SWIF digest 📬 24 June 2025

🌞 Hello filmmakers. I'm looking forward to our picnic next weekend, which is open to filmmakers, friends and family. The Met Office's long range forecast gives a tentative "perhaps locally hot weather". Fingers crossed!

🥰 These digests will always be free. Consider supporting this resource for the filmmaking community with a paid membership. Options start from £1 per week & include member benefits.

Here’s your weekly digest for independent film in the South West:

👋 Bon voyage to Helen Thompson & Corey Terrett, who have been selected for The TV Festival's Network group in Edinburgh this year. Helen will be sharing her experience on her LinkedIn. - TV Festival

🙌 Congrats to the team behind short film Roisin and Raela which has been selected for the next round of Center Frame's Top 10 competition. - Instagram

🥳 Congrats to the new Directors Lab cohort for BFI Network SW & Bournemouth Film School. - Watershed

🧠 DOCLAB takes place at Exeter Phoenix on 25 Jun. A welcoming, inclusive and safe space for documentary filmmakers to come together, share ideas and develop their projects. - Exeter Phoenix

📽️ Filmmaker Plymouth Social's scratch film night is on 26 Jun. Bring your recent short film, work in progress or the beginning of an idea! - Eventbrite

⚡️ Jolt in Gloucester are hosting their regular creatives networking for under 30s on 3 Jul. - Jolt

🥪 Next SWIF event: Summer picnic at Ashton Court Bristol on 5 Jul from 11am.

❓ Tabb are hosting an online Q&A with Writer/Director Oliver Park about breaking into the film and TV industry, and surviving once you’re in. 8 Jul. - Tabb

🎟️ Tickets are on sale for the third edition of Blue Metaphor presents "Stories beyond the Veil". An evening of short films with Q&As, networking, live performance and art exhibition. 1 Nov in Bristol. - Blue Metaphor

👍 Can you spare 5 mins to make SWIF better for you and the community? Please fill out our quick survey. - SWIF

❤️ The Film & TV Charity offer up to six free, accredited counselling sessions for people working behind the scenes. - Film & TV Charity

💸 The Writers’ Guild of Great Britain want to know if you're a Writer who has been asked for work for nothing or provide work beyond the scope of your contract for no additional payment in the last year. - Survey Monkey

🤓 Wscripted is creating a curated database of Script Readers able to provide paid professional coverage for their partners & community. - Airtable

🗞️ Is your film screening at a festival this year? Reach out to Devon & Cornwall Film for press coverage. The team interviewed me about Fathom and it was a great experience. - D&C Film

✂️ Somerset Film are running a workshop on editing on 24 Jul in Bridgwater. - Somerset Film

✈️ Cary Grant Festival are seeking volunteers across event planning, fundraising, marketing, governance and partnership development. - Email

🤫 Casting call for a Cardiff short film about mimes. Males & females, 20s– 30s. Tabb

🏃🏿‍♀️ A feature film in Cardiff are seeking Trainees for camera, sustainability, costume, hair & make-up and sound departments. Deadline 25 Jun. - Screen Alliance Wales

👨🏽‍💻 BBC Studios Documentary Unit is seeking the following roles for Channel 4’s Murder Case: The Digital Detectives: Researcher, Junior Series Producer, Assistant Producer, Edit Producer & Director. - Screen Alliance Wales

✍️ Channel 4's new TV Writers scheme closes for applications tomorrow, on 25 Jun. - Channel 4

🏗️ Creatives in Cornwall can submit project ideas to Impossible Producing. Deadline 27 Jun. - Impossible Producing

🧜 Watersprite Film Festival's free training programme for emerging filmmakers who have faced disadvantage in entering the industry, has its application deadline on 30 Jun. - Watersprite

🛤️ Exeter Phoenix & Great Western Rail's short animation commission for south west based graduates closes for entries on 27 Jun. - Exeter Phoenix

🏆 Film Bath's Script to Screen Award, with a cash production fund prize, closes for entries on 31 Jul. - FilmFreeway

🌅 Kickstarter & Tubi are offering finishing funds & distribution deals for film crowdfunders running over the summer. - Kickstarter

📮 Upcoming film festival submission deadlines: Cardiff Mini (27 Jun), Cardiff Animation, Ignite (both 30 Jun), ANIMINSPO (11 Jul), Hell Tor, Bournemouth International (both 18 Jul) & Darkroom (20 Jul). - FilmFreeway

🏳️‍🌈 Queer Bath Festival takes place 26 May - 30 Jun. - QB

🌍 SAFAR Film Festival, the UK’s largest celebration of Arab Cinema, takes place in Plymouth 11-28 Jun. - SFF

🧠 Royal Anthropological Institute Film Festival takes place in Bristol 16 Jun - 16 Jul. - Headfirst

🌈 Queer Vision Film Festival takes place in Bristol 28 Jun - 11 Jul. - Bristol Pride

💎 Cinema Rediscovered Festival takes place in Bristol 23-27 Jul. - Watershed

👩‍❤️‍👩 The personals: Nothing this week. Get in touch for a listing.

🍿 On film club: Chameleon Street dir. Wendell B. Harris Jr. (on Mubi) & The Meetings of Anna dir. Chantal Akerman (on BFIplayer).

📣 Have something to share on the next digest? Could be an event, workshop, behind the scenes updates, crew call, showcasing your work or a personal ad. Get in touch! hollyholdsworth@gmail.com

💌 If you found this helpful please forward it to a friend.

Until next week!
Holly Holdsworth (she/her)
Writer/Director. bsky website

Inclusion in this email does not denote endorsement. I will always try to platform the best opportunities for this community and am not affiliated with any organisation, unless explicitly mentioned besides the link.