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Cornwall Media Focus

Channel 4 Event Showcases Cornish Talent

London screening and pitching event proves a great success.


Cornish writers and Cornwall Film celebrate after the pitch event.

The latest creative talent and films from Cornwall were showcased at ‘The Cream of Cornish Films’ in London o­n Wednesday 28 June.

The interactive event, held at Channel 4, included a ‘Dragon’s Den’ style pitching opportunity for writers to impress representatives from Channel 4, BBC Films and the UK Film Council, and a screening of some of the very best short films from Cornwall.

Pippa Best, Project Director for Cornwall Film says: “There is fantastic creative talent in Cornwall, and the screening and pitching event offered a chance for us to share their potential with a wider audience. The feedback from the industry audience was excellent – they were really impressed by the range and quality of the Cornish films. The comedies provoked lots of laughter, and at least o­ne of the films made the audience cry. Local talent made contact with agents and producers who are now keen to develop ideas with them. So all in all, a great result!”

The screening included some of the highlights from the Cornwall Film Festival, recent O-region competitions, and the four UK Film Council Digital Shorts filmed in Cornwall in 2005/6.

Many of the shorts had a uniquely Cornish slant . ‘If the population of Cornwall was 100 toy soldiers’, directed by Laura Hardman, is a quirky take on the socio-economic profile of the county, and Mark Jenkin’s ‘and that’s how I accidentally managed to confuse the eco-mob’, an ironic approach to environmental issues. Others bring a Cornish perspective to international issues, such as Tom Eldridge’s Beyond Iraq, recently screened at the Sundance Film Festival.

Five budding scriptwriters from the Uprising scheme – Cornwall Films’ talent development scheme for low budget dramas – took to the floor for three minutes each to pitch their script ideas to an eminent panel including Channel 4, the UK Film Council, and the BBC in the terrifying setting of the Channel 4 boardroom. The feedback from the panel was very positive. All of the writers gained an insight into what it will take to catapult them onto the big screen; and made some very useful industry contacts.

Rodda’s Creamery, Boddington Berries Jam, and Prima Bakeries provided a classic Cornish cream tea which was extremely popular – it provided a chance for the Cornish writers, directors and producers attending the event to network with the wider film and TV industry.