BFI Film Academy Short Courses help to train and inspire the next generation of filmmakers, supporting young people aged 16 to 19 to develop the commercial and cultural knowledge and skills to help develop a career in film. BFI Film Academy Short Courses offer young people, who are passionate about film, a chance to learn together, working in production teams to create short films in an industry led environment. The course delivered by Cinemagic is an accredited OCN Level 2 in Creative and Digital Technologies qualification. This qualification has been driven by the needs of industry and education partners.
Since 2013, a number of invited guests from the film industry have met with the participants of the BFI Film Academy Short Courses delivered by Cinemagic to talk about their aspiring careers. Industry professionals who shared their skills and experiences with the young people included producers Mark Huffam (Saving Private Ryan, World War Z), Iain Smith (The A Team, Children of Men), Gareth Ellis-Unwin (The King’s Speech) and Jessica Malik (Zaytoun), Production Managers Terry Bamber (The Man from U.N.C. L.E, Skyfall) and Leon McGeown-Fee (The Lodge, Sesame Tree), actors Suranne Jones (Doctor Foster, Scott & Bailey), Shaun Evans (Endeavour) and Conleth Hill (Game of Thrones), Cinematographer Seamus Mc Garvey (Atonement, Avengers Assemble), screenwriter Ryan Rowe (Charlie’s Angels, Tinkerbell and The Secret of the Wings), directors Aisling Walsh (Maudie, Song for a Raggy Boy), William Mc Gregor (One of Us, Misfits), Tony Mitchell (The Bible), Michael Lennox (Boogaloo and Graham, Derry Girls), Andrew Tohill & Ryan Tohill (The Dig), David Caffrey (Peaky Blinders, Love/Hate), Brian Kirk (Game of Thrones, Great Expectations), First AD Darren Fee (The Lodge, Secret Life of Boys), casting director Georgia Simpson, and Make-up artist Christine Blundell (Sherlock Holmes, Legend and Paddington).
After completing a BFI Film Academy course, you’ll be a part of our expansive alumni network and will have access to apply to exclusive opportunities such as traineeships, mentoring programmes, masterclasses and more.
BFI Film Academy is delivered by Nerve Centre, AmmA Centre and Cinemagic and is supported by the UK government’s Department for Education, National Lottery, Northern Ireland Screen and Screen Scotland.
