Industry Events

Networking in the creative industries

Wednesday 29th September at 11:00am
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Everyone tells you to “get out and network” but for many this is easier said than done. Where do you find the right events to attend? When you are alone in the room how do you approach people? How does the internet and social media fit into the networking equation? Rob Speranza of the South Yorkshire Film Network offers practical advice and tips that you can act on. 

Access VFX

Wednesday 29th September at 12:20pm
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ACCESS:VFX is a global, industry-led, non-profit comprised of 40 leading companies, industry bodies and educational establishments in the VFX, animation and games industries. It focuses on actively pursuing and encouraging inclusion, diversity, awareness and opportunity under its four pillars of Inspiration, Education, Mentoring and Recruitment. Daniel Waterman joins us to talk about the opportunities in the industry and the new production workflows. 

Carbon Neutral Films

Wednesday 29th September at 1:40pm
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Dan Jackson (Trace Productions) will show how pro-environmental measures can translate into more interesting stories, better casting and be more cost efficient for productions.

Shorts to Features

Wednesday 29th September at 3:00pm
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Anna Griffin is a BIFA nominated producer working in both documentary and fiction with Wellington Films and her own newly formed, Griffin Pictures. She sits alongside producer Rebecca Mark-Lawson, previously a Development Executive at EM Media, a talent scout at NFTS and now heading up Tyke Films she creates drama and documentary across formats that empower and highlight little seen character and stories. They’re both here to discuss the journey from shorts to features – how short films should have a strong authorship, a unique style and speak volumes of who are you and what you want to make in the future. 

Networking / Reception (The Green Room)

Wednesday 29th September at 6:30pm
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Industry networking in The Green Room of the Light Cinema, complimentary red and white wine + snacks. 

After Party @ Great Ales (The Vault)

Wednesday 29th September at 9:50pm
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Join us for the Opening Night after party in the Vaults at The Great Ales in the Market Place. 

A career in stop motion

Thursday 30th September at 12:35pm
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Steve Boot is a stop motion director/animator with over 25 years experience working on feature films, television, commercials, computer games and short films, he sits alongside Virpi Kettu an animator on Wallace and Gromit , ‘Shaun the Sheep’ and  ‘Creature Comforts’ on this industry session discussing a career in stop motion. 

Doc Society

Thursday 30th September at 12:50pm
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Hannah Bush Bailey is the production manager for the BFI Doc Society fund. She works across the funds feature slate and Made of Truth Short Scheme supporting filmmakers both in production and editorially. She joins the festival in this showcase with recently completed short films and filmmakers discussing both their work and the process of working alongside Doc Society on funded short films. 

Animation Pipeline – Bearded Fellows

Thursday 30th September at 1:50pm
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Bearded Fellows are a Manchester animation and video agency that help brands, agencies and organisations to create stunning and exciting campaign content. They join us to look at the work flow and approach they have when taking on new animation commissions.  

Working Class Voices

Thursday 30th September at 2:05pm
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In this panel session we’re joined by Libby Burke Wilde the director of “Tinned Pears”, Paul Holbrook the director of “Hollow” and Paul Chambers the director of “Three Bull Mastiffs in a corner kitchen” and the films writer Sam Batley. With our host Paul Blinkhorn they’ll be discussing “Working Class Stories”, the challenges they face bringing their work to the screen, the stories they want to tell and their ambitions for their future.

BBC Writers Room

Thursday 30th September at 3:20pm
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BBC writersroom champions new writing talent in film, television, radio, and theatre. In this session, Development Executive Simon Nelson shares advice on writing for film and television by offering pragmatic tips and advice on structuring your plot, defining your genre and authoring compelling characters and realistic dialogue.  

Networking

Thursday 30th September at 5:30pm
Unit Base Gallery

After Party – The Star & Garter

Thursday 30th September at 9:50pm
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Join us at The Star & Garter for a few drinks with fellow filmmakers. 

Co-Writing Masterclass

Friday 1st October at 12:40pm
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Michael A Walker teamed up with Chris Lunt in 2018 and the duo haven’t looked backed since, writing the ten-part SKY Drama DEVILS, starring Patrick Dempsey, which sold into over 180 territories, YOUNG WALLANDER for NETFLIX (2021) and THE SWARM (based on the Frank Schatzing novel) for Frank Doelger (Game of Thrones) to be released 2022. In this industry session Chris and Alex explain their collaborative writing process. 

Anna Price – Editing Masterclass

Friday 1st October at 2:00pm
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Grierson and RTS award winning editor Anna Price joins us to discuss building a characters personality and humour in the edit suite, she will be including examples from her work with Louis Theroux and also the BAFTA nominated documentary “Once upon a time in Iraq”.

Festival Formula

Friday 1st October at 3:15pm
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Festival Formula will guide you through how best to prepare for the festival circuit talking about different levels of festivals, budget, niches to pick out, submission materials, and how to navigate through festivals in this strange transitional period as they slowly remerge from Covid. 

Film Pitching Workshop

Friday 1st October at 4:30pm
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An intensive pitching workshop with Greenlit’s Head of Creativity Magdalena Herfurtner and Greenlit’s Head of Communications Phil Melanson on how to prepare and execute the perfect pitch. We will show you how to set yourself up for success when preparing your project presentation and pitch deck, and what really matters when you deliver your pitch.

BFI Film Hub

Friday 1st October at 4:30pm
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Film Hub North bring a slate of recently completed BFI funded films to Bolton Film Festival with supporting Q&A’s from the filmmakers. Shaun Harrison will host the session and offer information for the potential of funding your next short film. 

Networking

Friday 1st October at 5:45pm
Unit Base Gallery

After Party @ V5 – The Vaults

Friday 1st October at 9:50pm
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Join us at V5 in the Vaults for networking and a few drinks with fellow festival goers.

Online Curation – Reaching global audiences

Saturday 2nd October at 2:00pm
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While content curation sounds easy, there’s a world of difference between simply curating content and doing the job well. Caroline Bottomley is founder of Shiny, an inclusive awards for directors starting their careers in commercials, she sits alongside Marbelle the co-founder of Directors Notes, who scour the globe for the best that indie cinema has to offer.  Join them to gain insights into their platforms, the thought process that goes into their programming and to hear their discussion on why they think some films are better suited to the online world. 

Festival Programmers

Saturday 2nd October at 3:20pm
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Philip Ilson of London Short Film Festival, Mita Suri of Sheffield Doc Fest and Rob Speranza of Aesthetica Film Festival join us to discuss the complexity behind the world of festival programming. A unique insight in how the selection process works, what they look for in a film and how to improve your chances when structuring your next film.

Networking

Saturday 2nd October at 5:45pm
Unit Base Gallery
Networking session with complimentary drinks and snacks in the Unitbase Gallery 

After Party – Unit Base Gallery

Saturday 2nd October at 9:50pm
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Join us in the Unit Base Gallery for the final nights partying and networking. 

Award Ceremony

Sunday 3rd October at 4:20pm
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Join us for the LIVE award ceremony – announcing this years nominees and award winners. Twenty prestigious awards will presented to categories including Best International Short, Best UK Short, Best Made up North, Best Documentary, Best Comedy, Best Animation, Best Student and many more. 

How to Network

Wednesday 5th October at 11:00am
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Everyone tells you to “get out and network” but for many this is easier said than done. Where do you find the right events to attend? When you are alone in the room how do you approach people? How does the internet and social media fit into the networking equation? Rob Speranza of the South Yorkshire Film Network offers practical advice and tips that you can act on. 

DNEG

Friday 7th October at 12:40pm
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Two-time Academy Award winner and DNEG co-founder Paul Franklin talks about his 30+ year career in digital visual effects and animation. Paul will talk about the early days of digital effects in London in the 1990s, the founding of DNEG in 1998, and his ten year-long collaboration with director Christopher Nolan – starting with Batman Begins and including the Oscar-winning visual effects work he designed for Inception and Interstellar.

BBC Writers Room

Friday 7th October at 12:40pm
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