webdev Brighton and Hove has long been a significant hub in the UK for video production both big and small. This particular article will concentrate on the smaller end of the scale, with adventurous film makers embarking on all kinds of endeavours assisted by the wealth of creative talent within the city.
The first port of call for any budding film maker in the Brighton and Hove area is to become trained in one of the many functions within the medium. There are a number of great courses within the colleges and two major universities (University of Sussex and University of Brighton) but the cherry on top is the excellent Brighton Film School, which trains in traditional 16 and 35mm film as well as digital. The school, which has recently come under new management, boasts board members including acclaimed Trainspotting DoP Brian Tufano and graduates including DJ and broadcaster Zoe Ball.
Brighton film making
Once trained, there are a multitude of resources available to allow the Brighton Video Producer to tackle their first subject. The Brighton Film Makers Coalition is a regular long standing networking event where budding and established film makers can collude and cohort. Here you’ll get a good idea just how many talented and creative people live in Brighton. You may also be pleasantly surprised how many willing collaborators you will find at the Coalition – providing the project is good!
Once all the crew and finance is in place, it’s next vitally important that you have the right kit. The go to place in Brighton is definitely our friends at Promotion. Working from creative hub New England House, Promotion has all the kit you would care to imagine. Being a regional outpost of a major Soho hire house means that Brighton film makers can order all sorts of high end cameras, gibs, dollies and anything else they can think of.
Location, location
The next step is to make sure all the locations are in place. Some film makers are prepared to “go guerrilla” but we’d suggest getting in touch with the very helpful Jo Osborne, events officer at Brighton and Hove City Council. Yes, you had to pony up a few quid to shoot on the public parks and certain other locations – but the results speak for themselves.
After the shoot, edit output – finally is the stage where you need to present your magnum opus to the public. In Brighton and Hove, there’s only one serious venue (well now two actually) to watch a film – The Duke of York’s. This cinema, arguably the oldest purpose in the UK – has been operating for over 100 years and has been at the van guard of showing interesting and stimulating films since then. They run a programme where they regularly show films by local film makers – a great thrill for the first time video producer. Recently the Duke’s have opened up a new, beautifully turned out second cinema in the North Laine in Brighton. Called the Dukes at Komedia – this new sparkly addition to the Brighton culture scene is arguably the sexiest cinema in the UK.
