Some of the NFTS’ most celebrated award-winning graduates gathered for the first ever Alumni Council dinner at the Century Club, Soho, hosted by NFTS founding director Colin Young, with current Director Nik Powell.
The reunion was initiated by (1991)NFTS graduate Producer Michele Camarda (Wonderland, Close Your Eyes) and attended by 30 fellow graduates including Steve Morrison (Chair of All 3 Media), Oscar-winning Composer Dario Marianelli (Atonement, Pride & Prejudice, Anna Karenina), Director Joanna Hogg (Exhibition, Archipelago), Wild Horses Films MD Gayle Griffiths (My Brother The Devil), Writer Shawn Slovo (Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, Muhammad Ali, A World Apart), Writer Nick Martin ( TV series Big Bad World, Midsomer Murders, Soldier Soldier& forthcoming Stephen Frears film Florence Foster Jenkins starring Meryl Streep and Hugh Grant), Documentary Director Molly Dineen (The Lie of the Land, The Lord’s Tale, Geri), Director Dominic Savage (Love & Hate, Freefall), Writer/Director Tony Collingwood, Writer Ashley Pharoah (Ashes to Ashes, Life on Mars ), Cinematographer Oliver Stapleton (The Proposal, Cider House Rules) and many others.
Many of the alumni studied at the NFTS under Colin Young’s directorship, including Michele Camarda who said she had wanted to organise the dinner to, “…meet with old friends and raise a glass to our host and honour the man who started it all, the man who inspired us, dared us to take risks, who encouraged us to trust our voices, and who gave us the space to tell our stories and the time to grow up a little along the way.”
NFTS Director Nik Powell said: “It is fantastic to see so many of our illustrious alumni together round a table. We applaud you, and all of our graduates, on your successful careers in the film and television industry.”
It was agreed that an NFTS Alumni Council would be founded. More details to follow.
