Young Film Academy Visits Salford City College

08 March 2010

A-Level Film Studies students at Salford City College, Eccles Centre recently took part in a unique educational initiative when they were visited by the Young Film Academy for a One Day Film School.

The YFA is the UK’s leading educational filmmaking provider for schools and is directly linked to the UK film industry. The Academy is also the exclusive workshop provider to many of the UK’s leading arts organisations, including the BBC and the Edinburgh International Festival.

The One Day Film School offers a dynamic day of hands-on filmmaking. Run by industry professionals, the day includes workshops on screenwriting, camerawork and even fight choreography. The day then culminates in students working in teams to produce their own mini-films.

Michael Gandy, from the YFA, commented “The day is always an enjoyable one and often opens students’ eyes to new techniques and possible career choices. Our visit to the Eccles Centre was also a refreshing one for the YFA team as, expecting Salford students to live up to their sometimes negative press, we were delighted to find that all of the students were very pleasant, engaging and a credit to their college.”

Gill Walker-Lowe, Film Studies tutor at the Eccles Centre, said “Inviting industry professionals in to deliver workshops like this is key to the students’ development. It offers them detailed insight into possible career paths and also gives them the opportunity make new discoveries about their subject, which may not be covered on the curriculum.”

At the end of the day, students presented their mini-films to each other at a mini-Film Festival and awards ceremony, which even included an Oscar for Best Film.