The Film Agency for Wales and Creative Skillset announced today the 12 successful applicants from across the UK selected for the Film Junction: Market Mentors scheme.

Led by international film industry executive Angus Finney [pictured], the focus of the programme will be on developing film content with a view to its UK and international market and exploitation across various digital platforms, including soundtrack, broadcasting, games and web content.

The selected participants are:

  • Nicky Bentham (Neon Films)
  • Kristian Brodie (Rapid Eye Films)
  • Brendan Byrne (Hotshot)
  • Alastair Clark (Wellington Films)
  • Rachel Connors (Black Milk)
  • Catrin Cooper (Elfin Productions)
  • Jane Dauncey (Machine Productions)
  • John Giwa-Amu (Red and Black Films)
  • Emily Leo (Wig Wam Films)
  • Ivana Mackinnon (Stray Bear Productions)
  • Anthony Smith (Tornado Films)
  • Jonathan Taylor (Dan Films).

The scheme will run for six months from today and pairs the participants with established distribution executives as mentors. They include:

  • Ed Fletcher (Soda Pictures)
  • Kate Gardiner (Twentieth Century Fox, UK)
  • Nick Manzi (Lionsgate)
  • David Shear (Revolver Entertainment)
  • Julia Short (The Works)
  • Robert Walak (Momentum Pictures).

The Film Junction: Market Mentors programme is funded by the Creative Skillset Film Skills Fund as part of ‘A Bigger Future 2’, the UK film skills strategy and is the first time that they have supported a distributor mentored producer programme.

The programme is also sponsored by Wiggin Media Law Firm, Swansea Metropolitan University’s Creative Industries Research and Innovation Centre and Skillset Media Academy Wales.