GBCT members are invited to support and collaborate with Screen Sisters CIC

Please see the content below. This is open to any gender who wishes to help and who is sensitive to this groups needs We wanted to share some positive updates: MR Helix, Pixeleyed Pictures and Futures in Film CIC are supporting Screen Sisters CIC which is led by Nina Karwalska who has been supporting our Ecosystem behind the scenes.

Next week we will deliver a production simulation at 3 Mills Studios in East London as part of the continued development of Screen Sisters CIC which is a voluntary-led initiative supporting women from faith communities.

We understand the current state of the industry, it has always been difficult to break into, work isn't guaranteed, nor is the industry suitable for everyone.

Screen Sisters is not positioned as a simple “route into jobs.” this initiative focuses on the love for the craft, storytelling, and community building.

Participants can develop technical and soft skills, gain on-set experience, build their professional CV and credits.

Dates at 3 Mills Studios:

• Mon 2 March – Technical prep & industry insight

• Tue 3 March – Rehearsal & workflow testing

• Wed 4 March – Shoot & de-rig

The process also builds transferable skills (technical practice, communication, planning, teamwork and professional discipline) that strengthen career options both within and beyond the screen industries.

This is a controlled production simulation focused on dynamic cinematography and staged action choreography (Silver Sabers Academy), designed as a practical learning and professional development environment.

In a climate where genuine on-set opportunities are rare particularly for these communities our production simulations provide structured, supervised exposure to real workflows and responsibility, alongside guidance from experienced practitioners.

We are inviting support and collaboration in the form of:

• Industry professionals willing to mentor, supervise or drop in

• Technical partners interested in structured education and R&D integration

• Companies and organisations interested in aligned inclusion / skills pathways

• Community stakeholders who want to support representation both behind the camera and on-screen.

The following articles featuring Futures in Film CIC are worth checking out:

https://britishcinematographer.co.uk/futures-in-film/

https://productionguild.com/news-new-releases/news/meet-the-finalists-of-the-duke-of-edinburgh-film-tv-inclusion-award-2025-futures-in-film-cic/

We couldn't do this without the support from within the industry; your guidance and support is always welcome and greatly appreciated.

I’d be more than happy to provide further information about the Futures in Film CIC and Screen Sisters CIC initiative.

Thank you all for everything you do in the industry.

Wishing you all the very best for the future ahead.

Kindest regards

Rizwan Wadan

Director - Specialist Cinematographer

Phone 01753785637 Mobile 07985333362

Website www.mrhelix.co.uk   Email riz@mrhelix.co.uk

Happy Birthday Bill Broomfield - 13 February

Bill Broomfield with some crew members on Motherland

Happy Birthday Bill Broomfield, Bafta winning and Emmy nominated Director and DP on many and varied iconic television shows ranging from Motherland, the IT Crowd, The Bill, Blackadder, Dalziel and Pascoe, Horizon, Newsnight, Panorama and many others over the course of a nearly fifty year career. Bill was always destined for the film industry, having started making Super 8 Films when he was still at school.

After A Levels he studied at the London College of Printing for two years and then applied to the BBC in 1977, when he was 20. He and five others were selected from hundreds of candidates and he started out at the Film Department of Television Film Studios, now Ealing Studios. He worked his way up from Trainee to Clapper Loader to Focus Puller to Operator and was a DoP by the time he was 27.

He started out in Documentaries, one of the many memorable ones being Inside Chernoybl, made for Horizon. He also worked on a number of projects for Arena in Music and Arts, including “Your Honour, I Object!”, a courtroom drama featuring Bob Guccione versus Ken Russell in a breach of contract case, regarding disagreements over a script for a film version of Daniel Defoe's "Moll Flanders". 

Bill left the BBC in 1995 and became a freelancer in order to work in drama. His first job was on “A Mind to Murder” for Anglia Television. Roy Marsden starred as Scotland Yard Commander Adam Dalgleish. Bill worked steadily on a great variety of productions between 1997 and 2006. One particularly impressive and enjoyable assignment was for the BBC World Service in 2004, helping to set up a Cambodian TV series along the lines of Casualty.

He worked as a drama consultant, training Cambodians to produce their own TV shows. A lovely spin off from this was that when the BBCWS project was finished, he helped to create an independent called KMF (Khmer Mekong Films) making films for cinema and TV, which is still going today more than 20 years later. An achievement to be proud of!

Bill’s final series was Count Arthur Strong, which he worked on from 2013 – 2017. He’s now enjoying his retirement and learning to play the drums. In his own words: “I was never bored, thanks to the experience I gained from working at BBC TFS, where I was required to work on all genres.

Bill on Count Arthur Strong with Steve Delaney (L)

I enjoyed the variety of being able to do a documentary one week and a drama shoot the next. I travelled all over the world and had great fun with great people.”

Congratulations to Pete Robertson, ACO, GBCT - Operators Award Winner of the TV Award for Mussolini- Son of the Century

Watch Pete Robertson's acceptance speech

Mussolini - Son of the Century, is a biographical historical drama television series directed by Joe Wright, based on the 2018 novel M: Son of the Century by Antonio Scurati. Starring Luca Marinelli as Benito Mussolini, the series centres on the early political career of Mussolini in the 1920s. It premiered at the 81st Venice International Film Festival on 5 September 2024 and began airing on Sky Atlantic on 10 January 2025.

Source: Wikipedia