BAFTA and Media Trust are delighted to announce that they have launched a joint Youth Mentoring Programme in Scotland. The scheme, which is supported by the RBS group, involves BAFTA members, BAFTA Award-winners and leading practitioners volunteering as mentors to disadvantaged young people on media projects, and is an integral part of BAFTA’s learning and events strategy.
BAFTA has recruited sixteen mentors in Scotland who will be working with young people from disadvantaged backgrounds in the Glasgow area for the next six months.
The mentors come from a range of disciplines across the film and TV industries. In Scotland, the participants include producer David Brown (Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang, Enigma), director/producer Michael Hines (Still Game, River City) and series/executive producer Colin Cameron (The Private Life of… Cows/Chickens/Pigs with Jimmy Doherty). In addition, several mentors are taking part from Raise the Roof Productions, a new production company launched this year by Kirstie Allsopp and Phil Spencer (Location, Location, Location) with Jane Muirhead and new BAFTA mentor Sarah Walmsley.
The mentors will offer their expertise to organisations in the Glasgow area including The Prince’s Trust, Fairbridge, and Scottish Families Affected by Drugs.
As well as engaging young people in productive and empowering activities, the programme aims to improve young people’s attitudes towards education, training and employment and to enhance their knowledge, skills and personal development, thus giving them new opportunities.
The Youth Mentoring Programme, which was also launched across England earlier this year, follows a successful London based-pilot programme in 2009. Both the mentors and the young people talked about the positive experience of the scheme.
“It was really, really powerful to meet young people who live just down the road but are living very different lives from me and to get a window into a different world. The experience was one of the best things I’ve done all year.”
_Basi Akpabio, Creative Director and BAFTA mentor_
The young people who have been involved in the programme so far have identified both personal and career-based positive outcomes, including increased confidence, new transferable and media-related skills, and a new willingness to engage in media-related training and education.
“Before starting I’d lost interest in my dreams. I was lost. I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I still don’t know but now I have options.” _Eddy, 24_
“It was absolutely fantastic to gain insight into the way that industry experts think, and all of the considerations that need to be made during each stage of development – I hope one day to be involved in games development as a profession.” _Andres, 17_
Although the general public tends to associate BAFTA with its film, television and video game awards ceremonies, its main function is as a charity.