(Still: All the Devil's Men starring Milo Gibson)

“Assistant Directing is a brilliant role. A Runner on the last film I worked on said you are the cushions of the set; you support the crew at all times and keep morale high and that's what I want to keep doing”

It’s work experience time for the Assistant Directing and Floor Managing Diploma students so we caught up with two of the students, Charlotte Smith and Eline van Oeveren, as well as Richard Lingard from the Assistant Directing Association and Helen Fraser, experienced Assistant Director and visiting NFTS Tutor, to find out more. If you are inspired by their stories, apply now and start in September 2017 - more info at www.nfts.co.uk/assistantdirecting

Charlotte Smith

Since joining the NFTS, I have done so many things I would not have been able to achieve without the support of the School. I have worked on student projects as a 1st AD which was really good fun but a real challenge. I have also had opportunities to work on professional sets including Stan and Ollie directed by Jon. S Baird and All the Devils Men, at West London Studios. These gave me real insights into a professional AD department which I am extremely grateful for and has cemented my interest in the AD role even more. I have recently secured a freelance Floor Assistant job on Emmerdale at ITV Yorkshire in Leeds. This has been an incredible experience so far. My main role on set is to help the cast when they struggle with the lines and prompt them during line run through. I also support the AD department and look after the cast on set. I mainly communicate with the Script Supervisor and the AD department and cast. A typical day on Emmerdale can be long from 7am until 7pm but it is really enjoyable.

(The Woolpack - famous pub in Emmerdale)

When I graduate, I hope to pursue a job in the AD department hopefully as a 3rd AD or Floor Runner then work my way up the ladder. In the far far future I hope to become a director but AD’ing is a great way to work up close to the director and experience the creative process. AD’ing is a brilliant role. A Runner on the last film I worked on said you are the cushions of the set; you support the crew at all times and keep morale high and that's what I want to keep doing."

Eline van Oeveren

I've already completed work experience on a few feature films as a dailies runner in the UK and I am currently doing work experience as a Production Assistant at Lukkien, a media company in my hometown in the Netherlands. I am assisting on multiple commercials for a range of companies including Yulu, Haribo and Fonq. Lukkien has made commercials for Philips, Nintendo and the studios were home to one of the seasons of The Voice of Holland. I've done set dressing, catering, and general running tasks. The sets for Fonq in particular were very abstract and beautiful.

Coming to the NFTS (and the UK in general) was life changing. I've gained so much experience over the past half year, not just in work but in life as well. I really feel like I've grown as a person. The most interesting experiences so far have been the work experience on the feature films where I got to meet loads of talented people. Seeing how it actually works in the industry is an amazing way to learn.

(John C. Reilly and Steve Coogan to star in Stan and Ollie biopic directed by Jon S Baird)

Richard Lingard, Training Co-ordinator, Assistant Directors Association (ADA)

The Assistant Directing and Floor Managing Diploma is delivered in partnership with the BBC, supported by the Assistant Directors Association and the Production Guild.

Richard Lingard, Training Co-ordinator at the ADA arranged for four of the AD students to experience working on action-thriller, All The Devil’s Men written and directed by Matthew Hope, produced by Hannah Leader and starring Milo Gibson, William Fichtner and Sylvia Hoeks. They have been working on a range of scenes including car interiors using green screen as well as stunts and fight scenes.

“Although it was early starts and long days for all, all the students agreed it was a fantastic experience and opportunity to make valuable contacts for the future. They felt that the placements increased their skills and knowledge of the film industry and kick-started their professional network. Some have already gone on to find more work with ADA professionals on the back of these placements”.

Paul Bennett, 2^nd Assistant Director on the production said: "You’re obviously doing something right with the trainee scheme as all the students we had were brilliant. Punctual, enthusiastic and with a great knowledge of what was going on and what was expected from them. It's not always easy for even a seasoned AD to come onto a film that's been shooting for a while but each student we had on set proved themselves to be valuable members of our team.”

Helen Fraser, Assistant Director and NFTS Visiting Tutor

Helen Fraser is an experienced Assistant Director having worked as 2^nd AD on productions such as High Rise, Victoria, A Royal Night Out and Sunshine on Leith. She has worked with all the AD students on drama, The Children Act starring Emma Thompson: “I had all of the students out on various dates throughout the production and they primarily worked with the onset AD's, particularly the Runners & 3rd AD. They assisted with the day-to-day running of the set and looking after cast & background”. 

(Emma Thompson - starring in The Children Act)

One of the students, Lilla Vindic spent a week working with Helen on her current production as she had a particular interest in becoming a 2nd AD. “Her experience centred more around the last week of prep/beginning of shooting and she observed the Production Meeting, Read Through, Rehearsal Process, Camera Tests, and spent time with both 2nd AD's (one prepping, one shooting) & the Crowd 2nd.”

According to Helen, “It's great to have a course that actively trains and encourages young members of the industry to become Assistant Directors. As we all know, the role of Assistant Director is essential to the smooth running of any production and the NFTS course gives the students opportunity to learn & train in all levels of the department. The students on the NFTS Diploma are ambitious, focused and hardworking. All of them have been keen to learn and welcome feedback, both good and critical. They have been a welcome addition when on work experience.

She has the following advice for aspiring ADs: “Be prepared to work long hours & be prepared to work hard. Be friendly, polite, helpful, approachable, organised & thick skinned. Buy good comfy shoes & decent waterproofs. Observe, listen & learn from everyone around you, and don't worry if you make mistakes starting out. The best thing about mistakes is you learn from them - just don't repeat them! Oh and don't sit down on set! And put your phone away!”

And on the highlights of working as an AD: “The sense of achievement when a plan comes together & when a challenging day runs smoothly!”

For more information on the Assistant Directing and Floor Managing Diploma, which starts September 2017, and to apply, please visit www.nfts.co.uk/assistantdirecting

(Mahalia picking up her BAFTA! Credit: BAFTA)

We are extremely proud of our Directing Fiction MA graduate Mahalia Belo who has won the Breakthrough Talent award at this year’s BAFTA Television Craft Awards for her work on the critically acclaimed Channel 4 single drama Ellen, starring Jessie Barden. Ellen credits a number of NFTS graduates including DoP, Chloe Thomson; Editor Carmela Iandoli; Composer, Jonathan Hill; Production Designer, Laura Ellis Cricks (formerly Tarrant-Brown) and Art Director Thalia Ecclestone.

(Still from Ellen)

Mahalia graduated from the NFTS in 2012 and her graduation film, Volume premiered at Sundance and won the British Independent Film Award for Best Short Film. She was subsequently featured on the cover of Screen’s ‘Stars of Tomorrow’ issue and is currently in pre-production on original psychological horror Requiem’, directing all six episodes for BBC 1.

Other productions receiving accolades at the Television Craft BAFTAs, which credit NFTS graduates include: The Night Manager, which received the BAFTA for Best Sound: Fiction (NFTS Sound Recording graduate, Juan Montoto Ugarte; Sound Assistant), and The Crown, which picked up the BAFTA for Special, Visual and Graphic Effects and had NFTS graduates, Victor Tomi on the crew as a Compositor and Jorge Canada Escorihuela as an Additional VFX Supervisor.

Meanwhile, the nominations for the Virgin TV British Academy Television Awards have been announced and over 30 NFTS graduates are credited! This year’s ceremony will be held at London’s Royal Festival Hall on Sunday 14 May. Credits are as follows:

Best Drama Series

The Crown:  Script Editor, Edward Hemming; Editor, Una Ni Dhonghaile; Digital Compositor, Victor Tomi; Sound FX Editor, Alex Ellerington; Additional VFX Supervisor, Jorge Canada Escorihuela; Rerecording Mixers, Stuart Hilliker & Martin Jensen; Additional Music Composer, Evan Jolly

The Durrells:  Additional Music, Jon Wygens

War and Peace:  Composer, Martin Phipps; Rerecording Mixer, Stuart Hilliker;     Boom Operator, Vytautas Kizala; Sound FX Editor, Alex Ellerington; Matchmove Artist, Sarah Byers

Best Factual Series

24 Hours in Police Custody: Assistant Editors, Manuela Lupini and Pawel Slawek

Exodus: Our Journey to Europe: Editors, Simon Sykes; Nick Fenton and Sunshine Jackson

Best Mini-Series

The Hollow Crown: The Wars of the Roses: Art Department Assistant, Jamie Burrows

National Treasure: Supervising Sound Editor, Paul Davies; Post-Production Co-ordinator, Katherine Pearl

Witness for the Prosecution: DoP Felix Wiedemann

Best Reality & Constructed Factual

First Dates (Series 7): Composer, Miguel d’Oliveira

The Secret Life of 5 Year Olds: Director, Jackie Waldock

Best Scripted Comedy

Fleabag:  Graphic Designer, Clare Winkworth; Sound Maintenance, Howard Peryer

Best Single Drama

Aberfan: The Green Hollow: Sound Effects Editor, Vicente Villaescusa

Murdered by My Father: DoP, Felix Wiedemann

NW: Sound Effects Editor, Matis Rei

Best Soap & Continuing Drama

Casualty: Director, Matthew Evans; Writer, Laura Poliakoff

Eastenders: Writer, Laura Poliakoff

Emmerdale: Director, Diana Patrick

And finally, an impressive 33 NFTS students and graduates have been selected for the BAFTA Crew programme, which connects emerging talent with writers, directors and producers, providing a rare opportunity for peer to peer networking and development across all key roles within production – they include:

Abigail Dankwa, Director

Alexandra Harwood, Composer

Andrea Cuadrado, Editing

Andrew Alderslade, Camera

Andrew Oldbury, Producer

Ani Laurie, Director

Anushka Naanayakkara, Director

Bojan Brbora, Camera

Caroline Bridges, Camera

Chiara Ventura, Producer

Elena Ruscombe-King, Writer

Emily Morgan, Producer

Eva Weber, Director

Fawzia Mahmood, Producer

Fiona Brands, Editing

Frances Poletti, Writer

Hannah Cole, Producer

Ian Forbes, Camera

Ina Remme, Producer

Jac Clinch, Director

Katherine Pearl, Production Management

Louis Dodd, Composer

Maddie Quarm, Sound (Production)

Manuela Lupini, Editing

Mike Forshaw, Director

Nosa Eke, Director

Pawel Slawek, Editing

Samantha Rhodes, Editing

Simona Susnea, Camera

Sophie Halton, Production Management

Thomas Blazukas, Sound (Post Production)

Tim Morrish, Composer

Vera Simmonds, Editing

For further information

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About BT

BT’s purpose is to use the power of communications to make a better world. It is one of the world’s leading providers of communications services and solutions, serving customers in 180 countries. Its principal activities include the provision of networked IT services globally; local, national and international telecommunications services to its customers for use at home, at work and on the move; broadband, TV and internet products and services; and converged fixed-mobile products and services.  BT consists of six customer-facing lines of business: Consumer, EE, Business and Public Sector, Global Services, Wholesale and Ventures, and Openreach.

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¹The results for the period have been revised to reflect the outcome of the investigation into our Italian business. Detail of which is set out in our third quarter results announcement published on 27 January 2017.  This financial information is unaudited. 

For more information, visit www.btplc.com

About the National Film and Television School

The NFTS is one of the world's leading film, games and television schools. It has been cited by some media as one of the top five film schools globally and by one as the No.1 international film school. In 1967, the government recommended the creation of a national film school for the UK and in 1971 the National Film School opened its doors for the first time focussing on postgraduate education. In the 1980s, the school officially changed its name to the National Film and Television School to incorporate the demand for courses in television production and has since added games to its remit.

For more information, please visit www.nfts.co.uk

Contact for further information:

Vicky Hewlett, Head of PR and Communications, NFTS: VHewlett@nfts.co.uk

It was an honour to welcome multi BAFTA-winning and multi Oscar-nominated director, actor, producer and writer Kenneth Branagh to the School last week. Hosted and introduced by NFTS Director, Nik Powell, Kenneth spent over two hours enthralling the students with insight into his journey from actor to award-winning filmmaker. (If you would like attend masterclasses like this one and learn from great directors like Kenneth, the application deadline for a number of our MA courses from Cinematography to Directing Fiction is this week – more info here.)

Kenneth has received Oscar nominations in five separate categories – Best Director (Henry V), Best Actor (Henry V), Best Short (Swan Song), Best Supporting Actor (My Week with Marilyn) and Best Adapted Screenplay (Hamlet).  He has won four BAFTAs, including an ‘Outstanding Contribution to British Cinema’ award and received a further five BAFTA nominations.  He also has an Olivier award for his theatre work.

(Kenneth at last week's NFTS masterclass)

His films range from the multi Oscar-nominated Hamlet to blockbusters, Cinderella and Thor. Other films he has directed include Henry V, Peter’s Friends, Much Ado About Nothing, Dead Again, Love’s Labour’s Lost and Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit. As an actor he will next be seen in Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk.  He is Executive Producer and star of TV series Wallander and is currently in post on the latest film he has directed and in which he plays Poirot - Murder on the Orient Express.

Kenneth’s passion for movies started with reading the credits, “I really studied who did what” although at the time he felt it was “incomprehensible that I would ever be in films or be a director.” He mused that if he had had a different idea about accessing the movie industry when he started out, he would have gone quicker into filmmaking. Later, while acting on a Virginia Wolfe adaptation in Cornwall, he learned about filmmaking through asking crew members exactly what they did from asking about the ‘train track’ the cameras were on to grilling the focus puller about her role, which he describes as ‘probably the scariest job on set!’.

(Still from Henry V)

According to Kenneth, directing the Battle of Agincourt scene in Henry V was “one of the most intensely scary moments of my directing career.” A pivotal moment in the play, the scene needed to be impactful and Kenneth wanted the audience to feel that they were there experiencing the ‘complete cataclysm’ and ‘grittiness’ of the battle. Through collaborative conversations with the crew (“lots of intimidating things can be sorted out via collaborative conversations”), Kenneth came up with the solution of using a raised platform and a long lens, shooting the cast as closely together as possible rather than employing a wide shot and exposing the 300 strong cast. The horror was conveyed through close up shots of the actor’s faces interspersed with shots of the intense battle.

Rather than getting ‘blinded by science’, Kenneth was encouraged to ‘bring your unique imagination’ to his role as director. “You have to develop quick instincts as a director and follow your vision. As I had played the role before, I had a good sense of how I wanted it to be.”

On making the decision to put some of the actors in Henry V in modern haircuts, and Derek Jacobi, who plays the chorus, in contemporary clothing, Kenneth said: “You need enough iconography of the period to be acceptable to the audience; it was not my aim to make a documentary but to invoke a sense and feeling of being here and now. Even Shakespeare himself constantly broke a lot of rules!”

(Still from In The Bleak Mid Winter)

In The Bleak Mid Winter was the first film Kenneth directed in which he did not appear and one of the few cases where he wrote the original story. According to Kenneth, it was a ‘very releasing’ film and unleashed a ‘burst of creative passion’. It took just four weeks to shoot and everyone got paid the same: “We sold it for twice what we paid for it and everyone, from the caterers to Joan Collins, received an envelope with their pro rata share of the profit.”

Creating a feeling of spontaneity and rawness was a theme throughout Kenneth’s talk. “I like to keep the camera running and create a sense of improvisation and catch a happening every time, particularly with something as structured as Shakespeare.” With this in mind, Kenneth likes to start with a close up shot in the morning. This establishes a rhythm for the day as you get the best out of the cast and crew when they know it’s a shot that’s going to be in the movie. “I’ve inverted the day to create energy. The phrase ‘We’ve got the first shot at 8.30am’ goes through the crew like wildfire!”

(Still from Thor)

Another persistent theme was preparation and readiness. Kenneth wrote four pages of a screenplay to illustrate the ideas he had for Thor and brought pictures of buildings and landmarks to illustrate what the world would feel, look and taste like. This set him up for the intense, ‘detail conscious’ world of Marvel, which involved weeks of meetings about the intricacies of production design, VFX and costume design. After screening a clip of the fight scene on the rainbow bridge between Thor played by Chris Hemsworth and Loki played by Tom Hiddleston, Kenneth relayed how the whole piece was storyboarded as an animatic a whole year before the scene was fully realised. We thought at first, “Christ, how do we do this now we’ve imagined it?!” The answer? “Step by step! The amazing thing and privilege of being a director is that you see everything and every step.”

Answering Nik’s question as to what his one piece of advice would be for the students as they go forward in the industry, Kenneth said: “A quote from Hamlet sums it up for me, ‘Readiness is all!’ Show up on time. Early is on time and on time is late, it’s that simple and can guarantee you a career as you’re the one that got there. If you’re late, you have to be Fellini, better than your peers! You need to be ready to honour and respect your talent. Follow and trust your instinct and know it’s welcome. You are your greatest asset. Do your research and above all, enjoy yourself!”

For more information about our courses and how to apply, please visit www.nfts.co.uk

Introduced by NFTS Head of Screen Arts, Sandra Hebron as one of the most talked about debuts of the year and receiving rave reviews across the board, we knew we were in for a treat when settling down to watch Lady Macbeth followed by a Q&A with its director William Oldroyd and NFTS graduate and Producer, Fodhla Cronin O'Reilly. (If you would like to follow in Fodhla's footsteps, find out more about the NFTS Producing MA at www.nfts.co.uk/producing)

An adaptation of Nikolai Leskov’s 1865 novella Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District, Lady Macbeth is described in the Guardian as “a brilliantly chilling subversion of a classic” and in the Spectator as “plain terrific” while Sight and Sound praises “its skill at filleting contemporary relevance from a classic literary source.”

Fodhla, whose NFTS graduation film, Head Over Heels was nominated for an Oscar in 2014, met William after a friend recommended she watch William’s award-winning short film, Best. “I fell in love with it; it was very clever. I met up with Will and we chatted for hours and then we watched 12 Years a Slave– after that we felt bonded for life!”

The project came together when William and Fodhla joined forces with writer Alice Birch who had the original idea to adapt the Leskov novella as she felt that its themes - the subordination of women in society, life in rural communities, and of passionate illicit love - would be exciting for a film adaptation. Both William and Alice had made their names in theatre – he as the Director in Residence at the Young Vic Theatre and working with the RSC, and she as an award-winning playwright with work performed at the Royal Court and the RSC.

(Pictured L-R: William Oldroyd, Fodhla Cronin O'Reilly and NFTS Head of Screen Arts, Sandra Hebron)

On what drew him to the Lady Macbeth story, William said: “I really wanted to see the central character Katherine on screen as she was very different to other heroines of that time who either had to suffer or die. Katherine fights back; we didn’t have to do very much to make it modern.”

Fodhla was drawn to the project for the same reason: “the complex female character appealed to me. “The challenge of making a period film on such a small budget excited me and I was also excited to find an original take on the genre. We wanted to make an anti-bonnet period drama.”

Lady Macbeth was made through iFeatures, the regional micro-budget filmmaking scheme run by Creative England and supported by the BFI and BBC Films. The scheme was particularly useful for William: “Everything was brand new for me so the iFeatures workshops were really helpful and we relied heavily on Fodhla’s experience having been to film school.” According to Fodhla, “iFeatures took a risk green lighting us but they were totally up for it and very supportive. We got to work with established executive producers and access their knowledge and experience which was invaluable.”

Sandra asked William if he had a sense from the outset of how to make a period film on such a small budget? “The story fit well with a low budget. For example, we couldn’t have many costumes but I’ve always thought it doesn’t feel real when you see so many costume changes in films. We had one location and a small number of characters, which is what we wanted to do anyway. We wanted to keep it focussed and nuclear; having lots of extras and a swooping score didn’t feel right.”

“The austerity and pared down nature of the film came from Alice’s script, which was my taste as well. We used an economy of camera movements, which lent itself very well in terms of representing Katherine on screen.”

On why the film was shot in scene order, William said: “That’s how you would work through a play. I found it difficult to hold a whole feature length film in my head so this approach was helpful with that.” Fodhla added: “It was six weeks intense prep and we shot the film in four six-day weeks. Shooting in order was one of the smartest things I’ve ever done. By the third week we had three quarters of the film edited and we knew which shots we needed to pick up. We left a few days free towards the end of the shoot to tie up any loose ends. We needed to block book the actors for the 24 days and half the cast had to be based in Durham but they were all very flexible and understood our approach.”

Ari Wegner is the DoP on Lady Macbeth. According to William, “Ari really understood the script and character. She has an incredible eye and had a symbiotic relationship with Florence who plays Katherine. We wanted to objectify Katherine like the men were so we locked off the camera with a static shot so she would be seen as an ornament and in moments of freedom, rebellion and defiance, Ari moved the camera with Katherine. We wanted it to feel like Katherine wanted to break out of the frame.”

One of the students asked William how the horse scene was filmed: “This was a moment when creative thinking and the low budget had to meet – we didn’t want to cheat as it was a powerful moment and the first time you see Katherine break down emotionally. We found an ‘acting horse’ who could fall over although it was only allowed to fall over three times including one rehearsal! We put aside a morning to film that scene and it was one of the only ones where we broke our rule and didn’t shoot in sequence.”

On why they decided to change the ending of the novella for the film, William had the following to say: “It was important to writer Alice that Katherine wins at the end even if it was a hollow victory as she felt that so many women were punished for what they did.”

In addition to its rave reviews and praise for subverting the period drama genre with a strong and unrepentant female character, Lady Macbeth is also garnering attention for having a number of black characters in its small cast. In a recent article, The Guardian asks: “Will Lady Macbeth end period drama’s whitewashing of history?” On this subject, William said: “There are no descriptions of the characters’ race in the book and the casting was completely open. The UK was a lot more diverse at that time than people think. Britain was white washed in that respect and not just in period dramas. We simply chose the best actors for each role.”

Lady Macbeth is in cinemas now, distributed by Altitude – our thanks to them for the screening.

For more information about the NFTS Producing MA, please visit www.nfts.co.uk/producing

An impressive 13 NFTS graduates and tutors worked on this year's BAFTA TV Award Winning programmes. Happy Valley, edited by NFTS Head of Editing, Richard Cox beat off stiff competition from The Crown to win Best Drama and Best Actress (Sarah Lancashire) at last night’s Virgin TV British Academy Television Awards.  Richard works frequently with Happy Valley writer and director, Sally Wainwright who recently delivered an inspiring masterclass to NFTS students where Richard described her as “one of the best, if not the best TV writers and directors around!”

If you are a keen editor and would love to be taught by Richard, applications are still open for our Editing MA – more information at www.nfts.co.uk/editing

There was also success for the NFTS Editing department in the Best Factual Series category which was won by Exodus: Our Journey to Europeand credits no fewer than three NFTS Editing MA graduates, Simon Sykes, Nick Fenton and Sunshine Jackson.

‘Best Soap and Continuing Drama’ went to Emmerdale, which credits NFTS Directing Fiction alumna, Diana Patrick. Diana has been directing episodes of the long running series since 1998.

The ‘Leading Actor’ award went to Adeel Akhtar who starred in single drama, Murdered by My Father, which credits NFTS Cinematography graduate, Felix Wiedemann as DoP.

Phoebe Waller-Bridge won the 'Female Performance in a Comedy Programme' category for Fleabag, which credits NFTS Production Design graduate, Clare Winkworth as Graphic Designer and Sound Recording graduate, Howard Peryer as Sound Maintenance.

National Treasure won the BAFTA for Best Mini Series and credits NFTS graduates, Paul Davies as Supervising Sound Editor and Katherine Pearl as Post-Production Co-Ordinator.

Tom Hollander won Best Supporting Actor for The Night Manager, which credits Sarah Byers, Matchmove Artist; Maria Salcher, Assistant Production Co-ordinator and Juan Montoto Ugarte as Sound Assistant.

BAFTA TV Awards Nominations with NFTS credits:

Best Drama Series

The Crown:  Script Editor, Edward Hemming; Editor, Una Ni Dhonghaile; Digital Compositor, Victor Tomi; Sound FX Editor, Alex Ellerington; Additional VFX Supervisor, Jorge Canada Escorihuela; Rerecording Mixers, Stuart Hilliker & Martin Jensen; Additional Music Composer, Evan Jolly

The Durrells:  Additional Music, Jon Wygens

War and Peace:  Composer, Martin Phipps; Rerecording Mixer, Stuart Hilliker;     Boom Operator, Vytautas Kizala; Sound FX Editor, Alex Ellerington; Matchmove Artist, Sarah Byers

Happy Valley: Edited by NFTS Head of Editing, Richard Cox

Best Factual Series

24 Hours in Police Custody: Assistant Editors, Manuela Lupini and Pawel Slawek

Exodus: Our Journey to Europe: Editors, Simon Sykes; Nick Fenton and Sunshine Jackson

Best Mini-Series

The Hollow Crown: The Wars of the Roses: Art Department Assistant, Jamie Burrows

National Treasure: Supervising Sound Editor, Paul Davies; Post-Production Co-ordinator, Katherine Pearl

Witness for the Prosecution: DoP Felix Wiedemann

Best Reality & Constructed Factual

First Dates (Series 7): Composer, Miguel d’Oliveira

The Secret Life of 5 Year Olds: Director, Jackie Waldock

Best Scripted Comedy

Fleabag:  Graphic Designer, Clare Winkworth; Sound Maintenance, Howard Peryer

Best Specialist Factual

Attenborough's Life That Glows: Screenwriter, NFTS Head of Natural History, Paul Reddish

Best Single Drama

Aberfan: The Green Hollow: Sound Effects Editor, Vicente Villaescusa

Murdered by My Father: DoP, Felix Wiedemann

NW: Sound Effects Editor, Matis Rei

Best Soap & Continuing Drama

Casualty: Director, Matthew Evans; Writer, Laura Poliakoff

Eastenders: Writer, Laura Poliakoff

Emmerdale: Director, Diana Patrick

Applications are open for a wide range of our MA and Diploma courses from Editing to Cinematography  – more information here.

(L-R: Dario Marianelli; Martin Phipps & presenter, Goldie)

Two NFTS Composing MA graduates, Dario Marianelli and Martin Phipps won coveted Ivor Novello awards (The Ivors) last night, which took place at Grosvenor House, Park Lane, London and were hosted by Paul Gambaccini. NFTS alumni now have an impressive 13 Ivor Novello awards between them! 

The Ivors were created by BASCA [British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors] to celebrate, honour and reward excellence in songwriting and composing. The awards are unique in specifically honouring the UK songwriting and composing community and are exclusively judged by songwriters and composers.

Dario Marianelli won in the ‘Best Original Film Score’ category for Kubo and The Two Strings and has now received three Ivor Novello awards, previously winning for Atonement and Anna Karenina. Dario has also won an Oscar and a Golden Globe for Atonement and has many other awards for his compositions.

Martin Phipps won in the ‘Best TV Soundtrack’ category for War and Peace and this is incredibly his fifth Ivor Novello award! He has previously won for The Virgin Queen; Oliver Twist; The Shadow Line and The Honourable Woman. Martin has won two BAFTA TV awards for Best Original Music for Small Island and Wallander and has been nominated for three Primetime Emmy awards.

For more information about the NFTS Composing MA, pleases visit www.nfts.co.uk/composing

An impressive four NFTS graduates have been selected for BAFTA’s prestigious new programme, BAFTA Elevate, a series of bespoke programmes that elevate individuals from under-represented groups to the next stage of their career.

Directing Fiction MA graduates, Alicia Duffy, Christiana Ebohon-Green and Emma Sullivan and Script Development alumna, Cathy Brady have been selected for this year’s programme, which is focussing on female directors seeking to progress in high end television and features.

The aim of the programme is to help to address the gap between 50/50% male/female film school graduates and 87/13% male/female industry directing hires and producers’ desire to hire female directors but saying that they are often hard to find. The programme includes networking introductions, mentoring and expert workshops.

The series of programmes are a result of research carried out in partnership with Creative Skillset and the BFI, to examine the career success factors of film, television and games practitioners from under-represented groups. 

Alice Duffy

Alicia Duffy is a BAFTA-nominated director. While at the NFTS, she directed two short films: Numb (2000) and Crow Stone (2001), both of which screened at numerous festivals internationally. Numb received a Special Commendation at the Edinburgh Film Festival and the Arri Prize, while Crow Stone was a prize-winner in the Cinefondation Competition in Cannes 2001 and received awards at festivals including Edinburgh, Chicago and Bologna, and was an RTS award-winner in the same year. In 2002, Duffy was selected for the Cannes Film Festival Cinefondation Residence in Paris, and later that year made the short film The Most Beautiful Man In The World, for which she received a BAFTA nomination in 2003. In the same year, the film was in the Official Selection at Cannes and won Best International Film at the Hamburg Short Film Festival, as well as receiving further awards at The Rhode Island Film Festival and Chicago Film Festival, and the Turner Classic Movies Short Film Prize. Alice Duffy’s first feature, All Good Children, screened internationally and was selected for the Directors’ Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival 2010. 

Christiana Ebohon-Green

Christiana Ebohon-Green is an award-winning drama director, who has worked in television for 15 years. Her credits include EastEnders, Doctors, Emmerdale and Hollyoaks. Ebohon-Green has also written and directed several short films, including St Clare (1997) and In Your Eye (1998), which won the Kodak Award USA 1998, and was screened at the Kodak Emerging Filmmaker’s Showcase at Cannes in 1999. In 2015, Ebohon-Green won a place on Directors UK's High-end Drama Mentoring scheme, and worked alongside director Carl Tibbits (Humans, Black Mirror) in the production of The Tunnel as part of the initiative. She was also a mentee on Women in Film & Television's 2015 mentoring scheme. Ebohon-Green recently received funding from Creative England under their Emerging Talent scheme to direct a short film, Some Sweet Oblivious Antidote (2017), starring Lenny Henry, Wunmi Mosaku, Colin Salmon, and Fatima Koroma, and to develop her first feature film.

Emma Sullivan

Emma Sullivan’s short film After Tomorrow (2009) was nominated for a Palme d’Or at the 62nd Cannes Film Festival, and won several awards worldwide including Best Short Film at the Edinburgh Film Festival in 2009. That year, she was also named one of Screen International’s Stars of Tomorrow. She was later mentored by director John Hillcoat (The Road, Lawless) on the prestigious Guiding Lights scheme. Sullivan has also directed television drama for the BBC, with credits including The 4 O’Clock Club, Holby City and Doctors. She is currently developing a feature script set in New York, a high end drama series and has written several other features and shorts. Sullivan is a graduate of the National Film and Television School, where she was awarded a scholarship from the David Lean Foundation for her MA in Fiction Direction.

Cathy Brady

Cathy Brady is a two-time IFTA-winning director, having won Best Short in 2011 for her first film Small Change and again in 2013 for Morning, which was also selected for the BFI London Film Festival 2012 and won the Short Film Nominee prize for the European Film Awards at Cork Film Festival. In 2011, Brady directed the BIFA nominated short Rough Skin (written by Laura Lomas and starring Vicky McClure) as part of Channel 4's Coming Up scheme. Her short film, Wasted, competed at the Edinburgh International Film Festival in 2013. In the same year, Brady was named one of Screen Daily’s ‘Stars of Tomorrow’. In 2014, Brady directed on the BAFTA-nominated drama-thriller series Glue. Most recently, Brady directed Stefanie Preissner's TV comedy series Can’t Cope/Won’t Cope for Dead Pan Pictures and RTE, which is currently showing on BBC Three. Her debut feature as writer-director, Wildfire, is currently in development, and will be produced by Carlo Cresto-Dina (The Wonders, Cannes Grand Jury Prize 2014) along with Cowboy Films.

More information at http://www.bafta.org/supporting-talent/elevate/elevate-female-directors-2017

We were incredibly sad to hear of the legendary Sir Roger Moore’s passing, especially since he had so many connections to our School. Not only did he shoot 1950s British TV Series, Ivanhoe, at Beaconsfield Film Studios (where the NFTS is now sited), he also very kindly supported the School with a contribution towards the building of our ‘Yellow Block’, which currently houses the Cinematography base and engineering.

The longest reigning 007, Sir Roger also donated two reels – the trailers for Moonraker and For Your Eyes Only and even recommended the NFTS on his Facebook page when asked: ‘Is film school worth my money and time?’ His reply? ‘Yes, most definitely – so long as it’s a good film school. You’ll learn all the important basics and techniques there and it will really help launch you. Just look how many Oscar nominations students from the National Film and Television School in the UK have snagged. Good luck.’

(Beaconsfield Film Studios in the 1920s)

Producer of the Bond films, Albert ‘Cubby’ Broccoli also made a contribution to the NFTS and EON Productions continue to be big supporters of the School with a gift for our new buildings and sponsorship of our new Director's workshop for directors from under-represented  ‎communities. Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson of EON Productions said: “Sir Roger's legacy shall live on through his films and the millions of lives he touched".

As Daniel Craig tweeted, ‘Nobody does it better’ - rest in peace Roger.

This month, NFTS Directing and Producing Science and Natural History MA students experienced their first foray into filming wild birds at an RSPB Reserve in Sandwell Valley from putting up hides to using telephoto lenses.

The MA is delivered in partnership with the RSPB and includes a Scholarship to support a student through their two-year course starting in January 2018 (applications are open until 6^th July – more info at www.nfts.co.uk/naturalhistory ). The RSPB is working closely with the NFTS to inspire a new generation of filmmaking talent equipped to create engaging and innovative content that champions the charity’s conservation cause  by reaching new audiences through new and impactful visual communications. 

The students spent a long and productive day at the Sandwell Valley Reserve. It started with a talk on the ethics of wildlife film-making by conservation filmmaker, Madelaine Westwood, which stimulated a fascinating discussion. The students then practiced their recce skills working out where would be best to film the wild birds on the reserve.

After lunch, wildlife cameraman, Toby Hough gave a talk on telephoto camera work and the use of hides. There were plenty of questions from the students about this essential skill, not least what do you do in the little canvas box for 12 hours at a time?!  Appropriately the day finished with all the students learning the arcane skill of putting up hides.

On the second visit, the students returned to film from the hides and found out for themselves what it’s like to film wild animals from the little green box. They used 400mm telephoto lenses with 1.5 teleconverters which allowed them to get great close-ups of the ducks, geese and lapwings, and even some of the more shy denizens of the reed beds.

NFTS Directing and Producing Science and Natural History MA course leader and experienced producer of wildlife documentaries and series, Paul Reddish said: “We would like to thank the RSPB for providing such an invaluable opportunity for our students to learn how to film for real at the reserve. They have all really enjoyed the experience and are inspired to learn more.”

If you are an aspiring wildlife filmmaker, apply by 6^th July – more info at www.nfts.co.uk/naturalhistory

(NFTS Games Design & Development MA students with Radeon Pro WX7100 graphic card)

Beaconsfield, 25^th May 2017: The National Film and Television School (NFTS) is to strengthen its partnership with leading graphics processor manufacturer, AMD, through the launch of a scholarship to support a student through their two-year MA.

The NFTS is already working with AMD to deliver a series of Virtual Reality projects as part of the School’s Bridges to Industry scheme including an interactive and immersive VR experience using real-time rendered 3D computer graphics and an entertaining and inspiring 360˚ video project. The students and recent alumni are among the first in the UK to access AMD’s latest Radeon™ Pro WX7100 graphic cards, which are capable of developing and driving VR experiences at a high fidelity level.

The projects, which made their debut at FMX in Stuttgart and will be showcased at events around the world include:

Burning Daylight 360 Video Project* (developed by NFTS graduates, Christopher Cornwell, Helene Sifre and Marie-Elena Dyche, Luciana Riso, Ian Crossland, Luke Hardisty, Mdhamiri Nkemi and Tom Jenkins.)

Burning Daylight centres on three firefighters, trapped in a burning building, who send down a recon drone to scout the area ahead. Its camera can see in both regular and infrared spectrums. To the naked eye, the area seems safe... but the drone's thermal camera captures something moving in the dark. Something mysterious. Malevolent. Inhuman.  And getting closer.

Writer-Director, Chris Cornwell: "The possibilities that 360 filming give you are incredible. You get a real sense of immersion, a type of visceral presence that you just don't get in other film making mediums. AMD challenged us to tell a story- and we got to tell it in a way that we couldn't with any other format."

3 Minutes to MidnightVR Project (developed by NFTS Games Design MA graduates, Jameela Khan, Manos Agianniotakis and Laura Dodds.)

3 Minutes to Midnight is a twisted comedy horror experience inspired by the films of Alfred Hitchcock, Ealing Studios comedies and the macabre. The players are put into the shoes of Mrs Claire Clippings, a "defenceless" old lady and former baker renowned for her legendary pork pies. 

The experience begins when Mrs Clippings wakes up in the middle of the night and realises that two robbers are breaking into her house.  Through interactions with her immediate environment the elderly lady tries to defend herself and trap the criminals from the confines of her bed. During the experience the players slowly realise that Mrs Clippings may not be as helpless as they originally assumed and that the secret ingredient of her meat pies may be darker than Soy Sauce...

Manos Agianniotakis said: “We would like to thank AMD and NFTS for the opportunity to create our VR game, 3 Minutes to Midnight. The brief was to put storytelling at the heart of the VR experience so with this in mind we chose the comedy horror genre and an atypical character - a bed ridden old lady - who is not as harmless as she first appears. Our experience of designing and developing games at NFTS and through collaborating with talented alumni from other filmmaking courses gave us a good grounding for developing our VR game.”

3 Minutes to Midnight has been selected for the Reversed Festival in Vienna.

"Immersive technologies are having an enormous impact on entertainment and media, said Roy Taylor, CVP at AMD and Chairman, BAFTA VR Advisory Group.  Whilst VR and AR offer exiting possibilities they also pose challenges to the platform and the art form.  At AMD, we have found inspiration from the energy and imagination working with NFTS.  This is because the students and faculty are incredibly innovative and unafraid to break the norms of content creation. The VR work produced by NFTS students is an excellent example. Using complex software and hardware tools powered by AMD, NFTS students took on the challenge of a steep learning curve that they have obviously mastered - as the results speak for themselves”

(NFTS Digital Effects & Games Design courses at FMX)

Says Nik Powell, NFTS Director: “It is fantastic news that AMD is strengthening their exciting partnership with the School with a scholarship. Our students and recent graduates have fully embraced the challenge set by AMD to explore the worlds of VR and 360 video in new ways and we have some very innovative projects in development as a result. Blending the art of storytelling with the latest technologies is at the heart of the School’s philosophy with students on MA courses such as Games Design and Development working closely with other film and television making disciplines. The AMD scholarship is testament to this approach and we look forward to working together to harness even more creative potential in this area.”

AMD also supported NFTS graduates to create a ‘Making Of’ promo about the VR and 360° Video projects the graduates undertook. 

Applications are open now until the 6^th of July for the NFTS MA in Games Design & Development and the MA in Digital Effects. For more information on how to apply, please visit www.nfts.co.uk

Contact for further information:

Vicky Hewlett, Head of PR and Communications, NFTS: VHewlett@nfts.co.uk

Editor’s Notes

*The Burning Daylight - 360° filmmakers are also developing a feature film that inspired the 360° video. The feature version of Burning Daylight will follow four fire-fighters, torn apart by a recent tragedy and racked with guilt, who are called in to investigate an automatic fire alarm in a disused underground factory. They find no sign of fire, until the floor begins to crack and a thin whisper of hot smoke spills out, pushing them further down into a world without daylight. 

They soon realise that there's something in there with them, something that’s pushing them further and further down into a place of terror and fire. A place that may be hell itself...

Blending horror and disaster movies, Burning Daylight will be shot with a visceral and unique style through the firefighter's GoPro helmet cameras.

More info at: Facebook / www.burningdaylightfilm.com

About AMD 

For more than 45 years AMD has driven innovation in high-performance computing, graphics and visualization technologies ― the building blocks for gaming, immersive platforms, and the datacenter. Hundreds of millions of consumers, leading Fortune 500 businesses and cutting-edge scientific research facilities around the world rely on AMD technology daily to improve how they live, work and play. AMD employees around the world are focused on building great products that push the boundaries of what is possible. For more information about how AMD is enabling today and inspiring tomorrow, visit the AMD (NASDAQ: AMD) website, blog, and Facebook and Twitter pages.

AMD, Radeon, and combinations thereof are trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. 

The Real Car Share, a show created by NFTS Directing and Producing Television Entertainment MA students, has been optioned by Zig Zag Productions, one of the UK’s foremost independent television production companies. (Applications are open for the MA until July 6th - more at www.nfts.co.uk/tvent)

Directed by Anastazia Pieniazek and produced by Jules Braunstein, The Real Car Share was snapped up by Zig Zag Productions after they saw it at the NFTS TV Entertainment Showcase at Channel 4 in March 2017.

Ana and Jules wanted to come up with a ‘simple but effective and funny show that added a twist on existing formats we love like Gogglebox’ and Jules points out that they ‘had the idea before Peter Kay’s Car Share hit our screens!’

About The Real Car Share (Director, Anastazia Pieniazek; Producer, Jules Braunstein)

What happens if you shove a bunch of total strangers in a car together for the first time?

Watch the drama unfold in The Real Car Share as people journey across the UK, sharing petrol costs and personal space.  There are 6 car share journeys, 3 drivers and plenty of banter. No subject is off limits. After 2 hours on the road, will they become car-sharing converts? Or are we about to witness a social car crash?

Andy Scott, Head of Entertainment, Zig Zag Productions says: “The mix of brilliant characters thrust together into a fast-paced, funny three car journey makes this show irresistible. We’re very pleased to have had the opportunity to see it first at the NTFS screening and to be able to take it to market.”

Jules: “The Real Car Share puts real people at the heart of entertainment. As programme-makers, we want to ensure high production values and measures are put in place in order to create quality entertainment. At the same time, there's little complex TV wizardry here – it’s the contributors on screen that viewers engage with. We are, as individuals, all unique in our personalities and, whatever our life story, we all have something interesting or witty to share. In making the show, we wanted to capture the moments when perfect strangers - from all walks of life and with different personalities - meet for the first time, open up about themselves and start to form relationships. And we wanted do this in a very ordinary and relatable setting. There’s magic in the simplicity of interesting people engaging with one another.”

The Tech

Using the latest in fixed-rig technology, this show is the first of its kind to be produced at the NFTS. Requiring specialist equipment, Ana & Jules had to source five Marshall CV502-M Mini Cams with lenses and suction mounts, and five portable 240 PIX Sound and Video Recorders. As this kind of hi-spec technology needed for The Real Car Share is used for broadcast television and is limited in number, they knew they’d be competing with TV production companies to get their hands on it in time (and with a nominal budget)! The team was able to agree a great deal with PROCAM, who were incredibly helpful by providing a few free extras and running through everything on a test day ahead of filming.

Where are they now?!

Following a successful work placement, Ana is now a junior researcher in Entertainment Formats at BBC studios. Jules is currently working in production as a researcher for Sky Arts' most popular show, Artist of the Year.

The NFTS Crew:

Production Manager, Sonia Hoogenstraaten; Camera, Del Nadjafi, Kartik Ralhan, Matt Murnaghan; Sound Recordist, Emilio Pascual; Graphic Designer, Jake Ferris; Sound Editors & Dubbing Mixers, Sam Boulton, Morgan Muse; Composer, Hollie Buhagiar; Colourist & Online Editor, Alex Davies

If you would like to follow in Ana and Jules’ footsteps, apply for the NFTS Directing and Producing Television Entertainment MA by 6th July - www.nfts.co.uk/TVEnt

Nominations have been announced for this year’s Royal Television Society (RTS) Student Television Awards and the NFTS leads the way in the postgraduate categories with nine graduation programmes and films in the running. (If would like to have your work considered for the RTS Student Television Awards next year, don't miss our Directing Animation MA open day on the 6th June - sign up at www.nfts.co.uk/animation and apply for our Directing and Producing Television Entertainment MA by 6th July - www.nfts.co.uk/TVEnt)

Chaired by Philip Edgar-Jones, Director of Sky Arts, the awards recognise the best audiovisual work created by students across the UK and Republic of Ireland at undergraduate and postgraduate level. Awards are judged in six categories – Animation, Comedy & Entertainment, Drama, Factual, News and Short Feature.

In addition, to reward excellence in craft skills, undergraduate and postgraduate awards will be presented for camerawork, editing, production design and sound. Entries are not accepted for these categories and the prizes will be awarded at the judges’ discretion. One winning student will also receive the newly introduced Judges’ Award.

NFTS Nominations Include:

Postgraduate Animation

A Love Story, Anushka Naanayakkara (Director), Khaled Gad (Producer) and Elena Ruscombe-King (Writer)

The Alan Dimension, Jac Clinch (Director), Millie Marsh (Producer) and Jonathan Harbottle (Writer)

Postgraduate Comedy & Entertainment

The Great British Butler, Ian Packard (Producer) and Tom Day (Director)

The Love Gym, Raphael Beaulieu (Producer) and Marika Santala (Director)

Postgraduate Drama

Ferris & The Fancy Pigeon, James Gardner (Director/ Writer) and Helene Sifre (Producer)

Mia, Maria Martinez Bayona (Director/ Writer) and Marie-Elena Dyche (Producer)

Postgraduate Factual

Forest Gate Girls, Tariq Elmeri (Director/ Producer/ Cinematographer) and Khaled Gad (Producer)

The Sunflower Inn, Miriam Ernst (Director/ Cinematographer)

Uprooted, Ross Domoney (Director/ Producer/ Cinematographer)

Three NFTS graduation documentary films have been selected and over 40 NFTS students and graduates are credited at this year’s Sheffield Doc/ Fest, the UK’s premier documentary festival, which takes place between the 9^th and 14^th June.

NFTS Directing documentary graduate, Nick Broomfield, described on the Sheffield Doc/ Fest website as ‘one of the most influential documentary makers of our time’ is being interviewed by Louis Theroux for The BBC Interview on Sunday 11^th June at 3.30pm – tickets here. Nick’s latest acclaimed documentary about Whitney Houston, Whitney, “Can I Be Me” is being screened at the festival.

(Still: Whitney, "Can I Be Me")

The three NFTS graduation films include: Pride in Rags, directed by Tom Whitaker; Professional Foreigner, directed by Catherine Harte and Unspeakable, directed by Kate Stonehill.

About Pride in Rags: 

Dewsbury is a town with a 19th century heritage and a 21st century population, and recent events have brought unwanted attention to this small corner of Yorkshire. From suicide bombers to the case of a mother who faked the kidnapping of her own child, the area is regularly trashed by the national media, leaving its reputation in tatters. Danny Lockwood is the local Rupert Murdoch, a controversial newspaper publisher and author of ‘The Islamic Republic of Dewsbury’. Pride In Rags looks at Dewsbury through Lockwood’s readers and critics, in a town where the pride went with the woollen industry and racial tensions bubble under the surface...

Tom Whitaker says: “I am delighted that Pride In Rags will be premiering at Sheffield Doc/Fest. I was fortunate to work with a really talented crew at the NFTS and am looking forward to discussing the film with an audience in Yorkshire.”

Pride In Rags is screening on Wednesday June 14^th at 3.15pm – book tickets here.

Tom is speaking on the panel, ‘What Does Brexit Look Like?’ at the festival discussing the impact of Brexit on documentary making in Britain – you can see him at 10am on Tuesday 13th June.

About Professional Foreigner

This character-driven documentary explores the bizarre job opportunities available to white people in India. Talent is not essential — just the presence of a white face supposedly adds glamour to a movie or event. Following casting agents and foreigners, this documentary explores race and stereotypes while illuminating a world where Europeans migrate East for work. The story centres around Sasha, who left Russia with his mother and sister in the hope of making it as an actor. He needs to support his household so when acting gigs run dry, he is forced to reassess his easy but limited prospects in India.

Catherine Harte says: "I volunteered at Sheffield Doc Fest in 2011 and that's where I first heard about NFTS. It's so nice to look back over the years since then and to finally have a film to show there!"

Professional Foreigner is screening on Friday June 9^th at 3pm – book tickets here.

About Unspeakable:

In 2015, the British government issued a press release calling for universities to do more to tackle extremism. The document identified six men as examples of ‘radical’ speakers who have expressed views that are ‘contrary to British values’ and who should therefore be silenced. Unspeakable is a hybrid documentary that combines interview, performance and image to tell the stories of three of these men. The result a complex and gripping encounter with some of Britain’s so-called extremists and a rigorous meditation on the nature of free speech.

Kate Stonehill says: “My motivation for making this film was to ask some hard questions in a creative way, and instigate a conversation around what I thought was a deeply troubling UK government policy. I'm thrilled to premiere the film at Sheffield Doc/Fest, which I hope will provide a perfect space for a discussion of the complex grey area between freedom of speech and incitement to hatred that is the subject of the film.”

Unspeakable is screening on Tuesday June 13^th at 6.15pm and Wednesday June 14^th at 3.15pm – book tickets here.

Other NFTS graduates credited include:

(Still: Almost Heaven)

Almost Heaven (Director/Producer, Carol Salter; Associate Producer/Editor, Cinzia Baldessari; Composer, Terence Dunn; Editors, Hoping Chen & Rodrigo Saquel; Sound Designer, Raoul Brand; Additional Sound, Ania Przygoda & Rob Szeliga

69 Minutes of 86 Days (Producer, Tone Grøttjord-Glenne)

Carnage: Swallowing the Past (Sound Assistant, Nina Rice)

The Dread Pirate Roberts (Director, Emily James)

The Flying Proletarian (DoP, Annika Summerson; Re-recording Mixer/Sound Designer, Philippe Ciompi)

Out of Thin Air (Editor Miikka Leskinen; Sound Editor, Christopher Wilson)

Thank You for the Rain (Editor, Adam Thomas; Composer, Chris White)

Whitney: Can I Be Me (Writer/Producer/Co-Director, Nick Broomfield; Cinematographer, Sam Mitchell)

The Workers Cup (Producer, R Paul Miller)

If you are an aspiring documentary maker, find out more about our Directing Documentary MA at www.nfts.co.uk/documentary

“You are the future. It’s up to you to change things about the way you look at the natural world, using formats I haven’t dreamed about.”

Whilst many may dream of following in Sir David Attenborough’s footsteps, not many get the chance to spend two hours in the iconic Natural History presenter’s presence and fewer get the opportunity to get their individual questions answered in person.

This is the privilege the National Film and Television School’s inaugural intake of Directing and Producing Science and Natural History students enjoyed, each getting the chance to put three questions to David. (Applications are open for the NFTS Directing and Producing Science and Natural History MA until the 6th July 2017 - more information at www.nfts.co.uk/naturalhistory)

David drew us all in from the outset as he informed the students how audiences are usually built for programmes and introduced the concept of the ‘inheritance factor’ when at least 50% of the audience is inherited from the previous programme.  This certainly applied in the days when there were only a three TV networks – and probably still does to a considerable extent.  He gave the example of Planet Earth II being followed by the hugely popular Great British Bake Off, - although he was quick to point out he didn’t watch cookery programmes himself!

He put his popularity down to the fact that he had been appearing in natural history programmes for as long as most viewers could remember.

On how he writes narrations, David said: “When I happen to see a programme that I narrated a long time ago I almost invariably feel that there were too many words!  A commentary should not blather but let the pictures tell their story.  It should never give information that viewers can see for themselves.

The attributes that make a good presenter are a lot more difficult to pin down according to David. “It’s very difficult to know who will capture the interest of the audience. Hollywood had the phrase, ‘does the camera love him or her?’   One person can be magic on screen while another can be boring for no obvious reason. There’s no correlation between zoological knowledge and being a good natural history presenter. If you can’t mug up on the subject, you shouldn’t be in the business. You’ve got to have a feeling for animals of course and have the ability to speak from the heart. What’s so unfair is that so few get the chance to demonstrate their talent and many get into it by accident, as I did.”

(Still from BBC's Planet Earth II)

David was vociferous when asked if Blue Chip natural history programmes have a future when there are so many wildlife programmes: “Of course they do. The familiarity of a species is seldom a huge problem.  We know that people love looking at apes. It doesn’t matter how often they see them, apes will always be fascinating. And if you can’t make a decent film about big game, you’re in the wrong business.  But the programmes have to be well filmed – and that can take a lot of money.  If natural history films are given the proper budgets, I am sure they will hold their place!”

The conversation then turned to the prehistoric as David was asked to choose which prehistoric place and period he would like to visit and what he would make a film about. “It would most certainly be terrestrial and probably Triassic. Surprisingly little has been done on pterosaurs.  We still don’t know how some of the really big ones flew.” David then regaled us with a charming story about telling a lady at a black tie event how he was making a film about pterodactyls gliding over the cliffs of Dorset, to which she replied, ‘Oh they are so lovely aren’t they!’ and turned away.

(Still from Flying Monsters 3D)

The narrative then swiftly moved to politics and whether David has ever been tempted to join a political party, given his considerable influence and respect. “I would like to influence no matter what political party is in power. I’m not a politician. What astonishes me is that politicians are expected to know the answer to everything! Don’t ask me about the economic effects of Brexit! I don’t know! But I do have strong views about CO2 and feel confident speaking about it to whatever party is in power.”

Technology was the next subject covered thanks to a question about whether new filming techniques affected the way audiences view nature. “I don’t think any filmic tricks have changed the audience’s attitudes.  I hope they have instead deepened their knowledge and broadened their understanding. Not so long ago, we could only film during the day so people thought that lions were lazy creatures since they sleep for much of the day.  But of course, at night they are very active hunters.  The more technically competent we become, through using high-speed cameras, drones and night vision and so on, the fuller the story we give. The aim of the natural history programme maker is to tell the truth about the natural world and convey the reality about what is going on out there.”

Continuing the theme of truth, one of the students asked whether there is a place for anthropomorphism (crediting animals with human emotions). “A certain amount is justified.  We inevitably judge what an animal is feeling by comparing it with our own reactions.  If an elephant flares its ears, trumpets and charges towards you, you can be pretty sure that it is angry - even though anger is a human emotion and you are, therefore, being anthropomorphic.  On the other hand, if you watch an elephant pick up an elephant bone that it finds lying on the ground and fondles it with its trunk, you cannot be equally sure that it is mourning over a dead relative.  So if you say that it is, you should make it clear that this in only a suggestion.”

(Still from Frozen Planet)

“You should not conceal the way things are filmed, but you need not necessarily declare it. The classic case was in Frozen Planet. We filmed a polar bear giving birth and in the credits, we credited the zoo where it was filmed.  A journalist noticed this and accused us of fakery because we did not say so in the commentary.  The midwinter birth is a crucial event in polar bear biology. It would have been impossible to film in the wild without risking the life of the cub, the mother – or indeed the cameraman.  But it would have been absurd and defeated the purpose of the film to convey the reality of the Arctic winter to interrupt and say ‘by the way this scene was shot in captivity’.  We were not shooting a documentary about the experiences of an arctic explorer.  We were trying to convey the reality of a polar bear’s life – and we can therefore use background music, or cut together shots of different individual animals or different localities to do that.  The question simply is whether or not the filmmaker is trying to tell the truth.

On how to inject emotion into a film with a hard-hitting conservation message, David advised that “you have to start by producing a rational argument using cold, clinical facts.  Pleading a cause without a rational basis is dangerous.  Nor do you necessarily have to provide answers to issues.  Broadcasting on a national network is a huge privilege only given to few.  It should not indulge in propaganda, no matter how high-minded the issue.  Instead, it should strive to present both sides of an issue with such force that it cannot be ignored.

Most useful secondary skills for wildlife filmmakers was up next and David had plenty of intriguing stories to tell. “I’ve always said if I get into trouble in the bush, the person I want to have as a companion is a wildlife cameraman.  They are the most resourceful people, and skilled at everything from sweet talking customs officials to cooking! They have extraordinary mechanical abilities. For example when we were in the Galapagos shooting in 3D, a tiny lead broke.  We didn’t have a micro-soldering iron to fix it. The cameraman solved the problem using a hypodermic syringe from the medical kit – the tiny point of the syringe was used to make the connection. Their ability to improvise is really extraordinary! A recordist once even used a hollow plant stem to inject petrol!”

A question followed about whether future generations will lose touch with wildlife and how to combat this. “The industrial revolution led to great numbers of people losing contact with the countryside. There are great advantages and pleasures in living in cities. I live in London by choice. I love the theatre, museums, and have a wide range of friends.  But I’m aware that if I didn’t get away, I’d lose touch with the natural world which I also treasure. TV is very important in maintaining a link to the natural world. So people now can be more knowledgeable than they have ever been about the nature world-wide.  And that is of great importance when the natural world is facing such grave threats”.

(Still from Hummingbirds: Jewelled Messengers, narrated by David and produced and directed by NFTS Head of Natural History, Paul Reddish. Credit Mike Potts.)

On which of his trips he had enjoyed most, Sir David chose a trip back in 1956 to get the first ever television coverage of Komodo Dragons – “it took two months to get to Java.  No one there even knew about them!” He then reminded NFTS Head of Natural History, Paul Reddish about their own ‘unforgettable journeys’ together to film birds of paradise: “Paul and I had good times!”

And on which three people he’d like to have dinner with, David chose Darwin; marine biologist, William Beebe, and Canadian author and naturalist, Ernest Thompson Seton whose books caused David to ‘weep buckets’ in his childhood and was a ‘huge influence on me!’

(Charles Darwin)

David had plenty of good advice for young filmmakers and on what it takes to succeed: “One thing you want is dedication and the ability to take the rough with the smooth. Persistence and being serious about what you are doing is key.” And the best way to convince potential employers that you deserve a chance is to make a 10 minute film to show what you can do.

David left the students to ponder the role they could have in the future of wildlife filmmaking and how they can make a difference:

“You are the future. It’s up to you to change things about the way we look at the natural world and exploit formats, styles and means of transmission to find audiences that I haven’t even dreamed about.” 

For more information about the NFTS Directing and Producing Science and Natural History MA, please visit www.nfts.co.uk/naturalhistory

(Peter Sallis with Nick Park)

NFTS graduate and Wallace & Gromit creator, Nick Park has paid tribute to actor, Peter Sallis who has passed away aged 96 and was the voice of the much loved Wallace.

Nick created the famous stop motion animation while at the NFTS and recalled Peter’s “generosity of spirit to help out a poor film school student back in the early 1980’s, when we first recorded together, when neither of us had any idea what Wallace & Gromit might become”. 

Peter provided the voice for Wallace on Nick’s NFTS graduation film, A Grand Day Out, which was nominated for an Oscar in 1989. Peter continued to voice Wallace for 15 years over various feature, short and video game iterations including Nick’s Oscar winning animations, The Wrong Trousers, A Close Shave and The Curse of the Were-Rabbit.

(Still from A Grand Day Out)

Nick reflected how Peter’s “unique, charming quality, together with oversized vowels and endearing performance” helped him fashion Wallace from the beginning. “The way he first said “We’ve forgotten the Crackers Gromit” and “Cracking toast Gromit” or just “Cheeeese!” soon lead to Wallace’s enormous ‘coat-hanger mouth’”.

“I’m so sad, but feel so grateful and privileged to have known and worked with Peter over so many years. He was always my first and only choice for Wallace. I knew him of course from the very popular long running BBC series Last of the Summer Wine. He brought his unique gift and humour to all that he did, and encapsulated the very British art of the droll and understated.

“Working with Peter was always a delight and I will miss his wry, unpredictable humour and silliness – that started the moment he greeted you at the door, and didn’t stop when the mic was switched off. He had naturally funny bones and was a great storyteller and raconteur off stage too and would keep us amused for hours. He could make the simplest incident sound hilarious – just by the way he said it.

 “They don’t come along very often like Peter Sallis – he was a unique character, on and off screen, and an absolute honour to have known him.”

The NFTS continues to work with Aardman Animations (the production studios behind Wallace & Gromit) and inspire new generations of animators through its animation courses including:

Certificate in Character Animation in partnership with Aardman (apply by 8^th June)

Model Making for Animation Diploma in partnership with Aardman and Mackinnon and Saunders (apply by 6^th July)

Directing Animation MA (apply by 6^th July)

Directing Animation graduation film, Tête-à-Tête, directed by Natasha Tonkin, has been selected for Annecy, the world's leading animation film festival! The festival takes place between the 12^th and 17^th of June 2017.  (Applications are open for our Directing Animation MA until July 6^th– more at www.nfts.co.uk/animation)

Tête-à-Tête has been selected in the ‘Graduation Films in Competition 3’ category and will be screened from Monday 12^th June at 8.30pm.

Tête-à-Tête: Directed, written and designed by Natasha Tonkin and produced by Rae Erlingsdóttir (full credits below).

Synopsis: A young woman visits her family. Over the weekend tensions flare, whilst technology provides an easy respite. As Kerri's gaze shifts from the screen, she discovers a deeper kind of connection.

As well as being selected for Annecy, Tête-à-Tête has also been selected for Anima Mundi, International Animation Film Festival and Supertoon, and was shortlisted for the BAFTA International Student Film Awards.

The Team: Cinematographer, Daniella Rice; Sound Designer & Re-recording Mixer, Sashko Potter Micevski; Compositor, Colourist and Online Editor, David Sheldon.

First year students on the National Film and Television School Directing Animation MA will be attending this year’s Annecy festival to soak up the atmosphere and get inspiration. If you have animation experience or are artistic and would like to learn directing and storytelling skills, you can apply up until July 6^th 2017 – more info at www.nfts.co.uk/animation

“Anybody with strong ideas, talent and industry exposure can make successful games”

Alan Thorn, NFTS Head of Games explains why our Games Design and Development MA can help you stand out from the crowd and get a step ahead of the competition. If this sounds like you, apply by 6^th July – more information on how to apply here:

The games industry is an exciting landscape. It’s constantly challenging developers to innovate and captivate in order to be successful. With the democratization of games development, more people than ever may now download software and tools completely free of charge, and then invest their time making fun games. But in this climate of openness, the competition in the marketplace is undoubtedly fierce, and so other types of skills and knowledge are needed to stand apart from the crowd. Developers must work cleverly to let their creativity flourish. This is why our games course at the National Film and Television School is especially unique and important.

At NFTS games we realize that you don’t necessarily need a background or a degree in games to make great games. People from all walks of life and all backgrounds can be successful games developers, and indeed they can move beyond traditional gaming to challenge the very meaning of games themselves. This is part of the beauty of the games industry and our games course. This variety of perspectives is critically important for innovation. With determination, talent, and great ideas our course can help you develop story-telling skills, technical skills, and the necessary industry connections that elevate your work to excellence and recognition. Specifically, our games course teaches you the art and craft of game-making from all major perspectives, alongside related skills like story-telling and producing, and it helps develop your industry profile through connections, events and portfolio development. Let’s take a look further at what makes our ground-breaking MA so special.

Portfolio Approach

NFTS Games is a two-year flagship MA course that’s highly regarded for its unique approach. We welcome rising stars and strong talent onto the course, even if they have no prior game development skills! It doesn’t matter if you haven’t programmed before or created 3D art and animations. Our course is taught by leading industry practitioners with many years industry experience who are committed to helping you establish a varied skillset. The first year of the course consists of five intensive modules, each of which results in a complete, playable game specifically intended to build you a career portfolio showcasing your talent. You’ll learn programming, life-drawing, 3D-modelling, texture creation, story-telling, game production and many more industry-relevant skills. This portfolio will be critical to employability, demonstrating what you can do while working in a highly collaborative studio setting.

(Game: ReTreat; Developer: Jonathan Nielssen; Module: Moments of Consequence)

Innovation Focus - Storytelling and Mechanics

Our course aims to make you an industry leader and a pioneer. Someone who assertively challenges established norms and tries new ideas. Right now, the games industry is still dominated by a traditional diet of big guns, glorified violence, hyper-sexualized women and blood-soaked zombies. But games can be so much more than this if we let them. Games can make us laugh and cry, can bring us together and make us think, and most of all they can inspire us to become better people both inside and outside of virtual worlds. We recognize the value of strong story-telling skills, coupled with innovation in gameplay, to help you make compelling games that stand apart from the mainstream shooters. Our modules are designed to engage you with philosophical, cultural and contemporary themes, and to help you explore new directions for gaming experiences.

(Game Name: Sprinkle Palooza; Developer: Benita Kvinlaug; Module: Final Year Project)

Collaborative Workflow

Nobody is alone on the games course! The games department is an energetic hub of creativity and sociability within the school. It inevitably attracts connections across all departments. Although curriculum hours are normally between 10am-5pm on weekdays, students nevertheless get access to the games labs and equipment 24 Hours a day, 7 days a week! That’s simply incredible! In this studio environment, connections and networking naturally happens. Our students get access to high-talent from other departments within the school, including screen-writing, cinematography, digital FX, sound design and composing, production management, marketing and creative business, and many more. For this reason, nearly every game made at the NFTS is the result of a collaborative process guided by the game student’s central creative vision; a process in which many skills and experiences have been brought together to form a high quality experience. In short, NFTS Games is a great place to work if you want to work with talented people!

(NFTS Games and Digital Effects Departments at FMX)

Industry Connectedness

Our games course is tightly integrated into the games industry in many ways, and our graduates quickly achieve success and recognition for their work. Our modules are taught by passionate and experienced industry professionals who are masters of their craft. And they continue to maintain industry links and careers outside the school too. In addition, guest speakers from across the creative industries, including games and film and television, regularly visit the school to deliver inspirational talks and masterclasses, and to visit students to discuss their work. We are also committed to taking student talent directly into the industry, and so our students attend and exhibit their work at high-profile industry events, like EGX.

Apply now! More information at www.nfts.co.uk/games

(Marika Santala, Director, The Love Gym with her RTS Student Award)

NFTS students have once again done us proud winning no fewer than seven RTS Student Television Awards! Prizes were won in Comedy & Entertainment; Drama; Factual; Camerawork; Editing; Production Design and Sound. There were an incredible 20 NFTS nominations overall. (If you would like to follow in our winners’ footsteps, application deadlines are coming up on the 6^th of July for MA’s in Directing & Producing Television Entertainment; Directing Animation and Production Design.)

The ceremony took place on Friday 16^th of June at the BFI Southbank in London and was chaired by Philip Edgar-Jones, Director of Sky Arts and hosted by the very funny, writer, presenter and comedian, Katherine Ryan.

The awards recognise the best audiovisual work created by students across the UK and Republic of Ireland at undergraduate and postgraduate level. Awards are judged in Animation, Comedy & Entertainment, Drama, Factual, News and Short Feature. Excellence is also rewarded in craft skills for camerawork, editing, production design and sound.

The winners:

Postgraduate Comedy & Entertainment

The Love Gym, Raphael Beaulieu (Producer) and Marika Santala (Director)

 “A great concept, brilliantly executed. Being character led rather than overtly scripted meant the right balance of charm, naughtiness and naturalism. The jury wanted to watch more!”

Postgraduate Drama

Ferris & The Fancy Pigeon, James Gardner (Director/ Writer) and Helene Sifre (Producer)

“An uplifting, heart-warming coming of age comedy; mixing grounded, kitchen-sink style drama with heightened moments and flights of fancy.”

Postgraduate Factual

Uprooted, Ross Domoney (Director/ Producer/ Cinematographer)

 “A beautifully crafted film that demonstrated a real understanding of how personal stories, powerfully told, can be used to shine a light on a wider political issue.”

Postgraduate Craft Skills - Camerawork

Krzysztof Trojnar, Mia

“The jury admired the beauty of composition and how every shot seemed to have been carefully considered.”

Postgraduate Craft Skills - Editing

Dennis Mabry, The Sunflower Inn

“With no resorting to voiceover, the edit managed to deliver great clarity of storytelling and hugely contributed to the joy and warmth of the film.”

Postgraduate Craft Skills - Production Design

Joelle Aoun, Mia

“The production design was quietly effective in creating a distinct and clear vision for the film and was integral to its success.”

Postgraduate Craft Skills - Sound

Eleanor Nicholls, Mia

“Sound was used very effectively in bringing to life the world of the film. Bold choices such as the use of silence at times were greatly admired by the jury.”

More information on how to apply for MA’s in Directing & Producing Television Entertainment; Directing Animation and Production Design at https://www.nfts.co.uk/sign-me-up/deadlines