More than 400 people have kickstarted their film and TV careers thanks to the councils Liverpool Film Office’s Action! programme.
Within the first six months of Action!, the Film Office has facilitated paid work for 130 entrants, with sought-after roles on a variety of productions filming in the Liverpool City Region – from high-end television such as This City Is Ours and a major feature film.
An additional 108 people have received free, introductory training to prepare them for work in the film and TV industry and the further 191 are signed up to receive career support and take advantage of the training opportunities over the next two years.
Since its launch in January, the training programme, has hosted six free introductory training courses covering topics such as location sourcing, working effectively in art make-up and hair, sound departments, the role of assistant directors and the production office, as well as hosting a masterclass with Supervising Location Manager Emma Pill, who has worked on the likes of major feature films such as 1917, Captain America: The First Avenger and Inception.
There was also a popular Q&A session with The Responder creator, Tony Schumacher as well as career surgeries introducing new entrants to the range of career options available and what life as a freelancer is like.
Coming up over the next few months, there are plans for further masterclasses and training in areas such as camera, lighting and grip, special effects make-up and costume department.
Action! members will also be offered CV advice as well as workshops and courses to boost their soft skills and improve competency with regularly used spreadsheets, documents and equipment.
Action! has been made possible through £2.3m of BFI National Lottery funding which was awarded to Screen Alliance North, a new skills cluster partnership delivered by Liverpool Film Office, North East Screen, Screen Manchester and Screen Yorkshire.
The partnership aims to make the screen sector more accessible and representative and to build a thriving and skilled workforce across the North of England.
Councillor Lila Bennett, Cabinet Member for Employment, Educational Attainment and Skills, said:
“It is great to see that so many people have received training to boost their skills and transform the lives of those who want to get into careers in film and TV.
“The City Council is committed to doing everything it can to give residents the chance to fulfil their ambitions of a career in the industry.”
Film Office Lead for Action!, Crew Development Manager Helen Morgan said:
“It has been a rewarding six months watching our new entrants develop from our career surgeries, introductory training to then receiving paid work on some of the productions coming into the region.
“We now have our first wave of trainees graduating out of Action! after achieving their training and production credits, I cannot wait to continue to work with them as their careers flourish in the industry.
“One of the biggest highlights was securing paid work for 112 new entrants over a 12-day period on a recent production that was filming in the city centre. Many of these trainees were from the Liverpool City Region, as well as our Screen Alliance North partners.
“I’m really excited for what’s to come next and would urge anyone who wants to kickstart their career in the film and TV industry to sign up for Action!”
Camera trainee, Amelia Cannon, who has been part of the Action! programme said:
“I spent seven weeks as a camera trainee on series two of The Responder. It was really educational and has helped me a lot and I would definitely recommend Action! to anyone who is looking at getting into film and TV.
“Since then, I have been able to work on other things in the camera department such as commercials for LFC TV and just this past week, another TV show, This City Is Ours. I’ve also made a lot of friends and memories because of the Action! programme and because of the field.
“I am thankful to the Liverpool Film Office for all their help!”
Action! will be running until 2026 and is free to anyone aged 18 and over, lives in the Liverpool City Region and not in higher or further education. For full T&Cs and to sign up, visit the website.
READ MORE: LIVERPOOL FILM OFFICE LAUNCH NEW FILM AND TV TRAINING PROGRAMME
