Graduate Shorts Commission: Industry Panel Announced

As the deadline for the 2022 Graduate Shorts Commission nears, we’re pleased to announce this year’s submission panel of leading industry figures.  Welcome to Rebecca Mark-Lawson, Giles Healy, Tim Plester, Anthony Fletcher and Alix Taylor-Searle who will be judging across the scripted short (£5000), narrative film (£2000), animation(£2000) and documentary/experimental(£2000) categories. The commission, in partnership with Falmouth University’s School of Film & TV and the Sound/Image Cinema Lab, aims to support graduates and alumni to transition into working life and find opportunities to develop their skills in industry.

Rebecca Mark-Lawson

Rebecca runs BFI Vision Award-winning Tyke Films, a Film, TV, and VR Production Company developing original approaches to true stories, often exploring the intersection between documentary and fiction.  

Her most recent feature documentary POLY STYRENE: I AM A CLICHE won BIFA Best Documentary and Raindance Discovery Award and her previous feature documentary IRENE’S GHOST was also nominated for the BIFA Raindance Discovery Award; with Rebecca nominated for Breakthrough Producer.

Alumni of Sheffield Doc Fest Future Producers Scheme, she has also produced/exec produced numerous award-winning short films for Tyke, Film4, Channel 4, BFI, and BBC Films; most recently Turner Prize-nominated Andrew and Eden Kotting’s  DISEASED AND DISORDERLY. 

Tim Plester
An alumni of Dartington College of Arts, Tim Plester is an actor, and filmmaker. His award-winning documentary WAY OF THE MORRIS premiered at the 2011 SXSW Film Festival, and was selected by the UK Film Focus as one of the "Breakthrough" British films of that year. The film was co-directed by Rob Curry, with whom Tim has also made two subsequent feature documentaries; THE BALLAD OF SHIRLEY COLLINS, which premiered at the BFI London Film Festival in 2017 before being released theatrically in both the UK and the US, and SOUTHERN JOURNEY [REVISITED], which premiered at the 2019 Sheffield Doc/Fest and was screened by Sky Arts last year.

Giles Healy

Giles started his career in advertising as a runner at Ridley Scott & Associates. He went on to specialise in producing  TV commercials directed by feature film directors; including John Madden, Stephen Frears, Kirk Jones and Bryan Forbes.  In 2007, Giles joined Warner Bros and produced the Japan Prize winning kids TV series, WHAT’S YOUR NEWS?  A move to games developer, Mind Candy followed, where he developed and produced the animated feature film, MOSHI MONSTERS THE MOVIE.  Since then, he’s been involved in development of a number of feature projects and TV series and produced several shorts, including the award winning, FROM LIFE (2018), and the soon to be released MIDDLE WATCH (2022).

Anthony Fletcher

Anthony Fletcher is a screenwriter and director, based in Montevideo and London. He wrote the psychological horror feature film CENSOR with director Prano Bailey-Bond, (BFI, Film4, Film Wales, Silver Salt Films), which premiered at Sundance 2021 with a UK & US general release in Summer 2021. His first feature film as screenwriter was the psychological thriller THE BOAT PEOPLE (2007). He has written numerous prize-winning shorts including NASTY, the collaboration with Bailey-Bond which screened at over 100 festivals worldwide and the BFI funded short TRUCK, (d. Rob Curry), a pilot for the innovative disaster movie, currently in development. He directed the feature documentary NOWHERE PLACE, a search for Utopia in Latin America, opened in Latin America in 2019 and indie thriller SEGUNDA GENERACION (2017). Also co-directed docu-drama TEMPEST (2012) a London-set modern reinterpretation of Shakespeare's play. He currently has several UK/ Latino film projects in development including the UK horror/thriller To Be A Person (Film 4); a Franco-Peruvian time-bending thriller, THE THREE CROSSES, and FURY, an Anglo-Spanish post-Brexit drama. 

Alix Taylor-Searle

Alix is the Talent Executive for BFI NETWORK in the South West. Prior to joining at Watershed, she was with Calling the Shots, where she was Project Manager on New Creatives (South West), the BBC Arts and Arts Council talent development scheme.

While working on New Creatives, Alix oversaw the selection, production and delivery of audio, film and interactive projects from artists aged 16-30 for BBC platforms. Managing a network of regional partnerships across the South West to deliver mentoring, training, development and support to artists locally.

Previously she programmed the digital education courses and specialised film screenings of short film, artists moving image and alternative features for the multi-arts venue, Exeter Phoenix, as well as developing new talent through their short film commissioning schemes.