Hosted by XpoNorth Digital’s Screen and Broadcast Sector Specialist Jessica Fox, Wilma Smith (Talent Executive at Short Circuit) and Julia Taudevin (director/writer/actor on the First Features scheme, originally from Lewis) will answer questions about our First Features programme.
The event will take place from 12-1pm on Monday 11th December through Zoom. You can register for the event using the button at the bottom of this page. Questions for the session can be submitted through Eventbrite when registering for your tickets.
The deadline for First Features 2024 is 10am on Monday 8th January 2024. For full details about First Features, including application guidelines and forms, please click here.
Wilma Smith is a filmmaker with over 25 years of experience, making animations as a teenager, she went to Glasgow School of Art (2000) and specialised in making films shot on 16mm. She then switched over to digital filmmaking and by the early noughties, co-wrote and co-directed several zero budget digital features which screened internationally with Four Eyes and My Life as a Bus Stop nominated for the Michael Powell Award at EIFF. She went on to study further and graduated in MA Screenwriting at Screen Academy Scotland (2007). Wilma made a Scottish Documentary Institute’s Bridging the Gap (2016) and enjoys being able to work in all genres of storytelling. During Covid lockdown, she studied animation through Aardman Academy and she was commissioned as writer/director/animator to make stop motion The Jubilee (2021) through Sharp Shorts.
Wilma’s working background is in supporting and teaching through film which includes many years facilitating community arts projects for people of all ages, FE college and university lecturing and prior to joining the Short Circuit team, she was the Filmmakers Programme Manager at GMAC Film, developing new talent through commissioning scheme Little Pictures. She is the Co-vice President of Screen Talent Europe network which promotes international collaborations and filmmaker talent camps.
Julia Taudevin is a multi award-winning writer-director. After 15 years in theatre she began transitioning into screen through SFTN’s inaugural Write4Film programme in 2018. She has made 3 short films including the award-winning Duck Daze, has had 2 original TV dramas commissioned to pilot and has her first feature in development in Short Circuit. Her theatre hits include writing and directing the Dario Fo Award winning Blow Off and directing the multi-award winning play Beats by Kieran Hurley (now a feature of the same name directed by Brian Welsh). Julia is also co-Artistic Director for Glasgow-based production company Disaster Plan who toured their hit production of Move across 12 of Scotland’s most beautiful beaches last year. Julia grew up moving between Indonesia and the Isle of Lewis and now lives with her family in Glasgow.
XpoNorth Digital is HIE’s mechanism for specialist digital support for the creative economy across the Highlands and Islands. It is part of the Northern Innovation Hub, a project funded through the Inverness and Highland City Region Deal and is designed and delivered by Ironworks Venue. The Inverness and Highland City Region deal is a joint initiative supported by up to £315m of investment from the UK and Scottish Governments, The Highland Council, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and University of the Highlands and Islands, and is aimed at stimulating sustainable regional economic growth.
Recording notice
Please note that this workshop session will be recorded and added to our library of content at a later date. These recordings will be used by XpoNorth Digital for marketing and publicity in our publications, on our website and on our social media channels.
