Celebrating the one-year anniversary of 'Every Child a Filmmaker'

On the evening of 13 March 2025, groups of young filmmakers and high-profile figures from across the UK film industry came together to mark the one-year anniversary of our inclusive filmmaking initiative Every Child a Filmmaker at an event kindly hosted by Universal Pictures in London.

The hugely successful, celebratory fundraiser featured a montage of all 28 youth filmmaking projects made through the initiative so far, as well as individual screenings and Q&As with the Sheffield-based pupils behind Dinosaur and the Northern Ireland-based pupils who created Anna and the Ninja - both of which you can watch further down this page. The event was also attended by many of our generous funders including EON Productions, Pinewood, Disney, Universal, Swatch, Warner Bros. Discovery, Amazon MGM Studios, IMDb and 72 Films.

Into Film CEO Fiona Evans commented: "At Into Film we believe every child has the right to learn how to make film. Last year we launched Every Child a Filmmaker to give children across the UK the opportunity learn quality filmmaking skills to support their futures. Tonight is a celebration of our very first year - Thank you to all our partners across the industry and beyond for your support, and congratulations to all the talented young people who have made their first ever films. Together we are bringing new voices and new perspectives to the big screen".

Visit our Every Child a Filmmaker page to watch several of the youth-made shorts and behind-the-scenes footage of their creation, and watch our special one-year-on video at the top of this page.

Every Child a Filmmaker was launched in November 2023 as part of our 10th anniversary, and an ongoing commitment to give every young person the opportunity to bring their ideas to life through film.

The first year of funding supported and enabled 330 young people from across the UK to experience the transformational power of filmmaking. Of those young people, 92% said they felt more confident after taking part and 89% said it had increased their understanding of film production. The programme has a particular focus on supporting young people from under-served and under-represented communities, and 12 of the projects were delivered in Into Film and BFI priority areas.

If you would like to find out more about supporting Every Child a Filmmaker, contact us at ecaf@intofilm.org.

"Swatch is constantly exploring new projects that celebrate our belief in the power of creativity, self-expression, and joy of life - positive values that ignite the next generation of artists and storytellers", said Carlo Giordanetti, CEO of the Swatch Art Peace Hotel. "Our partnership with Into Film is all about inspiring young talents to share their stories and dreams, shaping a future driven by imagination. We're incredibly proud to support them on this journey, eager to see them unleash their talents and capture our imagination, curiosity, and hearts."

The five year 13 A-level students behind Dinosaur - Leah, Christina, Eva, Paree, and Lian - are from All Saints Catholic High School in Sheffield. They previously won our ‘Time to Inspire' storyboard competition (sponsored by Swatch), which invited young people to create a storyboard for an original short film. As part of their prize, the group were given the chance to turn their storyboard into a finished film, which was then screened to more than 365,000 pupils at 2,500 cinema screenings and events at the 2024 Into Film Festival. Their short film explores themes of diversity, acceptance and inclusion and tells the story of Matthew; a young boy on a journal of self-discovery and acceptance of his cultural heritage.

Meanwhile, two of the cast members behind Anna and the Ninja - Claudia and Samuel - were there representing the wider group of ten pupils from Castle Tower Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) School in Ballymena, Northern Ireland. Their short film is a creative, thought-provoking and funny story about standing up to bullies.

Into Film is supported by the BFI using National Lottery funding, thanks to National Lottery players, and the UK film industry through Cinema First. The National Lottery raises £36 million each week for good causes across the UK