Edinburgh kid's film academy proves a smash hit

A new movie academy set up to coach the city's budding young filmmakers has been a smash hit.

Edinburgh filmmaker Graham Kitchener, who teamed up with Spooks actress Shauna Macdonald, Bafta winner Douglas Dougan and editor Chuck Cumming, said there was such a surge in interest that plans are in motion to open a second academy on a Wednesday and another in Fife.

Students at The Film Academy Edinburgh were mentored through the process of making a short film and went on to create and shoot their own.

Graham said: “Our students were new to filmmaking but they rose to the challenge, learned new skills, made new friends, and produced eight cracking films oiver the five days.”

Sarah Wilkins, a high school teacher and mother of two, said: “Both my children, a 14-year-old and a 12-year-old, loved the week.

“It is a well thought out programme with a high standard of delivery, and both are continuing on to the weekly academy.”

Over 60 young film buffs enrolled in classes over the summer learning about acting for camera, scriptwriting, camera and sound production, directing and editing.

Graham said there is no current provision on this level and children are missing out on the opportunity to harness invaluable and transferable life skills which could benefit Scotland’s growing film industry.

The Film Academy Edinburgh uses the state-of-the-art facilities at Edinburgh College on Milton Road, including studio spaces and edit suites, equipped with the latest iMacs and Final Cut Pro software.

Graham said the popularity of the schools shows the interest the industry has for children as well as developing key transferable skills such as organising, planning and working as a team.

Home to the world’s oldest continually running film festival and following the Avengers-affect, Edinburgh is slowly becoming a film-making destination in its own right.

Filming in the city region generated £16.1 million in economic impact in 2017 – 109 per cent increase on 2016

For more information about the Film Academy at Edinburgh College’s Milton Road campus, visit: www.filmacademyedinburgh.com/weekly-filmmaking-classes/ or contact [email protected]