We Are Out There, a documentary by Staffordshire University graduates Isaac Jones Robinson and Jonathan Eley, is being showcased at the online London Lift-Off Film Festival this month.
The pair, both from Norwich, graduated from the BSc (Hons) Film Production Technology course with first class honours in 2019 before completing a Master’s degree in Film Documentary this year.
Set in southern Spain, their documentary ‘We Are Out There’ follows a retired British couple who started up an association that rescues abandoned and abused animals.
Isaac said: “I can’t put into words how excited I am. It’s an honour that we are sharing the hard work of the Association de Animales de Berja and more people will see what Gill and Mick do. From the minute they wake up to the minute they go to sleep they are constantly putting the animals before themselves.”
As part of their undergraduate degree, Isaac and Jonathan spent 10 days filming the documentary in Spain with course mate Chris Jarman and a budget of just £400.
“We were able to take brilliant equipment from the store facilities at Staffordshire University and fly all the way out to southern Spain and this experience was unparalleled to anything we’ve ever done before.” Jonathan explained.
The London Lift-Off Film Festival runs throughout December and prizes including a will be awarded across a range of categories. ‘We Are Out There’ will be streamed online in the ‘New Voice Shorts’ category and tickets are available here.
Fiona Graham, Associate Professor of Film Technology, commented: “Making factual films on our courses is global. Isaac and Jon grasped the idea and created a beautiful and powerful piece of work. Their passion for documentary film has seen them creating more international films, now in the Netherlands, as part of their Masters course here at Staffordshire University.”
During their studies, Isaac and Jonathan also created a six-part documentary looking into the global plastic crisis, which is set to be released in early 2021, and the pair hope this will provide a platform for them to work in the film industry.
Isaac said: “One of the most valuable things taught to us by our lecturers when we created a project, was to get it out there to the masses, share it in festivals, social media, anywhere. Get your skills out there for people to see and make your mark on the industry.”
Jonathan added: “As well as all the knowledge we gained from a practical perspective of filmmaking I cannot commend our lecturers Fiona Graham, Paul Ottey, Lou Reynolds and Andy Paton enough for supporting us during our time in both our BSc course and Masters studies.”
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