Chapter has been delivering events, projects and opportunities for young filmmakers aged 16 – 25 across Wales as a regional partner for the BFI Film Academy, supported by National Lottery funding.
This programme is all about helping you learn more about film, find your creative voice and start your career in the screen industry - here are all the different strands:
These showcases and networking events give young creatives the opportunity to meet their peers and potential collaborators, present new work and share tips for breaking into the industry.
To date, SCENE events in Wales have taken place in Bangor, Bridgend, Caernarfon, Cardiff, Newport, Rhyl, Swansea and Wrexham, welcoming hundreds of filmmakers and screening dozens of their shorts.
Labs are practical online sessions led by industry professionals with a focus on explaining the specifics of working in the screen industries. In Wales, we have delivered sessions on going freelance / setting up your own production company and making music videos today, which you can watch along with the entire Labs back catalogue via this YouTube playlist.
In addition, we have also presented masterclasses (in-person and online) dedicated to casting, locations, screenwriting, screen combat, producing, distribution/exhibition and more.
These are special screenings of notable and inspiring films, recommended by and for young creatives, with extra content and discounted/free entry for 16-25s.
They’ve included exclusive recorded intros from Wes Anderson and Christopher Nolan to accompany their debut features, a live Q&A with Gareth Evans for The Raid in Swansea, a rare screening of Punch-Drunk Love on 35mm, and VFX-focused presentations of Monsters, Asteroid City and Ex Machina.
We have awarded 5 x £1000 grants per year to filmmakers in/from Wales aged 16-25, to make a micro-short film supported by mentoring sessions from experienced industry professionals.
The finished projects have premiered at showcase events at Chapter and venues around Wales.
Complementing the UK-wide scheme from the BFI, we provide opportunities for young people to develop their curatorial, hosting, writing, marketing and event management skills.
This has led to events like Cymru Drwy Lens (Wales Through A Lens), a Welsh-language shorts showcase at both Chapter and the National Eisteddfod, plus Celtic Voices, which brought together filmmakers from Wales, Scotland and Ireland, and returning cult classic Jennifer’s Body to the big screen with a specially-recorded Q&A from director Karyn Kusama.
Working in collaboration with Film Hub Wales, young programmers have also interviewed the stars of Timestalker and Starve Acre, and the writer-director of Satu - Year Of The Rabbit.
Chapter has hosted several events for the UK’s largest film festival for young people, presenting selections from across the festival programme in Cardiff and Swansea, highlighting new voices in Welsh film, and co-hosting a dedicated animation night with Cardiff Animation Nights.
You can find videos of many of our Q&As, intros and masterclasses on this dedicated YouTube channel. To read first about future events for emerging creatives, follow Chapter MovieMaker on Instagram. And if you have any questions, please do email [email protected].
Find your new favourite film or rediscover a classic, and experience cinema like nowhere else.
Check our what's on for film listings.
Film Hub Wales aims to bring more films, to more people, in more places around Wales. Chapter is proud to be the Film Hub lead organisation for Wales.