Film at Brodick Castle

Following the success of the last two years, the McLellan Festival Youth Project is now focussing on film-making. Eighteen young people aged 15 -17 with an interest in acting, film technology, writing and directing are meeting at Brodick Castle every Tuesday until the end of November to learn the skills of plotting, screenplay-writing, storyboarding, acting, camera work, sound and editing. It will result in the production of an original fifteen- minute film, entirely the group’s own work, set in Brodick Castle as a location.

 Voice for Arran readers may remember the previous successful stage performances of Just a Hoodie and Pot Noodle at the High School, and the same talent and enthusiasm is going into the film project. As always, the McLellan Youth Project aims to give young people a free rein with their ideas, and the organisers and background tutors (Sarah Cook, Heather Gough and Ed O’Donnelly) are again amazed at the rich seam of creativity, expertise and talent displayed by the students. The commitment of the young people is engaging, and they are already a strong team with convincing ideas about the fictional film being created. It will have a period setting and will deal with some powerful ideas about forbidden love and the strictures of conventional society.

Moredetail aboutthe project will be released in the Voice over the next two months, including photographs of how work is progressing – without, of course, giving too much away! The project organisers are extremely grateful for practical support from the National Trust and funding from North Ayrshire, without which this valuable creative project would not have been possible.