Darren and Lisa from Braw Talent chat about their journeys into filmmaking, their career highlights, and what makes a good story.

Ira Glass on the gap between your taste and the work you’re making when you’re a beginner.

We completed a “taste audit” thinking about what we like, don’t like, or wish we’d made – knowing what you like and don’t like can help steer the projects your start to make yourself. We then went through a series of creative writing exercises which can be found in the links below – along with more inspiration and prompts.

Douglas – Writer/Director and Lecturer at UWS – talks to Darren about the Disney classic that kicked off his filmmaking journey, turning his hobby into a career, and opportunities and funding for people starting out.

Doug’s practical session looked at the fundamentals of shot construction – here are the slides he used. 

Doug set the group a task to create a film that all took place in one shot. Sometimes constraints can enhance the creativity – as demonstrated by the short film you created.

Ana – stop-motion director and animator – and Andrew – DOP and cinematographer – chat animation, picking up a camera for the first time, and their collaboration.

Ana and Andrew set the challenge of creating a short stop motion based on the word "play" using paper, pens, and stop motion studio. The results will be uploaded soon.

Dubbing Mixer Leslie talks all things sound, how if you don’t notice it, you’re doing a good job, and how one of the most important elements of sound is simply listening.

We created sound based stories – telling the tale of someone writing a letter, posting it, and the recipient getting it, using little to no dialogue.

Director, Executive Producer, and Documentary Filmmaker Stewart talks to us about turning adversity into success, finding your unique story, and how to talk the ten year old version of adults.

Stewart led a hands-on introduction to filming interviews / talking-heads. Participants explored how to choose an effective location, make the most of natural light, position the camera, and light a subject to create engaging interviews. He also shared his approach to building rapport and helping people feel relaxed and comfortable to lead to more authentic interviews. He showed how each of these creative decisions can be used intentionally to create mood and influence how an audience connects with the subject.

Editor and Creative Director Howie talks to us about podcasting, failure, and changing US laws, whist urging us all to “just start”.  

We edited a short podcast clip into a social media reel with a strong hook, clear story, and meaningful ending to stop the scroll, hold attention, and leave viewers thinking.