Jan 08
Love0
still

Zombie apocalypse film ‘Still’ filmed in Birmingham goes viral

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A Bewdley film company’s short movie about a living statue street artist caught in the midst of a zombie apocalypse has gone viral. Dark Matter Films’ seven-minute video has racked up more than half a million times since it was made public on YouTube in December 2019.

‘Still’ was shot in Birmingham’s bustling Jewellery Quarter in 2015 and has since been doing the rounds at 25 film festivals all over the world, where it won nine awards. This is the first time the movie has been available to watch for free online, and filmmaker Carl Timms has been blown away by the response, with one commenter describing it as the “most original idea I’ve seen for a zombie apocalypse movie”.

‘Still’ was funded entirely by crowdfunding and was shot in just two days. It featured more than 100 Midlands-based extras and crew.

Dark Matter Films’ follow-up short movie Off Grid had its London premiere on Friday (December 13) as part of a five-day Lift-Off London Film Festival.

People can watch ‘Still’ in full here.

Source: www.worcesternews.co.uk

 

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