Second Light is a skills development programme devised and managed by First Light. It seeks to bridge the gap between the work that First Light does in reaching and engaging a wide range of young people from disparate backgrounds and abilities, and the new entry programmes and courses that feed talent into the film industry.

The pilot aimed to test a model for an effective and sustainable scheme to help young under-represented filmmakers get into the industry. The over-arching driver for the programme was that the UK film industry should have an up to date, technically informed, skilled and diverse workforce representative of the UK population.

The pilot phase:

The programme was piloted between September 2009 and March 2011 and was co-funded by the UK Film Council and Skillset. First Light worked in partnership with three independent training providers in three different cities – London, Glasgow and Bristol, who each recruited 10 trainees, aged 18-25 from BME backgrounds.

The programme consisted of production based training over a sustained 15-month period where the trainees worked on several high quality short films, that was enhanced with masterclasses, information, advice and guidance, bursaries to access additional training and work placements – all couched in a heavy dose of reality about working in a largely freelance industry. First Light recruited, inducted and trained mentors from the film & TV industries for each trainee and ensured that trainees all received extra support where appropriate to guarantee attendance. Many of the trainees were unemployed, some were NEETS, one was a single mum and many worked part time – circumstances that resulted in barriers to success.

Industry engagement:

First Light developed partnerships with industry employers to ensure the trainees had access to meaningful work experience opportunities and to paid work where available. Industry partners included: BBC, Pinewood Studios Group, Future Publishing, All3Media, EON Productions, Framestore, Smuggler Films, Sixteen Films and Aardman Animations.

A celebratory screening of the completed films made during the pilot was held at BAFTA in March 2011 and the Second Light New Talent Award – part of the 2011 First Light Awards, went to Ruth Antoine (SL London).

The Future:

An independent evaluation of Second Light (by Olsberg and Culture Shift) was published earlier in the year.

Three careers labs (in partnership with the BBC) took place in Nottingham and Birmingham this month, attracting over 30 young people from predominantly from diverse backgrounds, who were interested in finding out careers in the film and television industries. In information packed sessions, topics covered included key skills necessary to break into these competitive industries; the do’s and don’ts of a CV; commentary on what makes a strong application; top tips about how to prepare, and what to do in the interview situation followed by a reality check about working as a freelancer.

First Light has further committed itself, through ring fencing a modest amount of its Lottery Funds, to a short series of LABS in the autumn.

During the autumn we will be working with 3 delivery partners (The Script Factory, The Producers Forum and Flatpack), on LABS focusing on script writing, producing for film and the opportunities and the challenges that are involved in working for oneself and as a freelancer.

You can find more about the Second Light LABS in our news section.