BritWeek Scholarship To Give Five Young People From Inner-City Los Angeles A Life-Changing Opportunity With Cinemagic
BritWeek has announced Belfast-based charity Cinemagic and Red Nose Day as their philanthropic partners this year. The announcement was made at the recent BritWeek Innovation Awards, hosted in conjunction with the GREAT campaign, in Santa Monica, Los Angeles.Through the philanthropic support BritWeek will provide scholarships for five young people from inner-city Los Angeles to travel to the UK to participate in a life-changing film making experience with Cinemagic.
BritWeek is a long-established non-profit whose aim is to promote the innovation, cultural, and business links between California and the UK. BritWeek celebrates the relationship between the US and the UK and how the creative talent from these two great countries comes together in the unique setting of Hollywood.
Founded 11 years ago by entertainment mogul Nigel Lythgoe OBE, BritWeek celebrates this relationship every year with a series of high-profile events promoting British creativity, innovation and excellence across multiple categories including: film and television, music, art, fashion, design, retail, sport, philanthropy, business, and more.
Joan Burney Keatings, chief executive, Cinemagic International Film and Television Festival for Young People, discusses:
“We are absolutely delighted that BritWeek has chosen Cinemagic as one their philanthropic partners this year. It is such an honour and we appreciate it so very much.
“Cinemagic has been delivering a Los Angeles based film festival for young people for almost ten years. It focuses on bringing the magic of the moving image to young people, inspiring them to develop new skills in a wide range of production related disciplines.
“As Cinemagic film productions have expanded we have sought to create opportunities for an invaluable exchange of skills. Young people from Los Angeles have visited Northern Ireland and been involved in the creation of feature films. Equally, young people from Northern Ireland have visited LA and alongside their peers, spent time with industry professionals developing their understanding and insight into the moving image process.”
“The five BritWeek scholarships will allow us to continue with this important work and this exchange of creativity and innovation. They will undoubtedly have a transformative impact on the lives of five young people.”
Ms Burney Keatings continues: “The last few years have been a particularly exciting time for Cinemagic. We have firmly established annual Cinemagic Film and Television Festivals in Belfast, Dublin, London, Paris, Los Angeles and New York, with over 40,000 young people participating in our events each year.
“In the last four years we have produced two feature films; secured worldwide distribution for our first feature film A CHRISTMAS STAR; developed two “behind the scene” documentaries, produced over 45 short films; supported hundreds of young trainees to work in the film and television industry; and we are now planning the world premiere of our next feature film, GRACE AND GOLIATH later this year.”
At the centerpiece of BritWeek, the Innovation Awards celebrate the very best of British and American creativity and entrepreneurial talent. This year’s recipients included multi-Michelin Star Chef and Star of the FOX series “MasterChef Junior,” “Hell’s Kitchen” and “24 Hours To Hell And Back,” Gordon Ramsay, Founder of the Huffington Post and Founder and CEO of Thrive Global, Arianna Huffington, Co-Founder of the meditation App Headspace, Andy Puddicombe, and Founder of Red Nose Day, Richard Curtis.
