Are you interested in short films? Do you want to be involved in programming our quarterly short film night?
Look no further! Filmed Up, our regular regional short film evening, is programmed by five of our audience members and we’re now recruiting a new panel.
You don’t need to be a filmmaker or have any experience of programming, but you do need to have an interest in short films.
You’ll also need to dedicate a significant amount of time to watching films and be prepared to give your honest opinions in a constructive manner.
You will programme 6 screenings (the first one will be in Dec 2024, the last one in Mar 2026) and gain knowledge and experience in programming, a good idea of the short films being made in the region, free tickets and more. Hopefully you will have fun too!
This opportunity is open to people over 18.
Read on for full details, if you have any question that is not answered the Frequently Asked Questions, please email us at filmedup@homemcr.org and we’ll do our best to help. We can arrange a quick phone or video call if this is more convenient. Video version of this information is at the bottom of this page
What does it involve?
Watching a lot of films, of course! Depending on the number of entries, it will range between 8 to 10 hours of film watching per screening. In the past few years, the lowest we had was 6 hours, the highest was 13 hours.
When you’ve watched the films you will discuss them with other members of the panel and together choose the ones you think would be good to show on the night.
All you need for that is to be open minded and able to express your opinion as well as listen to that of others. All opinions are welcome as long as they are constructive.
You will also be asked to write some feedback to filmmakers who haven’t been selected and who requested feedback.
In terms of practicalities, the main thing you need to consider is whether you have the time to watch all the films, attend all the meetings and write your feedback.
In general this is how the Filmed Up time table works:
- We usually give you a minimum of 2 and a half weeks (including 3 weekends) to watch all the films.
- We then do a meeting a week to do the selection. It usually takes minimum three meetings to select the films.
- Each meeting lasts between two and three hours, this is flexible according to what the panel decide works best for them. We set them up according to the panel availability so can decide it together. The only constraint is that we have around three weeks to make the selection.
- Once the selection is made, you will also be asked to write some feedback to filmmakers who haven’t been selected and who requested it. Don’t worry we’ll be there to help if you feel you need advice and give you plenty of time.
You will receive your first batch of films to watch mid September 2024 and we will start the meetings mid to end October. You will be programming 6 screenings. The last one will take place in March 2026. For a visual look at what this would look like, please have a look at the Filmed Up 2024 2025 Panel calendar
What do I get from it?
Knowledge and experience:
You will get a good picture of the short film scene in the North West, a better understanding about what you think makes an interesting film and what doesn’t work and get experience of programming film night for an audience. And hopefully you’ll have a lot of fun too!
Tangible benefits
- 2 free cinema tickets to use whenever you want
- 2 free tickets for each Filmed Up screening
- Reimbursement of your transport if you need to come to the building for meetings (and we’ll provide snacks and refreshments at meetings)
- invites and discounts to special film screenings, theatre productions and visual arts events – when available.
We believe HOME is a venue for everyone, and we wouldn’t want circumstances beyond your control preventing you from applying for this opportunity. If you need support with transport cost, child care cost or anything else we may not have thought about, we have an access fund to enable you to participate.
Just let us know in the relevant section in the form. This will not impact on our selection, it simply helps us make sure we provide you with the best experience possible.
If you have any further question regarding access or if the application does not meet your access needs, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us on filmedup@homemcr.org
How do I apply? What questions do you ask?
To get involved, simply fill in our online form before the deadline.
The form will ask for:
- Your details, including your age (as it is for over 18s only)
- A short paragraph about why you would like to be part of the Filmed Up Programming Team and what you can bring to the panel
- The kind of films you like. All answers are valid, just tell us what you like; don’t worry about what we want to hear. We love the range of taste and opinions in the team, it results in very varied screenings!
- Your usual availability. Please be realistic about this, watching the films ahead of the meeting and discussion them together is the really important part of the process (and also fun and interesting). It is crucial that you attend the programming meetings, which will be set according to the panel’s availability. Please don’t apply if you think you won’t be able to commit to them.
- Whether you have reliable internet access
You need to fill the form in one go as there is no option to save it half way through. If you would like a bit of time to prepare, please download the questions in word format
We will get back to everybody by email regardless of the decision.
If you are offered a place we will arrange for a quick video call to check
- if you are still interested,
- if the time commitment works for you
- if you have any further questions for us befor eyou commit.
FAQs
Where will the meetings take place?
The meetings will take place at HOME, with some of them taking place online, usually using Teams. We will cover your travel expenses for in person meetings.
Wether meetings are held online or in person is decided with the panel according to their availability but we usually try to have at least one of three meetings in person.
Do I need to have any experience?
No, but an interest in watching short films is always good as this is a big part of what you will have to do.
You need to be willing to watch the good, the bad and the ugly, and give an honest opinion in a constructive manner.
You don’t need to be a filmmaker or have any experience in programming. Members of the HOME team will be on hand to help you navigate through the world of film programming, and will give you advice and guidance, should you need or want it.
Do I need to live in Manchester?
No, you need to be within what you think is a reasonable commuting distance from HOME in Manchester. There is no strict geographical restriction on where you live to be part of the panel as long as it is in the North.
For some people a 10 mins commute is an effort, others don’t mind travelling for hours. So how you gage that is entirely up to you. As an indication, we would question the feasibility of you participating if it would take you more than an hour and a half to two hours to come to HOME.
We will not consider people who live abroad or at the other end of the UK.
It’s important you are able to travel to HOME to come to the meetings and to attend the screening – unless access requirements prevent you from doing so of course.
I would prefer to answer these questions by recording audio or video, is that ok?
Of course. Please still use the form so we have everything in the same place. You will still need to fill in your details and will then have the option to insert a link to your audio or video recording in the form.
It needs to be a link, not a file as we haven’t got the facility for you to upload files to the form directly yet. For instance you can upload it to YouTube (and make it “unlisted” if you don’t want anybody else to see or hear it), or send us a wetransfer link – whatever works for you. If you have any problem just get in touch and we’ll find a solution.
If have access requirements, will it prevent me for participating to the panel?
We strive to make all our activities accessible so please don’t hesitate to get in touch to discuss them further and we will do our best to make sure you can participate. You can either email us at filmedup@homemcr.org or ring 0161 228 7621 and ask to speak to Isabelle Croissant. As we are dependent on the materials that are summited to us, there will be some limitation but we will do our best. Here are a few example below.
I would not be able to attend meetings in person or the screening, because of an access requirement.
No problem, we can meet online and will make sure to share how the screening went and any feedback we have with you.
I require pre-warning about film content because I need to avoid potentially triggering material.
We ask all the filmmakers for any notable trigger warnings at the film submission stage. As we watch the films at the same time as you, we are dependent on what the filmmakers tell us. We can work with you to find the best way to navigate the process and avoid any unwanted content, although we cannot guarantee all films will be checked by our team in advance. Get in touch and we’ll find a way to make it work.
I require captions/subtitles
We are dependent on the submissions we get. To date, not all films that are submitted will come with captions or subtitles. Once we have received our submissions we can share the selection that have captions with you and see how it goes. If you require captions or subtitles we still encourage you to get in touch.
I require Audio description
Unfortunately, the vast majority of short films submitted don’t usually come with Audio Description. We are encouraging filmmakers to provide this.