Sheffield DocFest has confirmed that Touching the Void, The Last King of Scotland and One Day in September filmmaker, Kevin Macdonald will be a mentor in its Filmmaker Challenge.
Macdonald will mentor 6 early career UK filmmakers as they take part in the 2023 Filmmaker Challenge. They’ll make a short documentary in and around Sheffield during the festival, undertaking the challenge of making a film on the fly, with a micro budget and equipment support.
All filming is to be undertaken in a single day and the final work will be screened for industry and invited guests on the last day of Sheffield DocFest.
It’s part of the Festival’s Industry Programme, which runs in conjunction with Sheffield DocFest and looks into the business of documentary-making.
The programme will also showcase a number of new funding streams, including collaborations with Royal Botanical Garden, Kew, BBC Storyville, and launching the Podcast Pitch supported by The Whickers.
Events will cover industry topics such as disability inclusion, 10 Ways to win a commission, pathways for the new talent, neurodiversity inclusion, social mobility, journalistic integrity and creative distribution and exhibition.
“This year, the industry sessions programme will pose some big questions,’ said Beccy Ashdown, Talks & Sessions Senior Producer.
“Has the industry opened up to working-class voices? Do we risk compromising projects and authenticity of the subject, or is there still a middle ground to tell the stories that filmmakers, contributors and commissioners believe should be told? Is journalistic integrity under threat with the rise of disinformation and AI? How do we support the mental health and wellbeing of the industry, to allow people to really thrive? We look forward to debating and discussing, the future of documentary together in June.”
In addition Craft Summit will be a day of panel sessions dedicated to the techniques that go into non-fiction filmmaking, from shorts to features.
Supported by Warner Bros. Discovery, panels include an Editing Masterclass with editor and filmmaker Maya Daisy Hawke (Navalny), AI driven editing with Adobe and Meet the Music Supervisor with Steph Grace-Summers, the Music Supervisor & Consultant behind BBC’s 8 Bar – The Evolution of Grime.
“DocFest recognises editors and editing as filmmaking. I’m looking forward to sharing my experiences working on such films as Cave of Forgotten Dreams and Navalny, and talking about what it’s really like in the cutting room these days, both in the UK and America,” said Maya Daisy Hawke, Music Supervisor.
There will also be 4 sessions for emerging directors to pitch their non-fiction projects to panels of judges. The Whicker’s Pitch is for a £100k Film & TV Funding Award; the Channel 4 First Cut Pitch to secure a commission for a 60-minute film, and one month of fully-paid development and mentorship with an indie; BBC Storyville Development Pitch will award their chosen project(s) up to £3k; and the Podcast Pitch with 2 prizes of £5k and £2k, supported by The Whickers.
Sheffield DocFest runs from 14-19 June across Sheffield venues, including The Crucible Theatre, Showroom Cinema, Workstation, Curzon Sheffield, The Light, Sheffield City Hall and Town Hall, Channing Hall, Site Gallery, Site Studio, and Cutlers’ Hall.
