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BAFTA Names Finalists In Children’s Film And Television Writing Competition

10 September 2014
BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Forum Logo

Three emerging writers will showcase their scripts at BAFTA on 27 September, with one selected to attend MIP Junior in October.

London, 10 September: The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), in partnership with Rocliffe, and supported by The London Book Fair, today announced the finalists of the first ever BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Forum focussed on children’s media, who will present their work to influential members of the film and television industries.

Finalists Alison Down from Liverpool, Amanda Duke from Twickenham and John Hickman from North Shields – who were selected by an industry jury of writers, commissioners, agents, producers and development executives – will see extracts from their scripts performed live by professional actors at a public showcase at BAFTA headquarters, 195 Piccadilly in London, on Saturday 27 September.

During the event, the writers will receive feedback on their work from Cheryl Taylor, Controller and Portfolio Head of CBBC, and celebrated screenwriter and playwright Emma Reeves ( ). One of the writers will then be selected to receive an expenses-paid trip and full delegate pass to the MIP Junior international children’s programming market in Cannes in October, benefitting from extensive industry introductions and networking opportunities, organised by The London Book Fair.

Cheryl Taylor said: “Taking the time to meet talented new writers is often the most enjoyable part of my job and it will be thrilling to see the scripts brought to life onstage at BAFTA. Children are a highly discerning audience and the journey for any children’s project from script to screen is a challenging one. I hope our professional experience will prove useful in helping the winners develop their work successfully.”

Emma Reeves said: “Hearing your script performed by actors is a very important part of a script writer’s development. The BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Forum is a valuable resource for emerging writers, and I’m delighted to be part of the first ever Forum to focus on scripts for young people. I can’t wait to read the scripts and to see them performed.”

The BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Forum is a long-running initiative which aims to give a platform to undiscovered screenwriters and help them to develop their careers.

Harvey Elliott, Chair of the BAFTA Children's Committee, said: “BAFTA is proud to showcase the work of three extremely talented writers at this inaugural BAFTA Rocliffe showcase for children’s film and television writing. The advice offered by our expert panel will be invaluable to our finalists as they develop their scripts and, for the overall winner, attending MIP Junior is a fantastic opportunity to make connections in the industry. We are delighted that our partnership with The London Book Fair has enabled such a beneficial prize.”

Jacks Thomas, Director of The London Book Fair, said of their collaboration with the BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Forum: “Writing for children is a special and wonderful talent, and one that will inspire the readers of tomorrow to engage creatively. We owe a big thank you to everyone who entered the competition and huge congratulations to Alison, Amanda and John on getting their work showcased – I cannot wait to see it!”

Farah Abushwesha, Founder of Rocliffe, said: “To be able to support this medium of screenwriting, which is a vital part of broadcasting and screening, is hugely exciting. There was a great response to this initiative from new writers which was reflected in the diversity of characters, story-telling and imagination.”

Public tickets for BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Forum: Children’s Film and Television are on sale now. To book tickets, go to www.bafta.org/whats-on/.

Event details:

‘BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Forum: Children’s Film and Television’

Saturday 27 September 2014, 16:30 at BAFTA, 195 Piccadilly, London


Biographies and project synopses of the writers:

Alison Down

Synopsis: A boy with Asperger syndrome who’s obsessed with pop star Tom Jones has to save his favourite black sheep, Delilah, from a fate worse than roast.

Alison Down grew up in Thundersley in Essex and now lives in Liverpool. Formerly a teacher, Alison started writing performance pieces for the young people in her GCSE drama classes. Since then she has written short films, plays and spoken word for children and young people, and is currently writing a children’s television comedy. Following success in short film, theatres and radio, and multiple prize and award wins, is Alison’s first feature film project.

Alison said: “I’m looking forward to learning more and talking about what I love doing with people who are talented, passionate and experienced in creating story for children…I’ve always written for children and young people. I know their world. It’s what I do.”

Amanda Duke

Synopsis: The world runs out of oil, forcing 13-year-old Simi to adapt to a simpler way-of-life, only for evacuated city kids to arrive in her village and complicate everything…

Amanda Duke hails from St. Albans in Hertfordshire and now lives in Twickenham, Middlesex. With a background in film casting in London and Los Angeles, Amanda has been reading scripts for many years, and writing her own since 2011. Her first feature script was selected for The Script Factory’s 2011 Development Scheme, and placed second in the Shore Scripts Competition in 2012. She is currently working on a feature film about the life of bestselling author Sandra Brown.

Amanda said: “The children’s forum will be a one-of-a-kind platform – the judging panel alone was a Who’s Who of top industry names so I’m excited to see who will be there on the night. Script readings are always invaluable, so I’m looking forward to seeing my scenes performed and keen to hear subsequent feedback!”

John Hickman

Synopsis: A teenage boy attempts to take his younger brother to see their estranged mum, only for monsters to derail their train and invade the UK.

John Hickman grew up in Wolverhampton and now lives in North Shields, just outside Newcastle. After practising as a social worker for several years, he studied for an MA in Creative Writing at Newcastle University. John has written both children’s and adult novels, run screenwriting and film-making courses for young people and his first play, was performed at last year’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival. John is studying for a PhD in social work, focussing on the media representation of looked-after children, and his first feature film, a micro-budget horror, is currently in production.

John said: “It feels amazing to have been selected for such a prestigious competition. I'm really excited to see my work brought to life, and can't wait to see where this experience takes me.”


Further Information

For further information, please contact:

Daisy Jestico at Kindred Agency
Tel: 020 7010 0834
Email: [email protected]

Hollie Rendall at Kindred
Tel: 020 7010 0829
Email: [email protected]


About BAFTA

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts is an independent charity that supports, develops and promotes the art forms of the moving image by identifying and rewarding excellence, inspiring practitioners and benefiting the public. In addition to its Awards ceremonies, BAFTA has a year-round Learning & Events programme that offers unique access to some of the world’s most inspiring talent through workshops, masterclasses, lectures, scholarships and mentoring schemes, connecting with audiences of all ages and backgrounds across the UK, Los Angeles and New York. BAFTA relies on income from membership subscriptions, individual donations, trusts, foundations and corporate partnerships to support its ongoing outreach work. For further information, visit http and www.bafta.org/guru.

About Rocliffe

Rocliffe created a series of events, notably the New Writing Forums, now held at BAFTA and renamed the BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Forum. It has a popular blog Farah’s Rocliffe Notes which is being published by Kamera Books in Nov 2014. The Rocliffe Notes – A Professional Approach for Screenwriters & Writer-Directors. It is a compendium of opinions sourced from 140 interviews with award winning writers, directors, producers and industry players. With its inception in 2000 by founding member Farah Abushwesha and a team of dedicated volunteers including award winning director Susan Jacobson and casting directors Laura Dickens CDG, Catherine Willis and Kahleen Crawford. The format of the New Writing Forum is truly original – following a public script call-out in the months before the event, three diverse pieces are selected from the hundreds received and performed live by professional actors in front of a live audience. The pieces are framed by especially composed music by new composers from Air Edel and digital art. The event showcases undiscovered talent – a must attend for agents and talent scouts alike; development focused discussions generated by the readings; exposure to and advice from experienced industry members; feedback from an audience and an invaluable method to test out new concepts and material. Given the often isolating nature of the industry, the forums create the ideal environment for networking as well as unknown writers the chance to get their work seen and heard. Past featured writers include James Dormer, Jack Thorne, Josh Appignanesi and Claire Wilson.

About The London Book Fair (LBF)

The London Book Fair (LBF) is the global marketplace for rights negotiation and the sale and distribution of content across print, audio, TV, film and digital channels. Taking place every Spring in the world’s premier publishing and cultural capital, this landmark event is an opportunity to explore, understand and capitalise on the innovations shaping the publishing world of the future. LBF brings you direct access to customers, content and emerging markets. LBF 2015, the 44th Fair, will take place from Tuesday 14-Thursday 16 April 2015, Olympia London. LBF’s London Book and Screen Week will run for the second year, with the book fair as the pivotal three day event within a five day programme. London Book and Screen Week will open with LBF’s Publishing for Digital Minds Conference on Monday 13 April, the day before LBF opens. Mexico is Market Focus country in 2015, following Korea in 2014.