Award honour for young Teesside film-makers

Three young film-makers have been honoured with a Royal Television Society (RTS) award.

The trio won the Best Student Factual Production Award at the RTS Northeast and Border Awards, held at the Sage, Gateshead.

Their film will now go forward to the national judging for the RTS Student Television Awards being held in May. The three students, Anthony Allen, Matthew Morris and Elvis Katoto, are all graduates from the University’s BA (Hons) Television Production Professional Practice. They are now all continuing their studies at Teesside on the MA Television Production. Their film, Our Life, was described as ‘compelling’ by the award judges. It focuses on a wide variety of couples, who each talk about the journeys they have taken in life. The couples include a minister and his wife, a couple who run a boxing club, foster parents and an African couple, whose stories play out across multiple screens. Film showcases everything we learned on the degree course Anthony, 28, of Stockton, said: ‘We needed a diverse range of couples in order to show their different perspectives on life and how they can often run parallel to each other.’ Matthew, 22, of Thornaby, added: ‘The film showcases everything we learned on the degree course, from interviewing and filming to editing and bringing them together in a unique way.’ Elvis, 30, who is originally from the Congo and came to England as a refugee around a decade ago, said: ‘We’ve developed a strong network and got to know many people in the industry through our studies at Teesside. It’s a great platform.’ Our Life was also shortlisted for the BBC’s annual Developing Talent awards and won the Northern Film and Media Best in Show award at their degree final year show last summer. Anthony said: ‘I didn’t have any previous experience of working in production before the degree, but I’ve come a long way. We have lecturers who still work in the industry alongside others who have a wealth of experience which proved beneficial.’ Matthew said: ‘I wanted to study something which I would enjoy and the course didn’t disappoint. You get from it what you put into it and it's a great environment to work in.’ Elvis added: ‘The majority of people from the background I came from don’t always believe that they can make it, but it is possible and there are opportunities if you work hard.’

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